When a start-up or independent company is acquired by a much larger firm, there are always worries and hand-wringing about the changes that may follow.

Will the user experience change, or will there be some major adjustments to the way the company operates? These are common fears, and often do come true after an acquisition. 

But sometimes they do not. That’s been the case with LinkedIn, which has been largely left alone since its acquisition by Microsoft three years ago. At the time, there were many predictions about how the pending merger would affect the platform. 

While of course there is still time — many years, in fact — for Microsoft to drastically change LinkedIn, thankfully its layout, design, and usability have remained largely the same. And so far, that’s been a good thing.