I think my new manager falsified her credentials

by Alison Green on December 10, 2012

A reader writes:

My employer recently hired a new manager to fill a vacancy created by the resignation of my previous manager. The problem is that I have discovered that this new manager does not have some of the educational history and professional credentials that are listed on her LinkedIn profile. Presuming that her resume and her LinkedIn profile are materially or substantially the same, I can only presume this is misrepresentation. More than that, she was a contractor with my employer for about 4 months before they offered her a permanent position, so I’m not sure she was asked to present a resume.

The quandary now is how to deal with this. If I inform my manager directly that I know of the falsification, to give her a chance to make things right, I really believe that it does irreparable harm to our working relationship that will never be overcome. Moreover, our working relationship is already problematic (perhaps because I shine light on her failings, through the normal course of reviewing materials she created).

The other option is to go to her manager with the evidence. I presume I should insist on his confidence in the matter, but if my new manager is not dismissed over this, it will be a tense secret that might be unveiled at some future date.

So, with only bad outcomes visible, why do I want to get into this situation? I feel I have an obligation to protect the company when falsified credentials have been uncovered. More than that, I don’t believe she is a good fit with the company, and now I understand why her competence is not what I would expect it to be — she made herself look better than she is.

The most important question I have for you, is what should I do to protect myself in this situation? Should I send in the evidence to both managers anonymously and not get myself involved at all? Or, should I stand behind my obligation to the company and present the evidence directly?

For more perspective, I am not in H.R. and it is not my duty to verify credentials. My only defense for why I did this is that a few things in her LinkedIn profile looked suspicious and so I checked on the credentials with the organizations that conferred the credentials. The response of those organizations is the evidence I will present.

I do not hold a managerial role in the company, but I do have over 15 years seniority with the company (far more than my new manager and also more than her manager), and I survived three different rounds of layoffs, so I know I have value. Still, this could get ugly.

I can’t see any way that this is any of your business.

First, you’re not part of the management of this company or involved in hiring decisions or checking references.

Second, you don’t even know that she lied about her credentials to obtain the job. You note that she was a contractor for your company first and that you don’t even know if she would have been asked for a resume, meaning that you think it’s possible that they hired her on the strength of her performance as a contractor — in which case where’s the falsification?

Third, you went digging around to verify your manager’s information on an Internet website, which you had no standing to do.

Fourth, if your concerns are right and she’s not good at her job, then that will come out pretty quickly on its own. If she’s trying to make herself “look better than she is,” it’s going to be pretty clear “who she is” on its own, right?

And fifth, you’re bringing an awful lot of drama to your thinking about this, what with the “tense secrets” and “ugly” outcomes and so forth.

You clearly don’t like this manager and you’re looking for a way to get rid of her. That’s not your role, and the “ugly” situation you’re concerned about is the one you’re creating yourself with all this. Seriously, you should drop this.

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{ 164 comments }

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  1. Anonymous*

    “Third, you went digging around to verify your manager’s information on an Internet website, which you had no standing to do.”

    Well, to be fair, if the boss is a licensed professional that deals with the public, anyone has standing to verify. For instance, you’d want to make sure the architect and engineer you hired to build your house are licensed. You wouldn’t see an unlicensed doctor. When you go get your taxes done, you have every right to verify the person is a bona fide CPA. The list goes on.

      1. Anonymous*

        OK, how about another scenario. Let’s say I’m a licensed professional X. The Licensed Professional X body requires that licenseholders uphold a code of ethics, which includes reporting the misuse of credentials. Now I realize that “mind your own business” is often the most practical course of action, but is it actually wrong for someone to report a superior has falsified credentials?

        1. K*

          I think that there are at least some cases where professionals would be in violation of their own duties if they knew about the falsified credentials and didn’t report them. (That said, there’s no indication in the letter that that’s the case here.)

        2. Colette*

          Absolutely – if you’re licensed and required to report the misuse of credentials, you should report it. But that doesn’t extend to investigating anyone hired by your company to find out whether they are actually certified, and I don’t see any indication that it applies to this situation.

        3. Karyn*

          If, for instance, you’re an attorney, most states require that you report falsifications of other attorneys to the State Bar. But reporting them to your employer is another story.

          2. Stells*

            This. If someone is a presenting themselves as licensed professional and it has been falsified, then you should ABSOLUTELY report it to the organization that certifies and licenses that industry.

            You would not take it to your boss’s boss, HR, etc.

    2. DeeDee*

      Which is something you would readily assume that the person responsible for hiring her has already done. When you are hiring someone, it most certaintly is your responsibilty to verify their credentials. That’s not your responsibilty to do for every new hire your company brings on. I agree with AAM, this person is making a lot of assumptions about the veracity of qualifications for a hiring process she wasn’t a part of.

