In any competitive job market, the top talent and also-rans compete to attract the eyes of hiring managers at the best companies. When your company advertises an open position, your HR staff is responsible for parsing through a multitude of candidates before deciding who to bring in for an interview. Considering that some applicants may embellish their work history and other accomplishments on their resume, it becomes vital for your staff to know whether or not they are being truthful. The last thing you want to do is hire an employee who says they are one thing and shows up as a totally different employee on their first day.

Sure, the interview is a great time to catch a candidate’s exaggeration, but the whole process is costly. With that in mind, here are a few strategies for determining if a candidate is being truthful on their resume – before an interview.

Compare the Candidate’s Resume to Their LinkedIn Profile

Thankfully, the growth in popularity of LinkedIn, the leading professional social network, gives hiring managers one easy way to verify a resume’s truthfulness. Nearly all LinkedIn members use their profile as essentially an online version of their CV. Make sure your staff thoroughly vets each candidate’s LinkedIn profile to verify the accuracy of their resume. While this won’t be a foolproof method, details get lost when people stretch the truth. If it isn’t the same in multiple locations, then that should raise a red flag.

A Detailed Internet Search Also Helps Catch Discrepancies

After LinkedIn, make it a point to perform a detailed Internet search on the candidate. Don’t just use their name – add keywords like job titles and previous company names to the search query. Peruse multiple pages of search results – not just the first page or two – as meaningful information can be found deeper in the result set. Yes, these processes take time; but remember, you’re trying to save more resources in the end. Conducting research during your hiring process will cost less than having to conduct additional training or even hiring a new employee.

Check Those References

If a candidate passes those first two honesty tests, be sure to follow up with every reference they provided. Make sure each reference is able to verify the candidate’s work history. It can be difficult to get a reference to provide an honest assessment. When you conduct enough reference checks, it becomes easier to know which references provide genuine compliments or generic praise.

If your company needs additional insight on finding great employees in the supply chain industry, talk to the experts at ZDA. As one of the country’s leading logistics staffing agencies, we offer your company keen business knowledge as well as a healthy supply of vetted candidates. Be sure to schedule some time with us at your earliest convenience.