Ryan Roslansky

Ryan Roslansky
Born	Ryan Roslansky 4 12, 1977
Birthplace	South Lake Tahoe, California, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Business executive
Title	CEO of LinkedIn; Corporate Vice President, Microsoft
Known for	CEO of LinkedIn since 2020
Education	University of California, Davis (attended)
Children	3
Awards	Forbes CEO Next list (2021)

Ryan Roslansky (born December 4, 1977) is an American business executive who has served as the chief executive officer (CEO) of LinkedIn, the professional networking platform, since June 2020. Born in South Lake Tahoe, California, Roslansky joined LinkedIn in 2009 and rose through the company's ranks over the course of more than a decade, playing a central role in the platform's evolution from a professional networking site into a multifaceted media, learning, and recruitment ecosystem. He was instrumental in LinkedIn's $1.5 billion acquisition of Lynda.com in 2015, which at the time represented the largest acquisition in LinkedIn's history. In June 2025, Microsoft, LinkedIn's parent company, expanded Roslansky's responsibilities to include oversight of its Office productivity software division, making him one of the most prominent executives within the Microsoft corporate structure. Under his leadership, LinkedIn has grown to serve more than 1.2 billion users worldwide and has increasingly focused on integrating artificial intelligence into its products and services.

Early Life

Ryan Roslansky was born on December 4, 1977, in South Lake Tahoe, California. He attended the University of California, Davis but did not complete his degree, dropping out before graduation to pursue a career in the technology industry. Roslansky entered the workforce in the late 1990s during the early stages of the dot-com boom, beginning a career that would span multiple roles in the digital media and technology sectors before his arrival at LinkedIn.

Career

Pre-LinkedIn Career

Roslansky has been professionally active since 1997, working in the technology and digital media industries during the formative years of the commercial internet. His background in digital media and product development laid the groundwork for his later roles at LinkedIn, where he would oversee the platform's content and product strategy.

Joining LinkedIn and Early Roles

Roslansky joined LinkedIn in 2009, during a period of significant growth for the professional networking platform. Over the following years, he took on increasing responsibility within the company, contributing to the development and expansion of several key product areas.

One of Roslansky's notable early contributions was his involvement with LinkedIn's content and media strategy. He played a role in the development of the LinkedIn Influencers program, which brought high-profile business leaders and public figures to the platform as content creators, helping transform LinkedIn from a static professional profile site into an active content and media platform.

Lynda.com Acquisition and LinkedIn Learning

In 2015, Roslansky was instrumental in orchestrating LinkedIn's acquisition of Lynda.com, an online learning platform, for approximately $1.5 billion. The deal was the largest acquisition in LinkedIn's history at that time and signaled the company's strategic shift toward integrating professional education and skills development into its platform. The acquisition formed the basis of what became LinkedIn Learning, which would grow into one of the platform's core product offerings.

Following the acquisition, Roslansky was named head of consumer product at LinkedIn, a role in which he oversaw the integration of Lynda.com's educational content into the broader LinkedIn ecosystem. In this capacity, he articulated a vision for transforming how professionals acquire new skills and advance their careers through the platform.

Head of Product

As Roslansky's responsibilities expanded, he eventually oversaw LinkedIn's entire product organization, including its core networking features, content and media products, talent solutions, and learning platforms. Under his product leadership, LinkedIn expanded its editorial operations, rebranding its editorial team as "LinkedIn News" as the platform continued to grow its content and media offerings.

CEO of LinkedIn

On June 1, 2020, Roslansky succeeded Jeff Weiner as CEO of LinkedIn. Weiner, who had led the company since 2009, transitioned to the role of executive chairman. Roslansky assumed the top role during a period of extraordinary upheaval, as the COVID-19 pandemic was reshaping labor markets and workplace norms worldwide.

COVID-19 Response and Workforce Initiatives

Shortly after becoming CEO, Roslansky led LinkedIn's participation in a major workforce development initiative. In June 2020, Microsoft announced a commitment to help 25 million workers worldwide acquire new digital skills needed for the post-pandemic economy, with LinkedIn playing a central role in delivering free learning paths and job-seeking tools. The initiative reflected Roslansky's emphasis on skills-based hiring and workforce development as core elements of LinkedIn's mission.

