Why Do LinkedIn Recommendations Matter for Veterans?

LinkedIn recommendations are written endorsements from people who've worked with you. They sit on your profile permanently, visible to every recruiter and hiring manager who views it. Unlike skills endorsements (which are one-click and carry little weight), recommendations are paragraphs that describe what it's like to work with you, what you delivered, and why someone should hire you.

For veterans, recommendations solve a specific problem: credibility translation. A recruiter looking at your profile sees military job titles and acronyms they might not fully understand. A recommendation from a former commanding officer, project lead, or colleague that says "this person managed a $5M budget, led a team of 30, and delivered every project on time" puts your experience in concrete terms that civilian hiring managers trust immediately.

After helping 15,000+ veterans through BMR, I've noticed a clear pattern. Profiles with four or more quality recommendations get significantly more recruiter outreach than profiles with zero. Recruiters use recommendations as a trust signal, especially when evaluating candidates from unfamiliar backgrounds like the military. Your recommendations do the vouching that your resume can't.

If you haven't set up your broader profile yet, start with our full LinkedIn guide for transitioning military to get the foundation right. Then come back here to add the social proof that makes recruiters act.

Who Should You Ask for LinkedIn Recommendations?

The people you ask matter as much as what they write. A recommendation from someone with a recognizable title or company carries more weight with recruiters than one from a peer with no context. Here's who to prioritize and why.

Former Supervisors and Commanding Officers

These are your highest-value recommendations. A supervisor's endorsement carries authority because they evaluated your performance firsthand. Ask officers or senior NCOs who directly supervised you and can speak to specific results. "I supervised SSgt Johnson for 2 years" is stronger than a general character reference from someone who barely worked with you.

If your former supervisor is now in a civilian role, even better. Their civilian title adds context that recruiters understand. A recommendation from "VP of Operations at Lockheed Martin (former Battalion Commander)" bridges both worlds.

Peers Who Moved to Civilian Roles

Fellow service members who've already transitioned to civilian careers are excellent recommenders. They can write about your military performance using civilian language because they've already made that translation in their own careers. Their current civilian titles also add credibility to your profile.

Civilian Colleagues from Joint Assignments

If you worked with civilian contractors, government employees, or partner organizations during your service, those contacts are gold for recommendations. A recommendation from a civilian who worked alongside you in a military environment validates that you can operate effectively in civilian work settings.

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How Do You Ask for a Recommendation Without It Being Awkward?

This is where most veterans stall. Asking someone to write about you feels uncomfortable, especially coming from a culture where self-promotion isn't exactly encouraged. Here's how to make the request professional, easy for the other person, and likely to produce a useful recommendation.

Send a direct message on LinkedIn or email. Don't use the LinkedIn "request a recommendation" button cold. It feels impersonal and puts people on the spot. Instead, reach out personally first, explain why you're asking them specifically, and make it easy to say yes.

Here's a template that works:

"Hi [Name], I hope you're doing well. I'm building out my LinkedIn profile as I transition to [industry/role type]. I really valued working with you during [specific project or assignment], and I think a recommendation from you would carry a lot of weight with recruiters in my target field. Would you be willing to write a brief recommendation on LinkedIn? I'm happy to share a few bullet points about our work together to make it easier. No pressure at all if the timing doesn't work."

The key elements: you explain why them specifically, you reference shared work, you offer to make it easy, and you give them an out. Most people say yes when you make the ask this specific and low-friction.

What Makes a LinkedIn Recommendation Actually Useful?

Not all recommendations help equally. A vague "great person to work with" recommendation is barely better than no recommendation at all. A useful recommendation includes specific details that a recruiter can map to job requirements.

Specificity Over Generality

The best recommendations mention specific projects, measurable results, and observable skills. "John managed a 45-person team through a facility relocation, coordinating logistics across 4 departments and completing the move 2 weeks ahead of schedule with zero equipment losses" tells a recruiter exactly what John can do. "John is a dedicated leader who always gives 100%" tells them nothing they can use.

When you send bullet points to your recommender, include numbers, timelines, and outcomes. This gives them concrete material to work with rather than forcing them to remember details from years ago.

Civilian Language

If your recommender is still in the military and writes in military language, the recommendation loses value with civilian recruiters. You can gently guide this by including translated bullet points. Instead of "supervised subordinate personnel in support of battalion-level operations," suggest "led a team responsible for logistics operations supporting a 700-person organization."

