Business Owners and Supervisors - 5 Ways to Avoid Hiring a Liar

From slight exaggerations to outright lies, applicants for all kinds of jobs have often bend the truth to either enhance what they've actually done, claim experience they don't have, or hide things they don't want prospective employers to know about.

And in today's tough economy, with high unemployment resulting in even more competition for scarce jobs, applicants may decide the benefit of getting hired is worth the risk of getting caught in a lie.

Even high-profile candidates are stretching or hiding the truth to get a job. Over the past few years, senior staff members at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the Red Cross, and the TV Food Network have all faced humiliating departures after lying about past experience.

How do so many people get away with lying on resumes and in interviews?

Why do employers so readily trust people they don't know?

The answer has a lot to do with the psychology of first impressions. Studies have shown that when we meet someone for the first time, we tend to have a slightly positive impression of him or her. Even without data to support that impression. So, we tend to look for information that supports that positive impression, and ignore or discount information that conflicts with that view.

Here are 5 things you can do to avoid hiring a liar:

Look for gaps on the resume. Gaps are frequently used to hide negative information. The applicant hopes you won't notice the six-month gap between jobs. But now you will, and you'll inquire about it thoroughly.

Require month and year for dates of employment. A technique often used to hide information is to include only the years associated with a job, not the months. So, 1990-1991 could be as short as a few days or as long as 24 months. Insist that applicants include the month when providing employment information.

Verify dates of employment and degrees. If necessary, have the applicant sign a release giving you permission to verify this information. If they hesitate or give you excuses about why they can't or won't, they may be hiding something.

Create a questionnaire to use with all applicants. Using a standard set of questions will help you avoid the possibility that you are unconsciously biased in favor of someone who impresses you in the interview.

Get a work "sample." Give the applicant a task or question to answer, during the interview or while they are still in your office, that is a sample of one of the responsibilities of the job. Ask an associate attorney applicant to review and comment on a brief, for example. Or ask a marketing director how they might brand a new product.

After tightening up your interviewing process, you may still have a nagging doubt about an applicant. A hesitation way back in your mind somewhere, that something is just not right -- or that the applicant is too perfect. Trust your instincts. Ask more questions until you're completely satisfied that they are who they say they are. And if you still have doubts, consider hiring someone else.

Dr. David Weiman is a psychologist and management consultant in Wynnewood, PA (suburban Philadelphia). His website is http://www.WeimanConsulting.com, where site visitors can sign up for a free leadership newsletter that helps them increase their impact and influence as business leaders. An expert on leadership and the psychology of success, Dr. Weiman has been quoted in the LA Times, BusinessWeek, the Philadelphia Inquirer, and he has appeared as a guest on Fox Philadelphia news and Money Matters. Dr. Weiman is the author of The Stress Solution, a guide for managing stress written for business executives and the co-creator of The Keys to Successful Interviewing and Hiring CD course.

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