Jobseeker dishonesty could have serious repercussions, including
termination
With
the recent hurricane disaster in New Orleans, there were many people
who came under scrutiny. One such person was Michael Brown, the
head of FEMA. People questioned his credentials and the media began
to dig deep into his background. What they found was a man who had
padded his credentials.
Here
are some of the items they found:
* He claimed to be on the Board of Directors of a Nursing Home.
When contacted by the media, the personnel at the nursing home had
never heard of Brown.
*
He claimed to have been an Assistant City Manager of a town in Oklahoma.
Brown never held this position. He did do an internship while attending
college for this town.
* He stated that he had received an "Outstanding Professor" award
from a college where he never taught. He was an adjunct professor
for a college, but the college never had such an award and he certainly
did not receive one.
A
recent survey showed that about 75% of people "pad" their resume
with credentials and position responsibilities they have never held.
Many individuals stated that they enhanced their qualifications
to be competitive.
"The
most common inflationary statements on resumes are job title and
education. Some of my clients want me to change their job title
to a more mainstream title, which is alright, as long as they list
the real title in parentheses. Other candidates want to change their
title to appear to have more experience than they possess, which
I will not do," said Kathy Sweeney, certified professional resume
writer and interview coach from The Write Resume (www.awriteresume.com).
"Further, I will never allow my clients to misrepresent their educational
background. There are other areas we can strengthen on the resume,
such as industry-specific training, which may be of more value to
an employer."
Sweeney
recalls a recent article regarding a woman who was fired from a
government job because she claimed to have a PhD. When colleagues
were perplexed as to how a woman, who had no previous education,
could suddenly have three degrees in a two-year time-frame, they
questioned it. What they found out was that she had "paid" for her
degrees through an on-line diploma mill.
Due
to the onslaught on this type of behavior, many companies have been
conducting more thorough background checks. Some companies, such
as Chili's Restaurant, have an on-line application where you must
detail accomplishments and then "back them up" with a person who
can verify that accomplishment.
Other
companies are hiring outside background checking companies to verify
information listed on resumes and applications.
"Jobseekers
need to understand the companies are serious about who they hire,
especially for positions of great importance and responsibility,"
stated Sweeney, "When writing a resume, the best policy is to be
honest and forthright with your qualifications. If a candidate is
dishonest, it will eventually catch up to them -- whether in the
initial hiring process or during their tenure with the company."
Sweeney advises job seekers to always be honest when stating qualifications
on a resume or application. She warns that if job seekers pad their
experience or credentials, they could end up in a position where
they will flounder and eventually be fired for incompetence.
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