When you’ve found a job that looks like the perfect fit for you, you jump on it right away and submit your resume for consideration. Perhaps you’re a hiring manager or Human Resources Professional whose job is to scrutinize job applicant’s resumes and decide who will proceed to the next step. At any rate, there is so much more being said on a person’s resume than meets the eye. When it comes to resumes, many people choose to lie on theirs to seem more “official”, experienced, learned, better skilled, or more qualified than they actually are. Resume lies can lead to people being placed in positions where they cannot properly function, causing failure all around them.
According to a poll taken by Forbes,com, nearly 40% of resumes tell some sort of lie. Why do people lie? They are trying to sell themselves as far more superior than the other people applying for the same job. They want to stand out above the rest and have a better chance at getting the job. Lying on a resume has always been a challenge for Human Resource professionals to catch. Add to that today’s economy is causing a flood in the job market and HR is spending approximately 40% more time filtering out people who have lied on their resume.
The most-told lie on a resume is to adjust a gap of time to appear to have worked for one continuous time period. . With the current job market reaching historically higher rates of unemployment, time gaps are often fudged by people who were laid off and had trouble finding work right away. The second most common lie on a resume is about having earned a college degree. Believe it or not, people still try this one! People should know that it’s as easy as hiring an employment background screening company to find out this information. Don’t tell this lie in the first place and you won’t be the person that is found to have earned no such degree. Then your credibility is damaged.
Another resume lie is when someone states they have more experience, skills, or qualifications than they actually have. This can run the gamut from saying they’ve managed staff to making public presentations for training purposes to large discrepancies. Whatever the lie, remember that if you’re expected to be used in this capacity, or any capacity in which you’ve lied, you’ll be found out sooner or later and it won’t be pretty!
Ageism, or the fear of being seen as too old for the job, is another common resume lie. People are simply afraid that they’ll be looked over because they’re older than recent college graduates. The fact is that by lying on your resume, you’re going to make a terrible first impression once the employer calls you on the phone for an interview or has you come down for one. Employers are not exclusively looking for the young folks. They want seasoned people in positions that require the experience and skills that come with having a few more years under your belt!
If you’re looking for a job, take a few moments to check for lies on your resume. Companies like Accu-Screen are working with thousands of employers to uncover what is true and what is not when someone applies for a job. You can be sure you’re getting the person you expect when you use Accu-Screen’s services to find your next great employee!