  2. Michael*

    From the OP: “The most important question I have for you, is what should I do to protect myself in this situation?”

    Do your job.

    By spending time digging through internet searches and contacting other companies, you have wasted hours of time. Even if it was off the clock, how could that possibly mean you “have value”?

    Mind your business, do you job as well as you can, and don’t create drama.

  3. Adam V*

    Much as I *want* to disagree with Alison on this one (because I hate the idea of people faking credentials and getting away with it, even briefly), I find myself in agreement with her because you want to be seen as the person who acted with complete propriety throughout a weird situation. If you weigh in (and especially if you’re the person providing the “ammunition”), then you’re painting yourself as the person who will look for reasons to discredit your coworkers or higher-ups if you don’t like them.

  4. Wilton Businessman*

    Wow, straight to the top of Top 10 Ridiculous Things Managers Have to Deal with.

    If I were you, I’d be preparing my resume for a job search.

    2. Katie the Fed*

      I’d like to nominate this as a topic for a future post. For realz.

      It’s not all in your head – they really ARE all out to get you. Sheesh.

  5. BCW*

    I often wonder how often these questions to AAM can be answered by something I learned as a child, TO MIND MY OWN DAMN BUSINESS!

    2. Beth*

      Seriously! I’ve noticed a marked increase in interest in things not pertaining to people’s actual jobs in the last few years. Why does everyone believe they are the right to know everything that goes on? It boggles my mind. If you aren’t the owner or person’s manager mind your own bees’ wax. The only outcome of sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong is aggravation. *caveat to say that if it’s a matter of life or death, then of course say something.

      1. twentymilehike*

        I’ve noticed a marked increase in interest in things not pertaining to people’s actual jobs in the last few years. Why does everyone believe they are the right to know everything that goes on?

        Personally, I think its because we’re now in this crazy information age maked by constant oversharing on facebook, twitter, instagram, pinterest, and a zillion other sites jumping on the social “networking”* bandwagon. I have a friend who posts on facebook when she goes grocery shopping and another who posts what he eats for lunch every day.

        It completely negates any reason for ever having a personal conversation with either of them.

        Keeping most things on a need to know basis really makes people more intereting and a lot less overwhelming.

        Just my two cents!

        *Neworking is in quotes because I always assumed networking to be a useful tool. Now it just seems like constant oversharing of random useless information.

        1. Lulu*

          I wonder if it doesn’t also have something to do with the increasingly competitive employment market, combined with growing employer expectations & limited opportunities in the workplace. Desperation and uncertainty make people a little crazy, especially when tied to trying to figure out how to navigate their career paths. It’s like this Black Friday mentality towards work.

        2. Jamie*

          I totally agree this. Everything is public now, there is no such thing as a private moment for some people. If one of my teenage daughters friends breaks up with her bf (or gets dumped) their whole social circle knows immediately. It’s like these sites created very tiny cults of celebrity for the participants.

          Your point is dead on.

          Oh and this?

          “I have a friend who posts on facebook when she goes grocery shopping and another who posts what he eats for lunch every day.

          It completely negates any reason for ever having a personal conversation with either of them.”

          Sounded like you were friends for them exclusively to hear of their lunch and grocery plans, and the sites spoiled the news for you. Which I’m assuming is not the case, otherwise you have the most specific friendship needs ever. :)

          Just cracked me up.

          1. twentymilehike*

            Sounded like you were friends for them exclusively to hear of their lunch and grocery plans, and the sites spoiled the news for you. Which I’m assuming is not the case, otherwise you have the most specific friendship needs ever. :)

            hahahaha … I know I’m tired, but I had to read this twice. If they are that detailed about mundane things, you should see how detailed the personal things get. Which reminds me of the time my SIL posted “aunt flow is in town” as her facebook status … OMGTMI.

  6. Coelura*

    It does bring up a side point – hiring managers should verify credentials. I had a candidate claim two different credential, neither of which were current. One had lapsed more than 10 years prior & the other had been lapsed for more than 2 years, but the candidate claimed them as current. What was ridiculous is that the job didn’t require the credentials (they would have been gravy), but the candidate lied. Sadly, although the top candidate, I had to remove him from consideration. If he lied about something so easy to verify…

    It was the first time I actually verified credentials on my own, but now I do everytime someone claims to have any.

    1. Kelly O*

      It also raises the question of whether the credentials the OP is worried about are even concerns, or if it’s something the employee and her manager discussed long before the hire.

      For me, it comes back to “why is this worth your time?” and “what do you hope to gain from this?” because clearly the OP feels she has something to gain from exposing what she believes to be a falsification of credentials.

  7. KarenT*

    More than that, she was a contractor with my employer for about 4 months before they offered her a permanent position, so I’m not sure she was asked to present a resume.

