Jan 20, 2026
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12
min read
By Jan Nordh, Nordh Executive Search – Executive Headhunter for IT & Cybersecurity Sales in the DACH Region
Apply Less. Get Found More.
The LinkedIn Strategy Recruiters Actually Use in DACH (Germany, Austria, Switzerland)
Many senior GTM and sales professionals are seeing the same frustrating pattern right now: strong track record, strong logos, real wins—yet fewer inbound messages, fewer interviews, and noticeably less traction from applications.
In most cases, the issue is not competence. It’s visibility and positioning.
In the DACH region (Germany, Austria, Switzerland) and increasingly across the Nordics, LinkedIn has become the primary sourcing channel for Talent Acquisition and Executive Search. Recruiters don’t read profiles like a CV. They search them like a database—and then scan them at speed.
If LinkedIn (and the recruiter) can’t understand what you are in the first 5–10 seconds, you won’t get rejected. You’ll simply be missed.
LinkedIn Is “Google for Recruiters” (Especially in DACH)
Let’s make this practical.
Recruiters don’t type poetic queries. They type functional ones:
“Sales Director SaaS Munich”
“Account Executive Cybersecurity DACH”
“Enterprise AE Cloud Security”
“PreSales / Solutions Engineer Security”
“GTM Director Nordics”
That’s the reality of modern sourcing: exact match beats creativity.
If your profile title reads “Commercial Growth Leader” while the market searches for “Sales Director,” you might be excellent—but you’re harder to retrieve. Recruiters don’t have time to decode you. They move on.
Key takeaway: You win by being understood, not by being “unique.”
The 10-Second Rule: How Recruiters Decide
Here’s what most candidates underestimate: when a recruiter clicks on your profile, you have roughly 5–10 seconds to answer one question:
“Is this person relevant—yes or no?”
This isn’t unfair. It’s operational reality.
In Executive Search, I may scan 30–80 profiles in a short session. If your positioning isn’t instantly clear, your profile becomes cognitive effort—and effort is the enemy of fast sourcing.
What must be clear immediately
In DACH, senior hiring is still relatively conservative and credibility-driven. Your profile needs to communicate three things instantly:
Role (Sales Director, Account Executive, VP Sales, PreSales Lead, etc.)
Domain (Cybersecurity, SaaS, Cloud, Networking, Data, etc.)
Scope (Enterprise/Mid-Market/Public Sector, DACH/Nordics, global accounts, etc.)
Think of your profile like a highway sign: it needs to be readable at speed.
Proof It Works: Visibility Isn’t About “More Views”—It’s About the Right Views
Here’s a real example from my work (anonymized).
A Director/VP-level candidate re-positioned their profile—no reinvention, no “personal brand theatrics,” just clarity on role, domain, and outcomes.
Within 8 weeks, the impact was measurable:
57% of profile views came from Director level and above
Geographic targeting shifted strongly toward DACH
The interview pipeline moved into multiple VP-level final rounds
That’s the point. Not “more reach.”
More of the right decision-makers.
The Most Common DACH Profile Mistake: Responsibilities Instead of Outcomes
A very “German” profile style is still widespread:
“Responsible for…”
“In charge of…”
“Supported…”
“Worked on…”
The problem is simple: responsibilities don’t differentiate. Outcomes do.
The principle
Outcomes make you credible. Responsibilities make you replaceable.
Especially in Sales / GTM / Cybersecurity / Enterprise Tech, you don’t need long text. You need a few high-impact, measurable lines that show you produce results.
Examples (without exposing confidential details):
“Built pipeline from zero in a new territory; progressed multiple C-level deals”
“Stabilized and expanded strategic accounts through executive alignment”
“Reactivated partner motion; structured co-sell and joint pipeline”
“Improved forecast discipline and deal qualification across the team”
You can avoid customer names. You can use ranges, percentages, or “order-of-magnitude” metrics. The goal isn’t bragging—it’s clarity.
Content for Senior Leaders: No Influencer Show—Just “Proof of Thinking”
Many senior candidates in DACH tell me:
“I don’t want to post. It feels like self-promotion.”
I understand—and I agree with the concern. But visibility does not require performance. It requires signal.
The best approach is what I call Proof of Thinking:
a short insight from your market
a deal pattern you’ve seen repeatedly
a common objection and how you handle it
a leadership decision that changed outcomes
a lesson learned (without naming companies or customers)
One solid post per week can be enough—because it demonstrates that you think like a leader, not just that you held a title.
A Practical 48-Hour Reset (Fast, Strategic, Realistic)
If you want quick impact without overhauling everything, focus on two days of high-leverage work:
Day 1: Become instantly understandable
Make sure your headline and the first lines of your About section communicate:
Role
Domain
Scope
No jargon. No creative titles. Recruiter-friendly language.
Day 2: Turn your profile into an “outcome profile”
Add 2–3 outcome lines per major role—short, precise, measurable.
Then add one proof element to Featured (simple but credible):
a short framework, a 30-60-90 plan, a talk, a one-pager, a case summary.
Week 1: Activate trust
Publish one Proof-of-Thinking post. Not motivational. Not generic. One real insight with substance.
The goal isn’t to “play LinkedIn.”
The goal is to be discoverable and credible when the right people land on your profile.
About the author
Jan Nordh is an Executive Search Consultant with over 40 years in the IT industry — including more than 18 years as a headhunter.
Before founding Nordh Executive Search in Munich in 2007, he spent two decades in enterprise sales and built five US tech startups across Europe.
Today, Jan is one of the leading headhunters for Cybersecurity, Cloud, and AI Sales roles in the DACH region.
His candidate success rate exceeds 97%, driven by his unique combination of market insight, personal network, and hands-on experience on both sides of the hiring table.
