False CVs: Understanding the Reasons to Better Prevent Risks – by Anne-Marie Deblonde, Director, Distribution & Media Practice – Executive Search, for FocusRH
20.12.2024
Altering dates to hide gaps in a professional career, exaggerating past responsibilities, or overstating acquired skills: sometimes candidates deliberately falsify their curriculum vitae, skewing the entire recruitment process. The risk for companies is significant, even critical, particularly when such issues arise for senior positions, executive roles, or CEO appointments. While the phenomenon of the “impostor” is not new, it has intensified in recent years. Beyond merely observing this trend, how can recruiters realistically understand, identify, and protect themselves against such applications?
Why do candidates falsify their CVs?
It is essential to understand why so many candidates deliberately falsify all or part of their CVs to make themselves more attractive and maximise their chances of being hired. For some, the tendency to bend the rules comes naturally. Others falsify details to smooth over a particularly fragmented career, for example, one consisting of a series of short-term positions.
However, for many candidates, the explanation is quite different. Facing a highly competitive job market, they believe, rightly or wrongly, that they have no other choice but to conceal weaknesses in their career, such as gaps, irregularities, periods of inactivity, or even a serious health issue or burn-out. The logic is simple and, from their perspective, understandable: they are adapting to what they perceive the business world expects of them.