    If she didn’t present a resume, how did she falsify? Her LinkedIn doesn’t seem relevant, unless the hiring manager made the hiring decision based on LinkedIn.

    In this case, It sounds like she was a vendor working with your company, and they were impressed by her work, and decided to offer her a full-time job. That’s hardly uncommon. The decision to hire her probably had less to do with her actual qualifications and more to do with work she has demonstrated.

    1. KarenT*

      Sorry! This is a much less eloquent restatement of Alison’s #2. This was the first time a question bothered me so much I answered without reading Alison’s reply/the other comments :)

      1. KayDay*

        This was my first thought as well (although it got lost it my main comment below). LinkedIn =/= a legal document.

  8. nyxalinth*

    Did people always used to be such fusspot busybodies in business in years past? Or is it just more obvious with the internet?

    1. Adam V*

      It’s just a lot easier to do your own “sleuthing” in the Internet age. People in the past might have given up rather than writing letters or calling long-distance to find the right person in the right department.

      1. nyxalinth*

        True that! I just can’t get over how many “Waaah, so and so and doing such and such and I must bring it to the attention of others!” letters Allison has received this year.

      1. Jamie*

        I hope you accepted this date pending the Google search coming back clean.

        He shouldn’t assume until the results have been returned, assessed, and documented.

        1. Katie the Fed*

          True story, but when my friend met his girlfriend for the first time (on the Metro of all places) and asked her out, she took a cell phone picture of his driver’s license and emailed it to a few friends just in case something happened to her.

          I am all for being safe, but, um…WOW.

            1. AB*

              Agreed! I don’t think the guy should even feel offended, but rather conclude that he had found a smart girl who wouldn’t take unnecessary risks by going out with a stranger without some sort of protection.

            1. AB*

              Andrew, if when I was dating there were mobile phones, I wouldn’t mind returning the courtesy — even though as a woman it would be much more difficult for me to put my date in danger (due to less physical force).

          3. BCW*

            IF a girl I asked out did that I would cancel the date. Thats a bit much. Unless he is asking her to meet in a dark alley or something, thats ridiculous.

            1. Meg*

              Well, on the Metro… those subway tunnels are as good as dark alleys. Someone got stabbed last week, and earlier in May, some kids shot some other kids.. in the Metro tunnels.

              1. Katie the Fed*

                No they met on Metro, and he asked her out. Then when they went on the date and he came to pick her up, she took the picture of his license and sent it to her friends.

  9. KarenT*

    I don’t get the impression that this is the case here, but the only thing that would change my mind is if these qualifications are critical and necessary. In other words, not having them would be dangerous to either peoples lives, like a doctor, or lawyer.

    1. Adam V*

      And in those cases, you’d expect HR (and perhaps Legal?) to have done their due diligence when hiring, and if you find that somehow they fraudulently got past those hurdles, you may want to find a new job anyway since you wouldn’t be able to be certain that your other coworkers are similarly credentialed.

      1. jmkenrick*

        I agree with you, but just for discussion’s sake…if you did suspect that HR wasn’t properly handling things – for example, not verifying the driving record of a bus driver, or not confirming the degree of a doctor – ethically, I’m not sure that just resigning would be the proper course of action.

        In fact, it could look really bad if it came out later that you suspected something was amiss and took no action. Curious about anyone in the legal or medical field (or another field where certain certifications/degrees are required, not just desired) has to say about that.

        1. Adam V*

          In such a situation, my solution would likely be to notify the proper legal authorities (usually state licensing boards or something similar) *after* I had found a new job . Since issues like “hired a doctor / lawyer without verifying they were properly credentialed” has the possible consequence of shutting down the hospital / law firm, even if only temporarily, I’d secure myself a new job and then do the necessary reporting.

          However…

          The big exception is if you witness the new non-doctor or non-lawyer do something that will have a severe and immediate negative consequence to the company or a patient/client (attempting to give a patient a drug they’re listed as being allergic to, or filing the wrong forms or with the wrong courts), I would immediately report the infraction to HR or the appropriate resource within the company. As part of the investigation, I would expect the person’s record to be checked (if they’ve made the mistake here, have they made similar mistakes at previous employers?) and their credentials re-verified.

          Then again, even if I was absolutely certain a doctor / lawyer had the proper credentials, and I saw them do something similar, I’d report them just the same. So this isn’t a “do they have the appropriate credentials” thing, it’s a “report all major mistakes to the proper people” thing.

          (IANAL, YMMV, etc.)

