Managing your profile may seem like a full-time job these days, and in the virtual world where you can look anybody up, it is very easy for a profile to be built by others, of you, without your engagement.
So I’m going to share some thoughts on professional profile management. These are just my opinions, not formal advice, but a reflection of nearly 20 years in the NHS as a doctor.
As a minimum, if people know your name they can look you up on the GMC register, which shows your name, clinical practice status, specialist register entry, educational supervisor accreditation, and any other history. From the information available your place of work will be evident, your age can be crudely estimated, and your status evaluated.
Further searches of names will take you to posters, presentations, newspaper articles, social media profiles and others. This is why I think managing your professional profile is important. I’ve written separately on Social Media, but for the purposes of this page the focus is on what you need to try to do online and how you want to present yourself.
One of the key things in any industry is reputation. Certainly in medicine, having a good reputation is important as a trainee/locum rotating around hospitals, but also as a substantive clinician where your reputation will impact how your patients and colleagues view you.
When considering my own professional profile, I have used LinkedIn, ResearchGate and Google Scholar to maintain my academic and professional activities online. I use it as an opportunity to engage with others but also demonstrate my activity. This website is an opportunity for me to share a more personalised version of myself. I am on X/Twitter, mainly for general banter and a bit of discussion, but nothing too polarising, hopefully — though with social media everything has the potential to become polarising.
A key issue many doctors have is being pushed into not appreciating their own achievements. Once I applied for a post where I gave my application form to a Medical Director and a Finance Director. The Medical Director suggested my application was arrogant, but the Finance Director said I was really underselling myself. I took the Finance Director’s advice and secured the post I applied for. The key thing with your profile and how you present yourself is to acknowledge and be proud of your achievements, but remain humble and reflective. Stating that you’ve done or achieved something isn’t arrogant if it’s a fact from which you can demonstrate personal and professional growth.
Developing portfolio careers is also part of the changing landscape of healthcare. Presenting yourself as a well-rounded individual with interests, beliefs and opinions outside of medicine is common, but you have to be aware of it backfiring. We’ve seen plenty of influencers win public support by sharing vulnerable stories, only for an ill-timed post to undo whatever positive response they had.
Overall, remember that your reputation is one of the most important things you will trade on. If it gets sullied in any way, you have to work hard to get it back. I would never advocate people being silenced, but as adults in a professional world we have to bear in mind that our beliefs, opinions, attitudes and behaviour could impact how we are perceived — and this may affect job prospects for the future.
An interesting viewpoint that came up during my training: during preparation for consultant interviews, one of the key questions everyone on the panel asks themselves is whether the person they’re interviewing is someone they can work with for the next 20+ years. Your entire specialty training period is like one big interview, so reputation matters.