By Luke Anami
Very many workers think they have made it once they are employed. They hang up their fighting gear and settle in since there are no further interviews to attend.
But this could come back to bit you. Because the process that beginf with one submitting your CV, being interviewed and finally getting the job ends, the employer will need to verified that the information contained in your documents are in fact true.
Recently, Yahoo CEO, Scott Thompson, quit amid allegations that he had misrepresented his qualifications on his CV.
Thompson was brought in from PayPal, the online payment firm where he was president, in January. His arrival followed the controversial ousting of Carol Bartz, who claimed the company had sacked her after she failed to turn the struggling Internet service firm round.
But less than six months after taking the job it emerged that Thompson’s resume claimed he had obtained a bachelor’s degree in computer science and accounting from Stonehill College in Easton, Massachusetts. The college subsequently confirmed that he had achieved only the accounting degree.
Thompson reportedly blamed the error on a head-hunting firm, Heidrick & Struggles, which had worked on Yahoo’s search for a chief executive officer. But the firm denied these claims. A special committee was established earlier this month to review the situation.
Human Resources experts say the firm will scrutinise the CV’s of employee even after employment to ascertain that there were no lies.
And this is the strongest warning yet to employees: the information you put in your CV could haunt you even after you have retired.
“Employees should know that every document or testimonial you give to an employer whether during the application for the job or during the interview counts,” Dominic Muteshi, a Human Resource Director at Sasra says.
“It could be your CV or the letters of testimonials you get from your former employers when you leave your jobs. When scrutinising the documents for employment, every detail is important.”
Normally, employers ask for you your originals. But even that is not enough. Your employer is authorised to write to the Kenya National Examinations Council to find out your KCPE and KCSE grades, as some applicants simply insist they lost their certificates while some present unclear photocopies.
