How HR professionals are fooled by lying candidates

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HR heads it might not surprise you that candidates are not 100% truthful on their resumes but the extent to which they are getting away with it, definitely will. According to recruitment site Adzuna.co.uk  83% of candidates who lied on their CV,  say their falsehood was never discovered and that is because almost half (48%) of HR professionals admit to not always checking an employee’s qualifications and only 62% believe you should check references, says the press release.

• 30% of HR professionals admit they waive qualification checks if the candidate has previous experience
• 35% of companies believe that the responsibility for uncovering CV lies sits with recruitment agencies.
• Only 6% of HR professionals check the social media accounts of candidates.
• 53% of HR professionals admitted they are worried by the poor performance of under-qualified staff.

The survey spoke to 3,587 participants either in, or looking for, employment. When asked if they had lied on their CV,  a staggering 37% admitted to doing so at some stage in their professional career. Of those that had lied on their CV, 83% said they still got the job, with 43% stating that their lie directly contributed to them bagging the role.

According to the survey, 96% of CV liars said they would do it again with 37% revealing they would be prepared to tell a “big lie” to get their dream job.

Skillset is the most often told lie on people's resumes for example being proficient in Excel (43%), their work experience (39%) and then their education (35%). The survey also went further to profile what the average liar looks like. According to the results they are usually male (58%), aged between 25 to 34 years old (34%), and looking for a job in marketing or advertising (17%). Other sectors where candidates were more likely to inflate the truth were: retail (14%), finance (12%) and law (12%).

ALSO READ: 10 ways to tell if a candidate is lying