WORKPLACE

Resume cheaters: Does lying on resumes happen a lot with managers? Yes, says a new national study. And the odds are that it’s probably happening here too, says a local executive headhunter.

The national study, by the headhunting firm Thorndike Deland Associates, surveyed 154 personnel managers and found that half were very much aware that lying on resumes is a problem, and that 20% think it’s getting worse.

They also said the veracity of resumes is getting harder to check, and that the subjects people tend to lie about the most are job performance and pay history.

“That makes sense because it’s hardest to verify that stuff,” says Phyllis Dembowski, executive director of the Orange County office of Russell Reynolds Associates Inc., another nationwide search firm.

“A lot of companies don’t give out that information, and people know we’re not going to talk to their current employers anyway.”

But lying is probably much more prevalent among middle managers than the top executives that firms like Russell Reynolds recruit.

“With senior executives it’s easier to get a reading on these things because you can easily trace their reputation and their longevity,” says Dembowski. “Reputation can carry a top manager far in terms of career.

“But with middle management, it’s another story entirely.”