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How To Spot Biggest Applicant Lies
Written by: Carlos MorganArticle Overview: Over the last few years we have seen a significant rise in unemployment rates nationwide, some of the highest in the last few decades actually. To some recruiters this is a dream come true due to the overflow of applicants that they now have, but to the true Talent Scouts this is a complete nightmare. Why? Because now it is that much more difficult to find that top 1%. I have always been a firm believer that a resume is a limited representation of the candidate. So if this is indeed the case, what does this say about them when the majority of the information in their resume is fabricated and/or inaccurate?
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How To Spot Biggest Applicant Lies
Over the last few years we have seen a significant rise in unemployment
rates nationwide, some of the highest in the last few decades actually.
To some recruiters this is a dream come true due to the overflow of
applicants that they now have, but to the true Talent Scouts this is a
complete nightmare. Why? Because now it is that much more difficult to
find that top 1%. I have always been a firm believer that a resume is a
limited representation of the candidate. So if this is indeed the case,
what does this say about them when the majority of the information in
their resume is fabricated and/or inaccurate? It says that they are
dishonest and they were willing to lie to get the job. Thus, chances
are they will be dishonest once they are hired and with the economy
being what it is, there are very few companies that can afford the huge
expense of a bad hire.
Being aware of the common lies applicants
tell, allows you to arm yourself with the knowledge and tools necessary
to minimize the chances of a bad hire. Some of the most common things
lied about in resumes and applications according to a nationally
recognized background screening firm (esr.com) include:
1- Job Title/ Responsibilities:
For me working in a fast growing call center environment has exposed to
me to thousands of people from all backgrounds and walks of life and it
seems the more people you interview the easier it becomes to spot
inaccuracies, lies and exaggerations. What I have found to be the
easiest way to spot these types of "self- proclaimed promotions" is by
asking them very position specific questions. So if they claim to be a
store manager (even if you don't know in specific what they do- you
kind of have an idea of what is expected of them) you would ask
questions such as: A) How did you measure your team's performance? B)
How did you deal with employees that weren't performing? C) What were
your individual goals as a manager and team goals? Questions like these
should be no problem for someone who has been in the position, but to
someone who hasn't its a surefire way to stop them in their tracks.
Another easy way would be by checking their references (but this would
only work if their references are accurate).
2-Claiming a degree not earned- This
seems to be a very common trend nowadays and it seems to come in many
different forms. The first one is where people award themselves a
degree even though they still had credits to complete or only attended
for a few semesters. The second one is where people claim to have
graduated from schools they never even attended- now that's gutsy
because with the internet what it is today and by simply asking some
probing questions this is the simplest one to catch. Lastly there are
those that simply buy there degree online for "3 easy installments of
$49.95". They purchase these degrees from Degree Mills, these "Mills"
often offer transcripts and even phone numbers that employers can call
to verify that they attended. Talk about committing to your lie. But
again, this can be verified by running an education background check.
3-Dates of Employment:
No one wants to look like they are a job hopper, inexperienced or
unstable so this is something that is common regardless of position or
age. If this is not dug up during the interview process than the next
easiest way to verify this is by calling references or simply running
an employment verification check. But remember if your gut is
telling you that there is something not right- than chances are that
you are probably right and you should dig, dig, dig.
4-Compensation: Times
are tough and its ok to exaggerate a little about your salary history
so we can get that nice bump in pay, right? Wrong! There is no excuse
for being dishonest, period. Every application I have always seen asks for the desired
salary, so why not be honest with what you are looking or hoping to
make- if they are qualified and deserve it than chances are they will
probably get what they are looking for regardless of what they were
making before. But when they sit in front of me lying to me and telling
me they were making $50k a year when they only made $30k and are
looking to make $60k- this is not only unacceptable but can also cause
your company some major bucks.
5- Criminal Background- Different
companies have different standards and different tolerance levels on
what is acceptable and what isn't in the background checks but one
thing I do know is that most applications if not all specifically asks
if they have ever been convicted of a crime and to please specify. So,
this to me is their amnesty period in which they need to be 100% honest.
If not, no matter how small the infraction if not declared up front is
considered dishonest and a possible reason for termination.
These
are just some of the things that people tend to lie about in their
resumes and applications but as I mentioned before some of these can
easily be verified during the interview process by asking very thorough
and specific questions, as you should be doing anyways. If a
pre-screening/ background check is not in place in your workplace I
would highly suggest that you implement one as it is a smart business
investment. Remember that there is nothing wrong with trusting as long
as you verify.
Article Tags: background screening, bold color, call center, center environment, decades, firm believer, goa, inaccuracies, job title, nightmare, overflow, recruiters, resumes, screening firm, span style, style font, talent scouts, true talent, unemployment rates, walks of life
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About the Author: Carlos Morgan RSS for Carlos's articles - Visit Carlos's website I am a Corporate recruiter for Inktel Direct which was named the "Best Company to Work For in Florida" ( Florida Trend Magazine 2009). I am responsible for filling all open positions for our 3 nationwide locations. I Have over 8 years of recruiting experience ranging from the United States Marine Corps to Robert Half International. Click here to visit Carlos's website HOW TO KEEP YOUR BEST PEOPLE The Passion of the Resume Importance of Online Networking How To Spot Biggest Applicant Lies Simple Steps to Better Recruiting |
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