“Honesty is the best policy. Speaking truth except when it is not. Being selective in the truth one divulges can sometimes be the better choice.” — Gabrielle Parish, founder and president of GF Parish Group
In executive recruitment, as in life itself, individuals from every part of the hiring equation — recruiters, clients, and candidates — eventually face the tough question of how truthful they should be under certain circumstances.
Usually, such issues arise when what one wants stands to be road-blocked by uncomfortable or awkward reality. Moreover, though no one is encouraging outright lies or misrepresentation, a specific selectivity is sometimes warranted.
“Honesty is almost always the best policy in all interactions. However, there are occasions when the complete truth can be too brutal to impart or unnecessary regarding detail. In an industry that has a much-needed watchful eye out for charlatans and crooks, all players in the financial business must be as forthright as possible. It is the ethically correct thing to do and because reputations last forever.” — Grabrielle Parish
She points to several instances in which one might legitimately question whether unvarnished and complete truth is called for. The most common and significant situation arises when the job-seeker is confronted with explaining the reasons behind a job transition.
Withholding The Truth
- Will an analyst ever say that every security she recommended underperformed?
- Will a wholesaler ever admit that he could not figure out how to obtain meetings?
- Will a CEO mention that he widely disliked for his authoritarian and pompous ways?
No!
People may not even be hiding the truth, because so often, they may not even have faced the truth. Nevertheless, to win the trust of the recruiter, it is important to share the challenges that were faced along the way.
In situations that did not work out, it is critical to avoid constantly pointing the finger at someone else. When every single boss becomes evil in your story, the story is a fairy tale. When you are completely aware of past difficulties, it is perfectly acceptable to omit details. You can soften the story. Say, for example: ‘I didn’t agree with management and expressed my opinion too forcefully.’ It will win the trust of the recruiter.
Fear Of Losing Points
Often, candidates, fear they will lose points with a would-be employer for having changed their mind at certain junctions on their career path. They obfuscate when explaining how they went from pursuing a doctorate in electrical engineering, for example, but ended up as a quant analyst. They worry about looking foolish or unable to set goals and achieve them. That is an incorrect perception.
If you share your thought or emotional process behind the path, you show that you have the ability to learn from a mistake and change course successfully. That is what every employer wants.
Being Realistic
You should also be careful to avoid over-spinning your successes. It may not be wrong to say, ‘I was on the team that took assets under management from $2 billion to $35 billion.’ However, if your direct contribution was only a fraction of that amount, or if you were responsible for assembling the books that the salespeople used to win the accounts, that is more than simple exaggeration.
Ultimately, digging and references will likely highlight the true circumstances. You will look deceitful without a better rendering of the truth.
The same holds when discussing past compensation. Do not round up to the nearest million. Some employers may ask for proof. If caught in a lie, you will lose the job opportunity. It is far better to share the minimum compensation that you would be willing to accept.
Recuiters Need to be Forthright
Recruiters, of course, have a responsibility to be forthright as well. Painting an exact picture of a role, with a focus on the positive aspects of the job. Setting out the opportunities for the successful candidate to make an impact is indisputably essential. However, it gets tougher when you view yourself as perfect for a position but, you fall far short.
Should a recruiter point out, for example, that you are not engaging enough to be a salesperson or that their performance hardly matches up with the rest of the talent pool?
It is not the recruiter’s place to destroy your self-esteem or self-image. However, it does not hurt to mention that the role has certain fixed qualification requirements that do not match up with your background. It is white lie honesty where complete honesty would be detrimental. It is always about finding the right fit for you and the company.
The Right Feedback
Similarly, when you interview with the employer, they may provide negative feedback. The degree of honesty the recruiter should pass along depends on the nature of the input. Often, the recruiter avoids telling you the truth. They may push out the timeline. They may hope the job fades from your view.
However, if the feedback is about something in your control to change, and if that change could help you become successful when facing the next opportunity, the recruiter should be honesty. Make it easy for them. Treat it as learning feedback. It is the least the recruiter can do for having taken up hours of your time through the interview process.
Hiring managers must consider the consequences of misrepresentation as well. Sometimes employers do not show everything they should have. Th recruiter, as a result, presents a less than complete portrayal of the company to you. Perhaps the company neglected to inform the recruiter of recent personnel turnover, internal conflict, an uncertainty of strategic direction, nearing of capacity in the stellar product line, a recent downturn in performance, or a host of other unpleasant surprises. Or perhaps there were overstatements made that could have been interpreted at just the edge of reality.
Leaving Out Information
Leaving out such information, for whatever the reason, can cause serious problems: It can delay closing a search by months, if not indefinitely. When the truth comes out, you may pull yourself out of consideration. Moreover, the search might have to begin again with the added information, and with the second slate of candidates. At this late date, rarely are they the first choices. To say nothing of the frustration and potential damage to the recruiter’s reputation.
“If the truth stays hidden and a candidate accepts a job only to learn the truth later, as an employee, a different set of problems emerges, such as poor job retention by the company, a doubling of fees if the search must be redone after the guarantee period expires, or the need to redo the search for free by the recruiter, if the candidate jumps ship before the guarantee ends.” — Gabrielle Parish
A True Understanding
Hiring managers and recruiters must come to an understanding of what is truly happening within a company, department, or team. They need to understand how opinions may differ among the ultimate decision-makers. It is the recruiter’s role to represent any warts as opportunities to make an impact with positive change.
It is also incumbent upon the recruiter to focus on the positives. They should ask for permission to be candid. If the company is a public entity, however, and there is news that would not be known to the marketplace. It falls upon the company to hold back that information until it is visible in the public domain. That’s one of the reasons searches sometimes hit the pause button.
Hiring managers should avoid recruiters who to win an assignment do not ask them the tough questions. It is completely possible to be political. Ask if all the decision makers are on the same page. Also, ask the hiring manager to identify the greatest challenges facing the role. The recruiter also needs to be honest about the picture the hiring manager is painting regarding the ideal candidate. Did she describe a unicorn? If all the qualifications and traits exist in one individual, is the price expectation realistic? If the recruiter cannot ask the questions without being negative, once again, it would be best if they would go somewhere else.
Do Not Be Disingenuous
Some candidates are disingenuous when they accept a job. It unforgivable if you intentionally agree with a position to use it as leverage to gain a raise at the current employer. Sure, you may be richer, however, you will also get a reputation that will follow yiu in the industry. Do current employers manage to woo back some employees who saw greener grass somewhere else and who were genuinely planning to accept? Yes, it happens. It is then incumbent on you to offer not only truth but profuse apologies.
Challenge — What's Right For You?
Solution = Leverage Your Talent Stack + Build Your Career Capital
Identify your unique behavioural strengths, build your career capital and leverage your unique talent stack for lifetime success.
- Grow your leadership potential by targeting your critical developmental needs
- Determine your crucial career success factors, allowing for more focused efforts
- Discover your best and most successful career direction
- Find out about your strengths and interests in different career areas
Knowing yourself is the first step to being happy. Moreover, staying happy is an ongoing process of regrounding your long-term goals with your current objectives. When those align, you’re on the path to a job you can adore. Know when to find a better job as your best option may be to fall in love with your job (again) We also offer a personal development plan to help you achieve career success and satisfaction.