        2. littlemoose*

          I am a lawyer but not an expert. It is generally pretty easy to verify licensure with the state bar association. If a person was practicing law without a license, they could certainly be civilly liable for a lot of things, including unauthorized practice of law (most, if not all, states have a cause of action for this). As for the ramifications for the employer or other people working with the unlicensed lawyer, that depends on the facts. Could be they would also be liable for unauthorized practice of law, etc., and subject to lawsuits. If you are a lawyer who knows or suspects another person is engaging in the unauthorized practice of law, you probably do have an ethical duty to report your concerns to the state bar. They take that business pretty seriously. That said, a lot of this general info may vary depending on the specific facts; moreover, I did not at all think from the OP’s letter that this did involve a lawyer. But here’s my two cents anyway.
          Disclaimer: this is not legal advice, I am just a random person on the Internet, so for heaven’s sake talk to your own flesh and blood lawyer if you have a legal question!

    2. KayDay*

      A superintendent in a nearby school district was fired because he lied about having a PhD (which is not always, but often, required for superintendent positions). So people don’t always do their due diligence. And having it come to light that the person in charge of the district had lied about their qualifications was a major embarrassment to the district.

    3. Long Time Admin*

      I work at an Architectural and Engineering firm, and we have a department that keeps tabs on all the professionals’ licenses and the various state requirements. I suppose in other similar firms, there would be a similar department, or HR might handle that. The professionals like it because they don’t have to try to keep track (many of them are licensed in multiple states), and yes, there would be legal ramifications if someone’s license expired and they signed off on any documentation.

  10. Laurie*

    I don’t believe she is a good fit with the company, and now I understand why her competence is not what I would expect it to be — she made herself look better than she is.

    Self-fulfilling prophecy, much?

  11. Jamie*

    Moreover, our working relationship is already problematic (perhaps because I shine light on her failings, through the normal course of reviewing materials she created).

    If anyone with whom I worked considered issues they had with my material to be “shining a light on my failings” then yep, that would make for a problematic relationship.

    I cannot agree with Alison more. Unless she is claiming an MD and is about to perform neurosurgery and you know she went to beauty college and not med school then just let this lie. And stop trying to shine the light on her failings – that phrase is so illustrative of how vindictive this all seems.

    1. PJ*

      Yeah, this one jumped out at me too. And this:

      “I don’t believe she is a good fit with the company”

      Clearly somebody does, and OP’s opinion was not considered relevant in this regard.

      Clean up your relationship with this person, OP, and learn to work with her. She has friends in high places, and could be there for a very long time.

    2. EngineerGirl*

      Anyone with a truly incompetent boss would understand what the OP said. Alison, I disagree with you. The OP is having to compensate for the manager’s lack of competence in several areas. It does affect her job, so “mind your own business” doesn’t apply here. It became the OP’s business when she had to compensate for her manager. She is now doing her job plus her managers.

      OP, continue to support the manager. When your manager makes stupid mistakes **privately** correct them in a respectful manner, giving rationale for why things need to change. If your manager orders you to do something stupid, make sure you question it respectfully – “You sure about A? Because B will happen if C happens.” When given verbal orders to do something technically incorrect, write an e-mail to the manager “verifying” the order (all for clarifications sake). Keep it all plus a journal.

      Eventually they get caught, because you can’t be there 24/7 to cover for them.

      1. LL*

        Yep, if the manager is doing substandard work, the OP should document, document, document. Creating a nice paper trail will help to protect the OP in case the dishonest boss tries to throw them under the bus!

      2. DeeDee*

        I would agree but she never says that the manager is bad at the job, just that she doesn’t believe she is qualified for it based off her “investigations”. I don’t have any idea why her boss would’ve done this, but for all she knows she’s a complete liar on LinkedIn, but is truthful in her resume. Which goes back to the point I made earlier, she doesn’t actually know what the company is already aware of , because that’s really not her business.

        1. A Bug!*

          Exactly. The way I look at it, there are two distinct issues that come up in the letter. One is that the manager is (according to the writer) incompetent. Two is that the writer suspects the manager essentially lied about her qualifications to secure the job.

          If the problem is the incompetence, address the incompetence. But I get the feeling that the writer’s trying to find a way to use the qualifications issue to further an ulterior motive. I’m not really keen on that kind of Machiavellian tactic.

        2. Jane Doe*

          It’s also possible that whatever certifications she’s listed on LinkedIn have lapsed, or were listed in anticipation of completion (but never completed). People often don’t update their LinkedIn pages on a regular basis.

      3. Colette*

        The tone of the letter makes me think that it’s more that the OP is looking for reasons to dislike the manager, not that the manager is incompetent. (She did an unauthorized background check to see if credentials she doesn’t know the manager has on her resume are legit!) The manager may be incompetent, but it could also be that the OP is stuck on “the way we do things here” and resisting change. If that’s the case, the OP needs to reevaluate her approach to work – or find a new job.

