Protect your reputation from unscrupulous consultants

Q: You were hired by a "consulting company," which in turn marketed you to one of its clients. You're now working at the client's offices. You just found out that your company purposely rewrote your resume before they gave it to the client. The new resume claims expertise you don't have. What should you do?

Nick's reply: This is a difficult situation, because you're left hanging in the breeze by your own employer, the consulting company. If you confess to the client, it still might look like you were in on the fraud. If you confront your consulting company and they refuse to admit it, you'll either have to quit or live with a noose around your neck, worrying that any day you could hang. If they get caught, you'll become the fall guy.

This is a dilemma that could blow up in your face and leave you unemployed. The one thing you cannot do is nothing. That's unethical and incredibly risky. But so is resigning, because you will have to explain why you're leaving so soon. It could hurt your reputation. If the employer finds out about the fraud, you're automatically implicated, and you can bet your company will cover itself by blaming you.

In a situation like this, I believe you must consider two things: Who lied and who will get hurt? I would not bother trying to get a liar to confess. I think the best option is to go to the manager you report to at the client company and tell the truth. Help the innocent party avoid getting hurt.

The smart way to do this is with documentation. Take along a copy of your real resume, and then ask the manager to compare it to the edition the company was given. Point out the discrepancy. "I wanted to come to you first, because I don't want you to get hurt. This is the resume I gave my employer; that's the one they gave you. I'm proud of my skills and experience, and my reputation is important to me. I did not know they did this. I like my job, and I like working here. But I can't serve you under false pretenses. What happens next is up to you."

This is a hard pill to swallow, but the only way out is to control how the truth is communicated to the client. Do it yourself before the client finds out from another source.

The odds that you will be terminated are significant because the client company accepted you in the belief that you possess the skills described on your resume. If it really needs all those skills, you're out. Just as important, the client may fire your consulting company over the fraud, and it will have to let you go, too. So this is a tough situation no matter how it plays out. Your goal should be to preserve your reputation. The company may be able to hire you back if it terminates its relationship with your employer. Or it may be able to refer you to another consulting company it works with, so it can rehire you through that company. In that scenario, I would imagine that the fraud would effectively invalidate any restrictions on the client with regard to hiring you through some other channel.

Fudging resumes is not acceptable or defensible whether it's done by an individual or a consulting company. The reality is that people's reputations can be damaged severely when they lie on a resume. Don't do it, and don't be an accomplice.

Copyright 2008. Distributed by Universal Press Syndicate

Nick Corcodilos is author of "Ask The Headhunter: Reinventing the Interview to Win the Job" and the host of www.asktheheadhunter.com. He can be reached by e-mail at seattle@asktheheadhunter.com or at North Bridge Group, P.O. Box 600, Lebanon, NJ 08833. Sorry, no personal replies.