Recommendations for someone you managed, a peer, your manager, a freelancer you hired, a mentor or a student. Each has notes on why it works, and there is a short how to below.
Start with the context. How you worked together and for how long.
Tell one story. A real moment beats a list of adjectives. What happened, what they did, what changed.
Name the strength. One or two, with the story as proof.
Say what it felt like. Calm in a crisis, generous with time, honest in reviews.
End with a clear endorsement. Who should hire or work with them, and why.
To send it: open their profile, click More in the introduction section, choose Recommend, fill in the relationship and position, then write and send. You can only recommend 1st degree connections.
20 recommendation examples by relationship
Written examples with made up names and details. None is a real recommendation.
For someone you managed You saw their work up close and can speak to growth.
Designer you managed
I managed Priya for two years at Northwind Labs, and she is the designer I'd hire again first.
The moment I remember: our checkout redesign was a week from launch when she noticed older users kept missing the pay button in testing. She didn't wait for permission. She ran 5 more sessions over two days, fixed the layout and showed us the videos. Launch went out on time, and complaints about checkout dropped right away.
Priya is calm under pressure and kind in reviews. She makes the whole team better.
If you have the chance to work with her, take it.
Why it works
Opens with the working relationship and a strong verdict.
One launch week story proves both skill and judgment.
The endorsement line is short and easy to trust.
Sales rep you managed
Marcus joined my team at Orchard as a new sales rep with no software experience. Within a year, he was the person other reps asked for help.
What stood out was how he prepared. Before every call, he read the prospect's last 3 public updates and wrote down one question just for them. I sat in on a call where a hospital buyer said, "Nobody has asked me that before." That deal closed a month later.
He's honest when a deal is at risk and quick to ask for help. Working with him was easy.
I'd recommend Marcus for any sales role, and I'd hire him again tomorrow.
Why it works
Shows growth from beginner to leader in one line.
A quoted moment from a buyer makes the praise concrete.
Engineer you managed
I was Dev's manager for three years on the payments team at Larchmont.
One night our system started failing a small share of payments. Dev was not on call, but he saw the alert and joined. He found the cause in under an hour, then spent the next week writing a clear report and adding tests so it could not happen again. He never asked for credit.
Dev writes code that others can read, and he takes time to help newer engineers. He made our team steadier.
Any team would be lucky to have him. I recommend him without reservation.
Why it works
The incident story shows skill, care and ownership at once.
Praise for the follow up work matters as much as the fix.
Clear closing line a hiring manager can scan.
Marketing coordinator you managed
Hannah was my marketing coordinator at Kestrel for 18 months, and she grew faster than anyone I've managed.
She started by scheduling our emails. By month six, she was running our webinar program. The best example: our webinars had low turnout, so she called 10 people who signed up but didn't attend and asked why. Most said the time was bad. She moved them to lunch hour, and attendance nearly doubled.
She's curious, organized and never too proud to do small tasks.
I recommend Hannah for any marketing role where growth and ownership matter.
Why it works
Shows a growth arc from small tasks to owning a program.
The phone call story proves curiosity with action.
Ends with the kind of role she fits, which helps readers.
For a peer You worked side by side and can speak to how they collaborate.
Product manager you worked with
I worked alongside Tom for two years at Stonebridge. I led design, he led product, and we shared the same team.
What I value most is how he handled conflict. When sales pushed hard for a feature we both thought was wrong, Tom didn't just say no. He invited the sales lead to 3 customer calls. By the third call, sales changed their mind on their own.
Tom listens first, shares credit and keeps his word. He made hard weeks feel manageable.
I'd work with him again in a heartbeat.
Why it works
Explains how they worked together before the story.
The conflict story shows a rare skill: changing minds without a fight.
Warm, simple endorsement fits a peer voice.
Engineer on your team
Aisha and I were engineers on the same team at Beacon for three years.
She is the person you want next to you when something is confusing. I once spent two days stuck on a data bug. Aisha sat with me for 20 minutes, asked three simple questions and helped me see I was looking in the wrong place. She never made me feel slow.
Her code reviews are thoughtful and kind. She explains the why, not just the what, and I became a better engineer because of her.
I recommend Aisha to any team that values skill and generosity.
Why it works
A personal moment shows her impact on a peer.
Praises how she teaches, which is hard to see on a resume.
Closing line names two traits a reader can hold on to.
Account manager you partnered with
I worked with Luis for two years at Ironleaf. I sold the deals, and he took care of the customers after they signed.