      4. Emily K*

        This may also be a case of the manager still learning her role. Even very skilled employees have a learning curve when starting a new job and may take a few months to get to know the idiosyncrasies and peculiarities of the new workplace and perform at the same high bar they were achieving at their last job. To someone who’s been there 15 years, all the things the manager is learning are taken-for-granted, unconsciously integrated “basic” knowledge.

  12. twentymilehike*

    I’m curious what sort of “credentials” these are. Obviously, if she is a CPA or a lawyer, then I would hope she is not misrepresenting that, as that sounds like its probably a big deal, and probably really hard to hide. I was thinking maybe more of “got a degree in Economics from USC” when she really got an English degree from UCLA. Or took most of the classes to get the degree, but didn’t actually graduate. Something that is not a requirement of the job, but you proabably shouldn’t lie about just because you shouldn’t lie at work in general.

    OP, I would let her prove her lie through her work if it’s something that matters. You are not in the position to bring it up, but I can understand it really bothering you. I have been in a similar situation–I accidentally found out something about a coworders tax situation that I knew was unethical, but I wasn’t in a position to really bring it up. I have one coworker that I am particularly close to, so after having it eat at me for a while, I confided in that coworker, we talked about it, and then mutually let it go and moved on. Accept that it’s not your business, vent your feelings to somone you trust, and then let it go. You’ll feel better in the end.

  13. needle*

    what are the credentials OP is referring to? is it a degree or membership in a professional organization? i’m assuming the latter because don’t you have to have permission to verify a degree? could it be that the person just didn’t renew a membership or lapsed on a continuing education credit?

    at any rate, the whole situation sounds creepy. if OP doesn’t like how things are going down he/she should start looking for a new job.

    1. "OP"*

      The first qualification is a professional society credential, obtained about 7 years ago, with a 3 year maintenance requirement (to be fulfilled by continuing education, etc.), and a requirement to pay membership dues. The manager isn’t paying due and has no maintenance history.I find it egregious that she still uses the credential considering that the society Pledge includes statements on ethics and on maintaining the credential… so this is not merely an oversight that the credential has lapsed.

      The second qualification is an incomplete masters degree (48 credit hours), which actually turned out to be an incomplete graduate certificate (24 credit hours).

      1. Ask a Manager* Post author

        Yeah, these are just not a big deal for her to have gotten wrong on LinkedIn.

        People let professional society memberships lapse all the time, without thinking to remove it from their LinkedIn profile. And as for the graduate work, who knows — maybe she started out intending one thing and did another and never updated her LinkedIn profile. But these are not likely to be things your employer considers scandalous.

      2. Jamie*

        Does the first credential have any bearing on her legally being able to practice her profession?

        Otherwise it can be oversight. I’m a member of the a professional group and forgot to renew one year. Has no bearing on my jb, just forgot…but I still had the card in my wallet and the listing on LinkedIn. Unless its a CPA or something needed to practice it can be easy to forget – then you just pull out the credit card and make it right.

        And if she’s pursuing further education sounds like she could be meeting the criteria. And maybe some of the work done for the grad school stuff is applicable to either…it’s incomplete so I really don’t get why that’s a big deal. Maybe I’m missing something.

        1. "OP"*

          No, it’s not as simple as pulling out a credit card to make it right.

          No, the graduate credits were several years before the society membership, and thus not part of a maintenance activity.

  14. Eric*

    I wonder if any of the answers would be the same if the OP were to find out innocently, such as a heads up from a mutual colleague.

    2. Rob*

      I had a similar thought as well. What if the OP is not the only employee who has similar information? I can’t imagine the manager having much credibility with the staff at that point.

    3. Elizabeth*

      I wondered that, too. For example, if a new coworker claimed to have recently gotten a PhD in macroeconomics at the University of Somewhere, and I met a U of S macroeconomics professor and said, “Oh, you must have known my coworker Lee” – and the professor said, “Lee? Never heard of them.”

      1. Sara*

        Just curious, are PhD programs set up as such that every professor knows their student and every students stands out to their professor?

        I only have a Bachelor’s but I can’t imagine every professor knowing me and myself standing out to all of them, despite being intelligent and competent.

        1. fposte*

          Generally, no. If the claim was that Professor Big had been their advisor, it might be weirder if Prof B didn’t recognize the name, but even then, I wouldn’t immediately call foul.

          1. EM*

            Agreed. I have a graduate degree from a smaller, private university, and while I did know every single professor in the department, and they knew me, I can see how a situation could come up where a current professor would not know me. Several professors have either retired or passed away :( since I attended there, so a newer professor would not know me from Adam.

        2. Ethel*

          A graduate degree is far different then a bachelors, no one gives a crap about undergrads unless they make themselves to be very incompetent or super-competent, the rest (99%) are the washing tide. PhD programs you are up close and personal with your PI from formal and informal functions outside of school to journal reviews to thesis work, etc… This is true for small schools and big ones everywhere.

