You've been asked to write a LinkedIn recommendation for a colleague—and now you're staring at a blank text box wondering what to actually say. You want to help, but generic praise like "she's a great team player" isn't going to move the needle for anyone's career. If you're searching for how to write a LinkedIn recommendation for a colleague with examples that actually make a difference, you're in the right place.
This guide gives you a step-by-step framework, role-specific templates, and the most common mistakes to avoid—so your recommendation gets noticed by hiring managers and genuinely helps the person you're vouching for.
Why LinkedIn Recommendations Still Matter in 2026
With AI-generated profiles and automated endorsements flooding the platform, authentic, well-written recommendations have become more valuable, not less. According to LinkedIn's own data, profiles with recommendations receive significantly more profile views and are more likely to appear in recruiter searches.
Here's the thing: most recommendations are forgettable. They're vague, they sound like a job description, and they don't tell a story. A recommendation that stands out does three things:
- Establishes your credibility as someone who actually worked with this person
- Tells a specific story that illustrates a key skill or quality
- Makes a clear case for why this person deserves the opportunity they're pursuing
That's the bar you're writing to. Let's get you there.
How to Write a LinkedIn Recommendation for a Colleague: The 5-Part Framework
Every strong recommendation follows a predictable structure. Think of it as a mini-narrative with a beginning, middle, and end.
Part 1: Establish Your Relationship (1–2 sentences)
Start by telling the reader who you are in relation to this person. This isn't about you—it's about lending credibility to your perspective.
"I managed Sarah directly for three years on the enterprise sales team at [Company]."
"Jake and I collaborated closely as peers on a cross-functional product launch in 2024."
Skip the "I am pleased to recommend..." opener. It's filler that wastes your reader's first impression.
Part 2: State Your Overall Assessment (1–2 sentences)
Lead with your strongest, most specific claim about this person. Don't bury the lede.
"In my 15 years of managing sales teams, Marcus is the most analytically rigorous account executive I've ever worked with."
This sets the tone and gives the reader a reason to keep going.
Part 3: Tell a Specific Story (3–5 sentences)
This is the most important part of the entire recommendation—and the part most people skip. Don't just list traits. Show them in action.
Pick one concrete example: a project they led, a problem they solved, a moment that encapsulates what makes them exceptional. Include context, what they did, and what the outcome was.
"When our largest client threatened to churn in Q3 2025, Marcus took full ownership of the recovery plan. He audited six months of account data, identified three unresolved friction points the original team had missed, and personally led a re-onboarding process that not only retained the account but expanded it by 40%."
Numbers, outcomes, and specifics are your best friends here.
Part 4: Highlight a Soft Skill or Character Trait (2–3 sentences)
Round out the picture with something that reveals who this person is beyond their technical abilities. Hiring managers and future collaborators want to know what it's like to work with someone.
"Beyond her technical skills, Priya has a rare ability to stay calm and bring clarity to ambiguous situations. During a particularly chaotic product pivot, she was the person every team member went to for direction—even though it wasn't officially her role."
Part 5: Close With a Clear Endorsement (1–2 sentences)
End decisively. Don't hedge. Tell the reader exactly what kind of opportunity this person deserves.
"I'd recommend David without hesitation for any senior engineering leadership role. Any team lucky enough to work with him will be better for it."
How to Write a LinkedIn Recommendation for a Manager
Recommending a manager requires a slightly different angle. You're speaking to their leadership style, their ability to develop others, and their strategic thinking—not just their individual output.
What to emphasize:
- How they coached or developed you
- Decisions they made under pressure
- How they built team culture or trust
- Their ability to communicate upward and downward
Manager Recommendation Example
I reported to Kevin Chen for two years while he led our data engineering team at Acme Corp, and I can say without hesitation that he is the most effective technical leader I've worked with in my career.
Kevin has a rare combination of deep technical expertise and genuine investment in his team's growth. In my first six months, he set up weekly 1:1s specifically focused on my career development—not just project updates. When I told him I wanted to move toward a staff engineer role, he immediately restructured my responsibilities to give me the exposure I needed, even when it created short-term gaps on the team.
His leadership during our infrastructure migration in late 2025 was particularly impressive. The project had stalled under the previous lead due to unclear ownership and scope creep. Kevin stepped in, ran a two-day alignment session with all stakeholders, and delivered the migration on time and under budget. The team went from frustrated to energized in a matter of weeks.
If you're looking for a technical leader who builds strong teams, makes smart decisions under pressure, and genuinely cares about the people he leads—Kevin is that person. I'd be delighted to speak with anyone who wants to know more.
How to Write a LinkedIn Recommendation for a Peer or Colleague
Peer recommendations carry a different kind of weight. You're not speaking from a position of authority—you're speaking as someone who saw this person in the trenches with you. That authenticity is powerful.
What to emphasize:
- How they showed up as a collaborator
- Moments where they went above and beyond their role
- Skills you witnessed firsthand
- How they handled disagreement or conflict constructively
Peer Recommendation Example
I worked alongside Amara Osei for three years on the content strategy team at BrightPath, and she is one of the most talented and collaborative professionals I've had the pleasure of working with.
