U.S. News and World Report had a recent article in its Small Business and Entrepreneurs Section. the article was entitled “Interview for Integrity”. In the article, one of the subjects, Jay Meschke, offers some great tips about interviewing employment candidates. He comments on everything from spotting possible lies to the increased deception as a result of the economic meltdown and the resulting pressure and desperation in a lousy job market.
Below you can find some of my comments–
Jay Meschke makes some excellent points in his article. But as Co-Founder of Corra Group, and Employment Screening Service, we have had dozens of incidents where the candidate has passed all interview stages and then, in their background check, it was discovered to the surprise and chagrin of the employer that everything was not what it appeared. It could be a falsified education, a criminal record, a lesser job position than what the candidate claimed. It could be a driving record that revealed DUI’s and other issues that would lead an employer to believe this was not the soundest choice.
The example about a candidate claiming he was CFO at a larger company like General Electric is a bit misleading. When we conduct employment verifications, it is a simple matter to obtain verification, including the date started, date completed, and final position. We will even obtain the name and position of the verifying party. However, when verifying employment with a smaller company, it is best to first verify whether the company phone number is indeed that and not the phone number of your candidate’s wife or good friend. Again, it is important to get the name and title of the verifying party.
Most candidates may embellish their employment history. But where those who lie are most prone to fabricate is with college degrees. Most who lie will claim to be graduates when in fact they only attended for a couple of years. Others never attended at all, which always leaves us wondering what motivated them to pick that particular school instead of any one of thousands out there. Was it a large school, where they thought they could get lost in the shuffle? Or was it a smaller school, where they thought it so obscure no one would bother checking? Hard to say.
As noted earlier, Jay Meschke gives some useful tips on how to better utilize the interview process to pick up on red flags and suspicious claims on the part of your candidate. But the fact remains, with most employers it is only after they have decided on their candidate’s do they move forward on their background checks. Any any good backgorund checking service may indeed pickup on the fact it is the candidate’s mother providing a reference and boasting on his outstanding capabilities.
Always remember, as Meschke cautions, the best liars are very good. So check them out before you hire.