Platform Growth and Strategy

Under Roslansky's leadership, LinkedIn experienced substantial growth, expanding its global membership to more than 1.2 billion users. The platform broadened its scope beyond traditional professional networking to encompass content creation, online learning, recruiting tools, and sales solutions.

In a 2021 interview with Time, Roslansky discussed his vision for LinkedIn's role in the evolving world of work, emphasizing the platform's potential to create economic opportunity for every member of the global workforce.

Roslansky has also been vocal on issues related to climate change and the workforce transition, contributing an opinion piece to The Boston Globe in 2021 in which he argued that addressing climate change would require the creation of new jobs and new categories of work.

Content and Media Expansion

In January 2023, LinkedIn launched a web series called The Path, featuring Roslansky in conversation with business leaders and professionals about their career journeys. The series represented LinkedIn's continued push into original content production.

Artificial Intelligence Strategy

A defining element of Roslansky's tenure as CEO has been the integration of artificial intelligence into LinkedIn's products and strategy. As AI technologies—particularly large language models and generative AI—have transformed the technology industry, Roslansky has positioned LinkedIn as both a platform for AI-powered tools and a source of data and insights about the AI-driven transformation of the labor market.

In a 2025 interview with Semafor, Roslansky discussed the challenge of incorporating AI into LinkedIn while maintaining the platform's identity and core value proposition to its users, stating his intent to "keep LinkedIn as LinkedIn" while leveraging AI capabilities.

Roslansky has been a prominent public advocate for AI literacy in the workforce. In interviews and public appearances throughout 2025, including at the World Economic Forum in Davos, he discussed the fastest-growing jobs in the AI era and how workers can prepare for the changing labor landscape. He has stated that employers are increasingly seeking staff who are "forward thinking" and "ready to learn" rather than those who rely solely on existing credentials.

In 2025, Roslansky authored a book focused on guiding workers on how to thrive and lead in the rapidly evolving AI-driven economy, further deepening his public push for AI literacy and workforce adaptation.

In December 2025, Roslansky made headlines for career advice in which he characterized traditional five-year career plans as "outdated," recommending instead that professionals focus on shorter time horizons given the pace of technological change. "I would much recommend people focus on maybe the next few months," Roslansky said.

Expanded Role at Microsoft

In June 2025, Microsoft announced that Roslansky would take on additional responsibilities overseeing the company's Office productivity software division, while continuing to serve as CEO of LinkedIn. The expanded role made Roslansky responsible for some of Microsoft's most widely used products, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and related productivity applications, in addition to the LinkedIn platform. The appointment reflected Microsoft's strategy of integrating LinkedIn's professional data and AI capabilities with its broader suite of productivity and enterprise tools.

Personal Life

Roslansky has three children. He has maintained a relatively private personal life compared to many technology executives of similar prominence. He has discussed workforce and economic topics in public forums, including contributing opinion pieces on subjects such as the intersection of climate change and job creation.

Recognition

In 2021, Roslansky was named to the Forbes CEO Next list, which identifies emerging corporate leaders who are expected to have significant influence on American business.

Board Memberships

In 2023, Roslansky was appointed to the board of directors of Intuit, the financial software company, alongside Eric Yuan, the CEO and founder of Zoom.

Also in 2023, Roslansky was announced as a new member of the board of trustees of the Paley Center for Media, a nonprofit organization dedicated to exploring the cultural, creative, and social significance of media.

Legacy

Roslansky's tenure at LinkedIn has been marked by the platform's transformation from a professional networking service into a comprehensive professional ecosystem encompassing content, learning, recruitment, and AI-powered tools. His leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic, when LinkedIn became a critical resource for displaced workers seeking new employment and skills, and his subsequent focus on AI-driven workforce transformation have defined his impact on the platform.

The expansion of his role to include Microsoft's Office productivity software in 2025 placed Roslansky at the center of one of the largest technology companies in the world, overseeing products used by hundreds of millions of people globally. His public commentary on the future of work, skills-based hiring, and the impact of artificial intelligence on labor markets has contributed to broader discussions about how technology is reshaping employment and career development.

Roslansky's career trajectory—from a college dropout in South Lake Tahoe to the leader of one of the world's largest professional platforms and a senior executive at Microsoft—has been noted in business media as an example of the nontraditional paths that have characterized leadership in the technology sector.