What sets Amara apart is her ability to connect content strategy to business outcomes in a way that most content professionals never manage. When our SEO-driven pipeline started underperforming in early 2025, Amara proposed and led a complete content audit—voluntarily, outside her core responsibilities—that identified $200K in missed revenue opportunities. Her recommendation was adopted in full and drove a 35% increase in organic leads within two quarters.
As a collaborator, Amara is the person who makes everyone around her better. She gives direct, useful feedback (even when it's not what you want to hear), shares her frameworks openly, and always has time for a colleague who's stuck. I've learned more from working alongside her than from any formal training I've done.
Any team that hires Amara is getting a strategic thinker, a generous collaborator, and a genuinely exceptional professional. I recommend her enthusiastically.
How to Write a LinkedIn Recommendation for a Direct Report
Recommending someone who reported to you is perhaps the most impactful type of recommendation—and the one hiring managers weight most heavily. Your job is to speak to their readiness for the next level.
What to emphasize:
- Growth you witnessed over time
- Specific results they drove
- Leadership qualities (even in individual contributor roles)
- Why you believe they're ready for more responsibility
Direct Report Recommendation Example
I hired Tomás Rivera as a junior product designer two years ago and watched him grow into one of the most capable mid-level designers I've managed in 12 years of leading design teams.
Tomás arrived with strong craft skills, but what made him exceptional was his speed of growth. Within six months, he was running design critiques independently and mentoring our intern cohort. By the end of his first year, he had taken full ownership of our mobile onboarding redesign—a project that reduced drop-off by 28% and became the template for our entire product design process going forward.
What I'll remember most about Tomás is his intellectual honesty. He pushed back on my decisions when he had good reason to, always with data and a clear alternative. That kind of professional courage is rare in someone early in their career, and it made the whole team's work better.
Tomás is ready for a senior designer role and will thrive in any environment that values both craft and strategic thinking. I'd hire him again in a heartbeat.
What to Avoid When Writing a LinkedIn Recommendation
Knowing what not to do is just as important as following the framework above. Here are the most common mistakes that make recommendations forgettable—or worse, counterproductive.
❌ Vague superlatives without evidence "She's amazing and always goes above and beyond." This tells the reader nothing. Every recommendation says this.
❌ Restating their job description "He was responsible for managing client accounts and ensuring customer satisfaction." This is what their profile already says.
❌ Overloading with adjectives "She is brilliant, dedicated, hardworking, creative, and passionate." Pick one or two and prove them with a story.
❌ Hedging language "I believe she would probably be a good fit for..." Confidence is contagious. Write with conviction.
❌ Making it too long Three to five paragraphs is the sweet spot. Hiring managers and recruiters skim. If your recommendation requires scrolling twice, it's too long.
❌ Writing about yourself A recommendation that spends two paragraphs on your own background loses the plot. Keep the focus on them.
How to Personalize Your Recommendation for the Role They're Pursuing
The most effective recommendations are tailored to where the person is headed—not just where they've been. Before you write, ask your colleague two questions:
- What kind of role or opportunity are you targeting?
- Is there a specific skill or experience you want highlighted?
This takes 60 seconds to ask and dramatically improves the relevance of what you write. If they're moving from individual contributor to manager, emphasize the leadership moments. If they're switching industries, highlight transferable skills and adaptability.
If you're regularly writing LinkedIn content for your own professional brand and want help with tone, structure, and consistency, tools like Writio can help you develop a writing style that translates across everything you publish—including professional endorsements.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long should a LinkedIn recommendation be?
The ideal LinkedIn recommendation is 150–300 words—roughly three to five short paragraphs. Long enough to tell a specific story, short enough to hold a reader's attention. Anything under 100 words feels thin; anything over 400 starts to lose impact.
What should I write in a LinkedIn recommendation if I don't know the person well?
If you only worked with someone briefly or on a limited project, focus specifically on what you did observe. Be honest about the context ("During our three-month collaboration on the product launch...") and go deep on one specific quality rather than trying to paint a broad picture. A narrow, specific recommendation is more credible than a broad one that feels inflated.
Can I ask the person what to include in their recommendation?
Absolutely—and you should. It's not cheating; it's being strategic. Ask them what role they're targeting, what skills they want highlighted, and if there's a specific project or outcome worth mentioning. This helps you write something genuinely useful rather than guessing what matters most to their career goals.
How do I write a LinkedIn recommendation for a colleague with examples when I'm not a strong writer?
Use the five-part framework in this guide: relationship context → overall assessment → specific story → soft skill → clear endorsement. Fill in each section with real details from your experience working together. You don't need to be a great writer—you need to be specific and honest. If you want help polishing your drafts or finding the right tone, Writio is built for exactly this kind of professional writing challenge.
Should I mention the company or project names in a LinkedIn recommendation?
Yes, when possible. Specificity adds credibility. Mentioning the company name, project, or time period tells the reader this is a real, firsthand account—not a generic template. If confidentiality is a concern (for example, if the project involved sensitive client information), you can describe the context without naming the client directly: "a Fortune 500 financial services company" works just as well.