From AI skills to startup truths: What’s shaping work now

This month, we’re diving into the skills and shifts shaping the world of work right now. You’ll find a clear roadmap to build real AI fluency (no technical background required), a powerful conversation about how we support caregivers in the workplace, startup lessons and fresh insights on what new grads are facing in today’s competitive job market.

Build the AI skills that help you stand out

You've probably heard the advice: “You need to learn AI.” But what does that even mean? Should you master ChatGPT? Tackle Microsoft Copilot? Use it to write emails? Automate your calendar?

The truth is, most of this advice is vague, but that’s actually good news. It means you still have time to build real AI literacy before you're expected to use these tools every day.

Whether you are searching for a new job, looking to build your skills or preparing for the future of work, LinkedIn has curated a list of free AI courses to support you (available until the end of July).

You can check out all the courses here alongside the latest episode of #GetHired with Andrew Seaman.

Rethinking how we support care in the workplace

While you're building the skills for the future of work, it's just as important to reflect on who is being supported in that future.

In the latest episode of #ConversationsThatMatter, LinkedIn Social Impact explores one of the most overlooked — yet essential — topics in today’s workplace: caregiving.

Caregivers, especially women, are managing both full-time jobs and full-time family responsibilities. This often leads to missed promotions, wage gaps, and even forced exits from the workforce, not because of personal shortcomings, but due to systemic gaps in workplace support.

LinkedIn’s Cammie Erickson joins Jennifer Stybel of Pivotal Ventures to discuss what can be done and why building a fairer future of work means rethinking how we value and support care. Discover the episode here.

What really makes a startup succeed?

In the season finale of Building One, Garry Tan, President and CEO of Y Combinator, joins Tomer Cohen to talk about what really separates successful founders from the rest. It’s not polish, hype, or visibility. It’s time spent on what matters: your users and your product.

“Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, if you look at startups that succeed versus fail, in all the cases where there's success, there's an obsessive focus on users, products, and specifically problems that are being solved. Everything else is just sort of lip service,” Tan says.

Hear how Tan sees past the pitch deck to what really matters, drawing from his experience with companies like Airbnb, DoorDash, Instacart, and Coinbase. 

Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://lnkd.in/ecD4E3Bi

Listen on Spotify: https://lnkd.in/epGZNvkx

What new grads need to know about today’s job market

As June begins, hundreds of thousands of new grads are entering a labor market that’s more competitive and more uneven than in recent years.

In the latest edition of State of the Labor Market, Dr. Kory Kantenga, Head of Economics, Americas at LinkedIn, breaks down the shifting dynamics of entry-level hiring and what it means for Gen Z workers and early-career professionals.

Some standout findings:

📉 Entry-level hiring is slowing across the U.S., UK, and Germany

📈 Job competition is rising in nearly every major city, especially in D.C.

🏥 Healthcare and hospitality are bright spots amid the slowdown

😟 Confidence is lowest among U.S. Gen Z workers

For anyone supporting new grads or navigating the market yourself this is essential reading. Discover the full analysis here.

New grads, meet your job hunt shortcut

Job hunting shouldn’t feel like a full-time job but for many grads, it does. LinkedIn Career Expert Zara Easton discusses what makes the process so frustrating for first-time jobseekers with Peter Wood from The Graduate Guide.

The good news? LinkedIn is launching an AI-powered job search tool that takes the guesswork out of filters and keywords. Just describe the kind of job you want in your own words and let AI help surface roles that match.

Watch the clip and explore how AI might just make your first job search a little easier.

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