One of my biggest customers almost left in their first year. Luis flew to their plant, spent a day on the floor with their team and found that nobody had been trained on the main report. He trained 12 people that week. They renewed, and later doubled their contract.
Luis is steady, patient and always honest with customers. I trusted him with every account I closed.
I recommend him to any team that wants customers who stay.
Why it works
Clear division of roles makes the peer view credible.
The saved account story ties his work to a business result.
Trust is the core message, stated plainly.
Recruiter you worked alongside
Nina and I were recruiters on the same team at Pinecrest, and I learned a lot just by sitting near her.
She treats candidates like people, not pipeline. I watched her call a candidate we rejected and spend 15 minutes giving honest, useful feedback. Six months later, that same person applied again, got the job and told us that call was why.
Nina is organized, direct and fair. Hiring managers trust her because she tells them the truth about the market.
I recommend Nina to any company that wants hiring done with care.
Why it works
The story shows kindness that pays off later.
Mentions trust from hiring managers, which matters to buyers.
The endorsement names the value in one line.
For your manager You can speak to how they lead and support people.
Manager you reported to
Sara was my manager for two years at Larchmont, and she is the reason I stayed in engineering.
In my first year I made a mistake that took down a page for an hour. I expected to be blamed. Instead, Sara walked me through what happened, helped me write the report and then shared it with the team as a lesson for everyone, without naming me.
She gives clear feedback, protects her team's time and makes space for quieter people to speak in meetings.
If you get the chance to work for Sara, you will grow. I recommend her fully.
Why it works
Written from below, it shows how the leader acts when things go wrong.
Specific leadership habits make the praise believable.
The close speaks to future team members, not just bosses.
Sales director you reported to
I reported to Ben for three years at Orchard, where he led our sales team.
Ben coached on real calls, not in role play. After a call I thought went badly, he said, "Tell me one thing you'd keep." That question changed how I review my own work. By my second year I was the top rep in my region.
He was honest about targets, fair about territories and always shared credit with the team in front of leadership.
Ben is the kind of leader people follow to the next company. I'd work for him again.
Why it works
A quoted line from the manager makes the coaching style real.
Shows results for the writer without bragging.
The last line is a strong, specific endorsement.
Design lead you reported to
Mei was my design lead at Beacon for two years, and she taught me how to defend my work.
Early on, I would show designs and fold at the first pushback. Mei started asking me to write one short line under each screen: what problem it solves. After a month, I didn't need her in the room. I could explain my choices on my own, and my ideas started shipping.
She shields her team from chaos, gives feedback in private and praise in public, and remembers the small things.
I recommend Mei to anyone lucky enough to have her as a manager.
Why it works
One habit she taught is specific and useful to readers.
Shows the writer's growth as proof of her leadership.
For a vendor or freelancer you hired You can speak to results and what working with them is like.
Copywriter you hired
We hired Sam to rewrite our homepage at Tidewater, and it was the best money we spent that year.
Before writing anything, Sam asked to interview 5 of our customers. I was nervous about that. But the words they used ended up on our page, and for the first time our site sounded like our best sales calls. Demo requests went up the month after launch.
Sam was clear about the timeline, easy to give feedback to and never defensive.
If your website doesn't match how good your product is, hire Sam.
Why it works
Admits a doubt, which makes the praise feel honest.
The customer interview detail shows how the freelancer works.
The last line doubles as a clear buyer signal.
Fractional CFO you hired
Lee worked with us as a part time CFO at Redwing Outdoor for a year.
In our second month, Lee showed us that one of our best selling products lost money after shipping. None of us had seen it. We changed the price, and most customers stayed. That one call paid for a year of Lee's time.
Lee made finance feel less scary. Every month we got one page of numbers and a clear list of decisions to make.
I recommend Lee to any founder who wants to understand their numbers, not just see them.
Why it works
The key moment connects the work to money saved.
It describes what working together felt like each month.
The final line captures the core value in a memorable way.
Agency you hired
We hired Saltmarsh Studio to redesign our coffee packaging, and I'd hire them again for any brand work.
The team started by visiting 4 stores with us and standing in front of the shelf. They pointed out that every bag in our section was brown. Our new bag was not. Two months after the launch, a grocery buyer who had turned us down twice said yes.
They were honest about budget, kept every deadline and made us feel like their only client.
If you have a product people love and a package that doesn't show it, call them.
Why it works
The store visit story shows the agency's method at work.
The buyer result is concrete without inflated numbers.
A clear line on how it felt to work with them.
For a mentor You can speak to what they taught you and how.
