Resume Falsification - What Not to Do When You Hire Someone

“Don’t fix something that isn’t broken” is how the saying goes. But what happens if you’re the one that broke it? This is the reality for Human Resources and Hiring Managers who select individuals based on their resume content and how well the person performed during an interview. But is this really a good picture of who the person is as an individual? Take a look at the news and you’ll find the answer. With resume falsification on the rise due to higher unemployment rates, it has become more crucial than ever for employers to perform a thorough employment screening prior to bringing someone on board. Here are 2 of these stories as told by the hiring managers.

One hiring manager from Sunnyvale, CA explains that while she was certain her candidate for the customer service management position was well-qualified in experience alone, she was left with an uneasy feeling about the applicant’s education level. After a number of shaky answers provided by the applicant regarding the actual campus (which she was familiar with herself), she decided to call the admissions office and ask for verification of her degree. To her mild surprise, the candidate had attended classes there for only one quarter and had dropped out. She remembers that process as being her first brush with a dishonest applicant. She went on to describe that it was made painfully obvious that from that point on, she would have to find a reliable employment screening agency and use them every time she needed to hire someone.

Another story from a Human Resources Director at a major hospital in Virginia underscores the severity of what can go terribly wrong when a person’s background is left unchecked. It was about 20 years ago, when she first started working there as an HR rep, and she remembers going through a young nurse’s resume and application. She decided to call her in for an interview and screen her to see if she’d be a good fit for the hospital’s Labor and Delivery Department. The young nurse passed the interview with flying colors and eventually landed a permanent position on the L & D floor. About 2 months later, and after numerous complaints from other co-workers regarding strange behavior and erratic behavior from the woman, the hospital was shocked when the police came to search her locker. They discovered several vials of liquid narcotics that had been missing from the hospital the prior week. After a drug screening was done, the nurse tested positive for the same narcotic that had gone missing. The HR veteran went on to explain that from that day on, their facility instituted twice-yearly drug screenings and criminal background checks for all hospital staff.

No matter what he industry or how nice a person seems, it is the nasty surprises that come after someone is hired that hurt the most. Not only does it hurt the company’s reputation due to the impression of shoddy hiring practices, but it puts some facilities in real jeopardy of negligent hiring lawsuits. This is most especially the case in the medical field where a patient’s life depends on the type of staff that is being hired. Stay one step ahead of your applicants and catch their resume falsification by hiring an excellent employment screening service before you hire someone!