  15. KayDay*

    Well, in the end I agree with Alison that you should drop this, although my reasoning behind it is quite different and I have some important caveats.

    Caveat 1: If this is a licensed professional (e.g. Attorney, CPA, etc.) the rules are different and you should check with the licensing ethics board about it. If they say they have a CPA when they don’t or that they have an MS in accounting when they don’t, that’s a big deal.

    Caveat 2: (I am assuming that since the manager has a manager, this is not the case.) If this is a very public position or the Head of the organization, that’s a little different. If the person was lying about having a mandatory qualification, like a degree or mandatory certification like a CPA, or grossly lied about a recent position, in that case, I would say notify the hiring committee. But, as I said before, this would only apply to the CEO/President/Superintendent/Principal/etc and would only apply if it was a major intentional lie (as opposed to a simple error in the title of the degree or having the year slightly off.)

    Also, I don’t see anything at all wrong with googling your boss. In my field (people move around a lot and publish things), I’d actually consider it really normal. And I’m connected on LinkedIn to my boss, so I don’t see anything weird about that either.

    To the OP: If neither of these caveats are the case, you should drop it. Especially since you don’t get along, bringing this up would just make you sound petty, and you’d be far less believable since you have a grudge against your boss. You’re completely right that this would just cause trouble for you.

    Furthermore, I think you are putting way too much stock into someone’s LinkedIn profile. Mine isn’t exactly like my resume, and I only recently realize that I had a year wrong on one of the entries. And if your talking about things like “skills” as listed on Linked In, and if your problem is that the manager included, say, “teapot making,” in their skills when they don’t really have it, that’s not really a big deal.

    1. "OP"*

      Caveat 2 is nearly the case. I wouldn’t describe the role as ” a very public position” but it is customer facing and responsible for branding, messaging and marketing. Competence matters to the success of the company in a competitive global marketplace.

      1. Ask a Manager* Post author

        Except that you’re not in charge of monitoring her competence; that’s not your job. If there’s a problem with her competence, her manager should see it and deal with it. If her manager doesn’t see it, it’s either not a serious problem or her manager is inept. If the latter, there’s nothing you can do about that.

  16. KarenT*

    a few things in her LinkedIn profile looked suspicious and so I checked on the credentials with the organizations that conferred the credentials. The response of those organizations is the evidence I will present.

    I’m confused! Did the OP call the Chocolate Teapot Association of America to ask if Jane Doe was a member and had in fact taken their Chocolate Tempering Certification Course?

    1. KayDay*

      I was assuming the OP found out online, but if the OP actually called the organization, that would be crossing the line. And if the OP had to misrepresnet him/herself to do so, that would be beyond over the line.

      1. KarenT*

        It’s hard to say. The fact she said the response from the organizations is her evidence made me think that she contacted them.

      1. Anonymous*

        Many credentials are supposed to be publicly verificable. Otherwise, how would you know a professional Teapot Maker from some person off the street?

    3. Anonymous*

      Chances are, the Chocolate Teapot Association has a public directory of Certified Chocolate Temperers

      1. "OP"*

        Yes, they do have a public directory. Alas, the organization has to be contacted to verify maintenance requirements have been fulfilled and membership is in good standing.

        1. Ask a Manager* Post author

          And if it was important to your company to verify that, they would have.

          Again, you have no reason to believe that she willfully misled them on her resume, and acknowledged she may not have even needed a resume because her job performance was enough to get her hired. So where’s the problem here?

  17. BGirl81*

    Pete Campbell, is that you?! I agree with Alison on this one. This is one of those situations that has enormous potential to backfire on the person bringing the info to their attention. Also, in my younger years I worked in HR and did background checks, verified education, etc. and it wasn’t a matter of making a phone call or two to verify – I had to submit transcript requests, etc., so it’s possible that the OP has gotten the wrong info. It’s a given that we all want to know that our coworkers and managers have integrity, but trying to dig up things to make them look bad is sketchy in and of itself.

  18. Krissy*

    The question I asked myself ..what was the OP motivation? the tone of her comments are resentment and bitterness.. 15+ years, I have value..it leads me to believe the OP may have wanted the position and is miffed that this person that was contracting got the position instead of her…

    The best thing for her to do is her job and if the manager truly has performance issues it will all come to light without her “shining light on her failings”

    I can’t see how the OP would want to engage in this type of drama!!

    2. "OP"*

      Krissy,

      The motivation is that I am already dealing with some of the fallout of the manager’s shortcomings. I am doing my job and I want to succeed in the long term, but having an inattentive, or possibly unethical, manager is “drama” in itself that I want relief from.

      1. Ask a Manager* Post author

        Then that is your issue, not the manager’s credentials.