Mentor who guided you
Grace mentored me for a year when I was moving from teaching into UX design.
I came to her with a portfolio full of pretty screens and no stories. In our first meeting she asked, "What problem did each one solve?" I couldn't answer. Over the next three months, she helped me rebuild my portfolio around 3 real projects. I got my first design job two months later.
Grace is generous with her time, direct with feedback and always asks the question you need to hear.
Anyone who gets to learn from her is lucky. I recommend her fully.
Why it works
The question the mentor asked is the heart of the story.
Shows a clear before and after in the writer's career.
The praise names traits a future mentee will care about.
Founder who mentored you
Omar mentored me during my first year as a founder, and his advice saved my company at least once.
We were about to hire 4 people after our first big contract. Omar asked me to show him 12 months of cash, not just the next quarter. Once we looked together, it was clear we could afford 2. We hired 2. When that customer paused their contract six months later, we were fine.
He listens carefully, never tells you what to do and still makes the right answer obvious.
Every first time founder should have a mentor like Omar.
Why it works
The story is a specific decision with a real stake.
It shows the mentor's style, not just his results.
The close lifts him above one relationship.
Senior engineer who mentored you
Rafael was my mentor during my first two years as a software engineer.
We met every other Friday for 30 minutes. He always started with the same question: "What did you ship, and what scared you?" Once I told him I was afraid to touch our billing code. The next week, he paired with me for an hour and walked through it line by line. After that, I owned that code.
Rafael made hard things feel small. He's patient, practical and honest about his own mistakes.
I recommend Rafael to any team that wants to grow its junior engineers.
Why it works
A repeated ritual shows how the mentoring actually worked.
The fear to ownership arc is easy to picture.
For a student or intern You can speak to potential, habits and how fast they learn.
Intern you supervised
Jordan interned on my data team at Meadowlark last summer, and I'd hire them full time today.
In week three, Jordan noticed that our returns dashboard counted some orders twice. It was a small detail most interns would miss. They didn't just fix it. They wrote a short note explaining the cause, and our team changed how we build every report.
Jordan asks good questions early, takes notes and follows through without reminders.
Any team hiring a junior analyst should talk to Jordan. I'm happy to share more.
Why it works
One bug catch proves attention to detail.
It speaks to habits, which matter most in early career hires.
Offering to share more signals real confidence.
Student you taught
I taught Elena in my 10 week UX design course, and she was the student others went to for help.
For her final project, she tested a food bank's sign up form with 6 real volunteers, not classmates. She found that the form asked for the same address twice. Her redesign was simple, clear and tested. The food bank is now using it.
She's curious, humble about feedback and willing to do the unglamorous parts of research.
I recommend Elena for any junior design or research role.
Why it works
Testing with real users sets the student apart from peers.
The real world outcome shows the work mattered.
Names the traits a hiring manager wants in a junior hire.
Sales intern you coached
Kofi spent a summer as a sales intern on my team at Ironleaf. He started with no sales experience and left with a signed deal.
In week two, he asked if he could listen to 20 recorded calls before making his own. He kept a list of the questions buyers asked most, and he wrote simple answers for each. The whole team started using his list.
By August, he booked 9 meetings and helped close a small account.
Kofi is humble, fast to learn and easy to coach. I'd welcome him back on my team anytime.
Why it works
The listening habit shows initiative without being asked.
A shared tool proves he helped the team, not just himself.
Clear numbers from the fictional internship ground the praise.
How to ask for a recommendation
Go to their profile and click Request a recommendation, or open the Recommendations section on your own profile and click Ask to be recommended.
Fill in the Relationship and Position at the time fields. You cannot change the relationship after you send it.
Change the default message. Say which project you would love them to mention. It makes their job easier.
Offer to write one for them too.
You can ask each connection for one recommendation at a time, and there is no cap on how many you can ask for or receive.
Questions
Who can I write a LinkedIn recommendation for?
Your 1st degree connections. LinkedIn only lets you recommend people you are connected to.
Does the person have to approve it?
They choose whether it shows on their profile.
How long should a recommendation be?
Three short paragraphs is plenty: the context, one specific example, and a clear endorsement. Most examples here are 400 to 900 characters.
How do I ask for a recommendation?
Open the person's profile and use Request a recommendation, or go to the Recommendations section on your own profile and click Ask to be recommended. Add a short note saying what you would love them to mention.
Can I change the relationship after I send a request?
No. LinkedIn says you would need to ask the person to delete the request and then send a new one.
Are these real recommendations?
No. They were written for this page with made up names and details.