Counterfeit candidates

Why you must test the authenticity of a CV when choosing someone for a job.
Two recent high profile cases of CV embellishment are classic examples of what we in the recruitment industry sometimes refer to as ‘counterfeit candidates’.
Former Defence Technology Agency head Stephen Wilce made extravagant claims about a distinguished combat career and bob-sledding for Britain. Former Immigration Service boss Maryanne Thompson claimed she had a doctorate from the London School of Economics, when she didn’t.
In a tough job market, it seems honesty isn’t everything. At least that’s what recent research in to job hunters and their inability to resist telling little white lies suggests.
Thorough checking of resumes is important, because hiring a counterfeit candidate can prove a very expensive mistake. Estimates suggest it can cost an employer between 30 percent and 200 percent of an employee’s salary to replace a bad hire, not counting the cost of time, resources and disruption to the business. Not to mention the damage to organisational reputations in higher profile examples such as those above.
Real care is needed because the counterfeit candidate is often more single-minded than the person selecting them. They have a mission to win a job, so they are often highly coached and well rehearsed. And it’s likely they have studied your hiring practices and been online to learn your organisation’s ways.
This means they will look good on paper, interview well and go to great lengths to position themselves as a desirable employee within your organisation.
Recent research found that:
• the incidence of resume fraud is rising significantly and over 40 percent of all résumés contain falsified information
• between 50 percent and 60 percent of people exaggerate what they have done in their job applications
• over 80 percent of Fortune 100 companies in the US are now doing rigorous resume checks
• almost 90 percent of the personnel directors surveyed by the Society of Human resource management reported untruths ranging from past salaries to personal identification.
There are steps you can take to ensure you hire a top performing and honest candidate.
Make the following checks:
Legal entitlements to work in New Zealand
If your candidate is not a New Zealand or Australian citizen, you need to sight and take a copy of their work permit. If the work permit has a company name already on it, the candidate will need to apply for a new work permit for your specific company.
Criminal check
The Criminal Records Unit of the Ministry of Justice provides information on criminal convictions. You will require written permission to apply for information about another person.
Reference check
A written reference is often not worth the paper it’s written on. Do verbal reference checks, which will provide a greater variety of detailed information, both personal and in relation to work performance. Check you are speaking to the right person and that you clarify the relationship between the referee and the applicant. The referee should ideally be a direct supervisor or manager, and therefore in a suitable position to make an informed judgement about the candidate. If you only have mobile numbers for referees, extra caution is required. Phone the company on a land line and verify that the referee held the position as stated and that the candidate reported to them directly. The extra time taken to conduct thorough reference checking could save you a lot of pain further down the track.
Education
With regard to job specific qualifications, you should ask to see the original qualifications from the candidate. You can then make a copy and request their permission to verify its legitimacy from the source, such as completion, dates and grades.
Behavioural assessments
Studies show that 87 percent of job failures are due to personality conflict rather than abilities or competencies. Use behavioural assessment tools to enable you to get to know your candidate’s behavioural tendencies.
Credit check
A credit check must be relevant to the role the candidate would be performing. If it is relevant, you must seek a signed authorisation from the candidate before arranging credit checks through New Zealand financial institutions such as Baycorp Advantage.
Medical and drug testing
If medical and drug testing is justified and necessary, you’re well within your rights to have your candidate undergo testing.
Drivers licence
The New Zealand Transport Agency has a service called ‘Driver Check’ that enables the status of driver licences to be queried by authorised users. You will need written permission from your candidate to be able to access the information, located at www.nzta.govt.nz/drivercheck
So make sure your business doesn’t make the mistake of believing everything a candidate says. Time spent fact checking upfront can save you a lot – financial and otherwise – before it’s too late.
Gay Barton
www.drakeintl.com