The CIPD survey also discovered that 23 per cent of employers do not always check references, 20 per cent rarely check previous absence and 24 per cent never or rarely check up on academic qualifications. Many employers only check a candidate's most recent work history, rely on gut instinct for making hiring decisions and are more interested in on-the-job performance than the accuracy of the claims made by the candidate on his / her CV.

Time and cost may be a factor in an employer's decision not to check CVs and references but the cost of employing unsuitable people can be even greater. An extreme example of the damage that a rogue employee can cause is evident in the case of Barings. If Nick Leeson's qualifications had been properly checked, the Bank would have found he had a number of county court judgments and had lied on his CV about his educational qualifications, possibly causing them to arrive at a different recruitment decision.

So what do we recommend?

• A CV should be seen as no more than an indicator of a candidate's suitability for the position and is not a substitute for a thorough recruitment process.
• The information in the CV should be thoroughly verified through interview and subsequent checks.
• If qualifications are mentioned in the CV the applicant should be requested to present the certificates.
• If security is essential further verification steps should be considered.

If you would like to discuss your recruitment selection processes and candidate checking procedures, please call Hannah on 01404 42359 or email hannah@hradvantage.co.uk

July/August 2005