        I’m curious because you haven’t responded at all to the vast majority opinion here, which is that you’ll be making yourself look really bad by pursuing this. Have you incorporated that into your thinking at all?

  19. Victoria HR*

    Also, just because X, Y, and Z credentials are listed as required on a job posting, doesn’t mean that the person hiring for that position won’t consider a candidate who doesn’t have them. For example, if the manager job posting said that a master’s degree in making chocolate teapots was required, but the person in question didn’t have that, but wowed the hiring manager anyway and got the job, it’s none of the OP’s business. So the OP doesn’t know what went down between the job candidate and the hiring manager. “Fusspot busybody,” indeed.

  20. LL*

    I must admit, I’d question the integrity of my manager if I found out they had falsified their credentials on LinkedIn.

    1. JT*

      Yes.

      This doesn’t seem like the OP’s business to go snooping around, but if it’s true that person has lied somewhere, that’s important. I’m not sure what steps to take, but just because it isn’t lying about an MD or a CPA doesn’t make it unimportant – it reflects badly on the person and, by extension, on the organization. I’m reminded of the recent German government officials who had to step down due to plagiarism in their graduate theses.

  21. Mike C.*

    “Hey AaM, how do I use politics to get my boss fired?”

    This is real amateur level stuff here. If you’re so concerned about your “obligation to the company”, then why not just go out and hire a PI or bug your boss’s phone?

  22. SCW*

    It seems like it would depend if these credentials were putting someone in danger. For instance, they were hired to drive a bus and claimed to have a CDL and kept running over people. That would be a concern. But even if they had a CDL and ran over people it would be a concern. Bad performance is bad whether or not the person has the credentials!

    1. A Bug!*

      My impression of the letter is that these credentials are not a literal requirement that place the manager in violation of professional regulations by which she’s bound. I’m guessing that this isn’t the case in this instance, because the letter’s not exactly short on details.

      As a result, my take-away from the letter is “I think I dug some dirt up on my new boss; how can I fling it at her without getting any on myself?”

  23. Louis*

    /ethic off

    From your text I get the felling that you want to gun her down. Did you by any chance applied for the position and not get it ?

    Anyway let’s forget the why and make an action plan for the how.

    You should not present this yourself, especially if you are seen as having a conflic/potential conflict with her. It will be you against her and you will have little credibility. She was hired for the job so, at least for now she has the trust of the higher ups.

    You have been there for 15 years, you should know a few people… the ones that likes to spread rumors. Just mention to them that you heard some bad stuff about her credential and let the rumors do their work.

    In the mean time, become her trusted advisor. Do everything you can to make her feel you are on her side. You will be in a much better position to land the killing blow when opportunity show arise.

    /ethic on

    WTF are you doing going around digging dirt on your boss !

    1. Katie the Fed*

      Nooo. This will almost certainly blow up in her face if she tells the town crier what she *thinks* she discovered.

  24. Liz in the City*

    Perhaps your manager received these certifications / credentials under a different name, like she’s now married, or was married, or changed her name from Hugh Ash because it was embarrassing. Anyone using my LinkedIn profile to call my alma mater would think I didn’t attend since in the interim, I got married.

    1. Karyn*

      This – I pointed it out below, my degree was issued in a different name than I work under. There are just too many ways for this to blow up!

  25. Yup*

    OP, for what it’s worth: my resume is super accurate, but my LinkedIn profile is done in broad strokes. For example, I held a variety of positions at a single company where I worked for many years. My resume lists them accurately, starting at admin assistant on up through various promotions. On LinkedIn, I just list the years I worked at the company and the title of the last position I held. So someone reading my LinkedIn might be all “liar liar pants on fire, you were a Teapot Director for only 2 years, not 6 years!”. But the difference is crystal clear on my resume, which is the info I submit to hiring managers.

    I certainly don’t think it’s OK to say I was an executive director if I wasn’t. But social media sites like LinkedIn shouldn’t be the official source of someone’s professional credentials, so I’d be careful about making assumptions based on that info alone.

  26. two times*

    Ok, so you applied for the management job and instead of hiring you they hired a liar… Now you want to get back at the players in this little story. I highly suggest you do it anonymously. Send a letter with your supposed evidence and CC everyone that would have the power to ditch this person. If you want to have even more fun CC all your c-workers but don’t forget to send one to yourself. Lol! Have fun!

    1. Ask a Manager* Post author

      I don’t know if this is a joke or not, but stuff like this is rarely smart. It has the potential to blow up and impact you in ways that you didn’t expect. Deciding to mess with someone out of vindictiveness rarely goes well in the long term.

      1. Sara*

        I seriously hope that was a joke…..