How Many Recommendations Do You Need?

Aim for a minimum of four recommendations to start. Two from supervisors and two from peers or colleagues gives you a balanced set of perspectives. Once you have four, adding more over time strengthens your profile, but four is the threshold where recruiters start taking notice.

Quality beats quantity every time. Five specific, detailed recommendations outperform fifteen generic ones. If you're getting recommendations that sound like evaluation bullet comments ("top 10% of peers," "unlimited potential"), ask the recommender to add a specific example or project to make it concrete.

Spread your recommendations across different roles and time periods if possible. A recommendation from your last assignment, one from a deployment, and one from a training environment shows consistency across different contexts. This matters because civilian employers want to know you perform well in varied situations, not just one specific role.

Should You Give Recommendations in Return?

Yes, and do it proactively. Writing a recommendation for someone before asking for one creates goodwill and often prompts them to reciprocate without you even asking. It also shows recruiters who view your profile that you're an engaged professional who supports others, not just someone collecting endorsements.

When writing recommendations for others, apply the same principles: be specific, use civilian language, and mention measurable results. A thoughtful recommendation you write for a colleague reflects well on both of you.

The reciprocity approach works especially well with fellow veterans who are also transitioning. Reach out, offer to write their recommendation first, and mention that you'd appreciate one in return when they have time. This turns an uncomfortable ask into a mutual exchange that benefits both profiles.

What Should You Do After Receiving Recommendations?

Once recommendations start coming in, manage them intentionally. LinkedIn lets you reorder recommendations on your profile. Put the strongest, most specific ones at the top where recruiters see them first. A detailed recommendation from a supervisor should appear above a general one from a peer.

You can also hide recommendations that don't serve your current career goals. If someone wrote a recommendation focused on a skill set you're moving away from, hiding it keeps your profile focused on where you're headed, not where you've been.

Thank every person who writes a recommendation. A short message saying "Thank you for taking the time to write that recommendation. I really appreciate it." maintains the relationship and keeps the door open for future networking.

As your career evolves, continue collecting recommendations from civilian colleagues and managers. A profile with only military recommendations tells one chapter. Adding civilian recommendations as you progress shows growth and builds ongoing credibility with recruiters in your field.

For more strategies on making your profile stand out to recruiters, including headline optimization and content posting, check out our guide on building visibility on LinkedIn during your transition.

BMR's LinkedIn optimization tool helps you build a profile that works alongside strong recommendations. The tool handles headline, summary, and experience section optimization, while your recommendations add the human validation that makes recruiters reach out. Both pieces work together to turn your LinkedIn profile from a static page into an active recruiting tool.

How Do You Keep Collecting Recommendations as Your Career Grows?

Your recommendation strategy shouldn't stop after your initial transition. Every new role, project, or collaboration is an opportunity to add a fresh recommendation to your profile. The most effective LinkedIn profiles show a progression of recommendations over time, from military colleagues through each stage of your civilian career.

At each job, identify one or two people you work closely with and build a genuine working relationship. After completing a successful project together or hitting a major milestone, ask if they'd be willing to write a recommendation. The ask feels natural when it's tied to a specific shared accomplishment rather than coming out of nowhere.

Timing matters. Ask within two weeks of a project's completion or a positive performance review while the details are fresh. Waiting six months means they'll struggle to remember specifics, and the recommendation will end up generic. Strike while the accomplishment is still top of mind for both of you.

For veterans who've been in their civilian career for a while, go back and ask current or recent managers to add recommendations. A profile showing only military-era recommendations can look stale if you've been in the civilian workforce for years. Mixing older military recommendations with recent civilian ones shows continuous professional growth and keeps your profile current.

Consider asking clients, vendors, or cross-functional partners for recommendations too. A recommendation from someone outside your direct team, such as a client you served well or a partner you collaborated with, adds a different perspective that hiring managers value. It shows you build strong relationships beyond your immediate reporting chain.

Your LinkedIn profile, recommendations included, is a living document. Keep it updated as you grow. Pair strong recommendations with a well-optimized profile using a sharp elevator pitch that matches your LinkedIn headline, and you've built a professional presence that works for you around the clock.

Optimize yours: Use the free LinkedIn Optimization tool to translate your military experience for recruiters.