Resume lies by former employees

[ky911sc]

Trying to hire for a position at my plant when I get a resume from previous employee that worked for me many years ago. Read his resume, and the sob is taking credit for several of my projects and claims he was the plant manager during the time he worked for me. What a crock of .....
So do I call him out on his lies or not? He has no idea that I work the company he applied for.
Anybody ever had this happen? What would you do?

[stomachmonkey]

Would you have considered hiring him if his resume were accurate?

[mikesride]

Call him in for an interview!!! If he knows you and realizes the lies on that resume it could be very amusing for you!!!!

[pwd72s]

Originally Posted by mikesride

Call him in for an interview!!! If he knows you and realizes the lies on that resume it could be very amusing for you!!!!

This...he may not realize it's you until he shows for the interview...

[RWebb]

video tape it

[ossiblue]

Originally Posted by mikesride

Call him in for an interview!!! If he knows you and realizes the lies on that resume it could be very amusing for you!!!!

^^I like this too.^^

Call him in and play it straight. Conduct the interview professionally and question him directly on the parts of his resume that you know are lies. Don't accuse him of lying, just ask him to clarify and explain the parts that you know to be fabricated. Keep it unemotional. At the conclusion of the interview, be sure he is aware of who you are and ask him if he would hire someone like himself after including that information on his resume. If he evern offers an answer, it will be irrelevant and there is no need to comment on anything after he gives it. You both know he will not be getting the job.

[stomachmonkey]

Why bring him in?

Why waste both of your time?

Just to embarrass the guy?

I've hired tons of people and looked and more resumes than I care to think about.

We know people embellish. That's why we bring people in. A good interviewer will know how to validate the resume during the course of the interview.

But here you have a unique situation. You know the individual, his work habits, his contributions, how he fits with and works in a team.

That's hiring gold, you already know far more about him than anyone else you will interview.

If he's not a fit based on your prior experience let it go and move on.

If you think he has value and is a good hire then bring him in. You both know his resume is **** and you can tell him he's not being considered on his works of fiction but because of your prior positive experience.

[id10t]

Just round file the app.... anything more and you may as well call a HR lawyer.

[masraum]

Lots of folks do it

It's unfortunate that it's so common, but it is

I wouldn't waste my time calling him since you know you aren't going to hire him

It's not worth the amusement to catch the pos

[look 171]

How much is your time worth? Leave reality TV out of it. Take a longer lunch and think it through if this person is right for the job.

I though everyone bs on their resume?

[Jim Bremner]

My Resume is 100% accurate. I'm under educated for the position that I'm going for. I have 25+ years experience in the field that I'm going after but people want me to have a BA degree.

[stomachmonkey]

Originally Posted by id10t

Just round file the app.... anything more and you may as well call a HR lawyer.

That's the least of your worries if HR finds out that you knew he was BS'ng and you not only wasted your time but also their time in bringing him in for the prescreening.

They will not be happy and what does it say about your judgement as a manager?

[Brando]

I just had something similar. A previous employee who quit via no-call/no-show applied for the same role advertised through a different recruiter we use. I told my team and they wanted me to bring him in for a panel interview. All of us together. I wish i could have said yes - the bullets would have been flying. But I round-filed the app and asked the recruiter how well they were screening applicants because obviously the guy was lying when he said he didnt know who we were or That he had worked for us previously.

Kids these days...

[Don Ro]

Monkey in stomach speak w/straight tongue.
.
BTDT...34 yrs. with 10+ employees.

[Jim Bremner]

Brando,

What are you hiring for?

[DanielDudley]

Virtually everyone who has ever worked for me would like to take credit for the projects that I ran. Very few of them could have done those projects without me.

[Jim Richards]

Originally Posted by id10t

Just round file the app.... anything more and you may as well call a HR lawyer.

^^^this.

Why waste the company's resources on a candidate that's a liar? Flush his resume and move on.

[fintstone]

Most places where I have worked...everyone shares credit for projects they work on. Several may well have managed it at different stages or managed different portions. Sometimes nuance is lost in translation/editing when trying to fit a bunch of work into a short résumé. I am sure my boss takes credit for every program/project I lead...as do other major contributors.

It is easy to get offended, when sometimes we should be flattered...or at least a bit more understanding. I would not pass up a known quantity (if they have the right skills and personality). They may have had "professional" help with their résumé by a headhunter. They believe that if you are not lying...you are not trying.

Outright lies about education, training, clearance, etc are another thing entirely.

[KevinTodd]

Every resume I have ever seen has had some type of creative embellishment within; it's just a fact of life. Sometimes the statements are not out and out lies, they are just over-inflated accounts of a somewhat reasonable truth. I have to say that creating titles for one's self that never existed seem to be the rage right now--I see it all the time.

It is always a challenge to see through the resume embellishment prior to having someone come in for an interview but I let the face-to-face time handle the hard stuff for me.....it always weeds out the undesirables.

[svandamme]

I'de have HR invite him over, and ask for references of that and some other jobs.