        I could be way off base but I’m getting a sense of bitterness and vindictiveness out of the OP’s letter. Even before reading the answer, I kept wondering.. “who told you to go digging around?” I don’t see the OP mentioning exactly how the manager is incompetent that her credentials would be fake, (I.e., appearing not to know something that anyone with a certain credential would know?)…

  27. Karyn*

    Here’s something else to consider, OP – in your “checking her credentials,” I assume you called the educational institution or licensing board and asked about her by name. How do you know her degree isn’t conferred to a different name? Before I had my maiden name restored after my divorce, my bachelor’s degree was issued in my married name. I had it reissued under my maiden name once I changed it back, but if your coworker didn’t bother to do this (or if she’s gotten married since she graduated, or simply goes by a different name professionally), how do you know your “findings” are correct? There are just too many what-ifs here for you to even consider acting on anything.

    3. Anonymous*

      It’s also not uncommon at all for schools to lock your record once you leave. They won’t allow you to change your name on your old records if you get married or divorced down the road.

      1. Karyn*

        Yeah, I was really lucky that my school didn’t do that – although funny enough, my school changed its name after I left, so now if someone goes to find it, they won’t be able to! Yet another example of how “credential checking” by someone who isn’t part of the hiring process can get sticky.

    4. perrik*

      If you tried to verify my high school graduation based on my current legal name, you’d think I never graduated. I did, but by the time I finished my BS I had legally changed my first and last name (at different times).

      A close friend has a Ph.D and the publications that go along with it. She goes by her middle name, so you might have problems finding her in a search.

      So in summary: OP, MYOB and focus on being awesome at your job. If your manager is that bad, her manager will figure it out.

    5. "OP"*

      The association membership directory and the graduate school registrar both found records pertaining to the manager’s name and the year in question.

  28. some1*

    I have to agree with everyone who pointed out that you can’t take a LinkedIn profile as gospel for someone’s credentials. I believe it’s unethical to lie or exaggerate on your LinkedIn profile, but it’s not a fireable offense, in my opinion.

  29. some1*

    AaM, did you have a related post on this, if I remember the letter writer had a co-worker who was lying about his or her current job title? I think your advice was the same for that one, too: your co-worker is not too bright to lie about this but LinkedIn =/= official resume.

  30. fposte*

    My main concern is this: I don’t think you’re hearing how crazy this makes you sound. I have some sympathy for your hunt, because I’m a researcher and a natural ferreter, but you are not presenting like somebody defending your company, you’re sounding like people on a hate blog piecing together the minutiae of another blogger’s life to prove she doesn’t live the way she says to the three other people who care. This makes you sound like as much of a problem as the person you’re targeting, and as a manager I’d be as taken aback by your hyperdramatic pursuit as the possible falsification.

    2. Katie the Fed*

      agreed. At some point this left “normal workplace tension” territory and careened into “Single White Female” land.

  31. KimmieSue*

    Another point, did the OP have the managers “PERMISSION” to authorize what is in effect a background investigation? Typically candidates sign both a release to the third party agency which conducts the background check (sometimes) AND an employment application. It doesn’t sound like the OP had the person’s permission to check any history on them. I’m not a lawyer but I think this might create risk for not only the OP but the employer. The manager’s privacy and rights under FCRA may have been violated? Certainly, this was a very bad idea.

    1. KayDay*

      From the letter, I really do not think the OP did anything illegal. You don’t need anyone’s permission to Google anyone or check their LinkedIn profile. You don’t even need permission to call and ask about someone (assuming you don’t lie to anyone in the process). We’ve all read the horror stories about job offers being rescinded over drunk facebook photos. Releases are only needed for things like criminal records and credit reports. Unless the OP misrepresented him/herself and/or used sensitive information, like a social security number, to get the information, I don’t see how it could get anyone into legal trouble.

      (note: legal =/= a good idea)

      1. "OP"*

        No misrepresentation. The emails were written as an ordinary person, with no representation or affiliation provided. The organizations never wrote back “Why are you asking?” or “On what grounds are you requesting this information?” The organizations were freely forthcoming with the information.

        1. Ask a Manager* Post author

          No misrepresentation, but really, really overstepping your bounds. I would not tell your employer that you did this — it’s going to make you look worse than it makes her, seriously.

  32. careerservices*

    I think a lot of employers don’t realize how easy it is to request transcripts. We had a graduate lie to her employer about graduating from a program with certain credentials. If they had requested transcirpts or references the person never would have been hired and the healthcare employer would never have opened themselves up to all sorts of liabilities if she injured someone. No one is immune to it, the CEO of Yahoo about a year ago was discovered for lying on her resume about the degree and year she recieved it.

  33. Anonymous*

    As a former registrar, I can say that if you think someone is misrepresenting their education, the school will likely send a cease and desist letter to the individual in question. However, that would be the duty of the employer – the one who actually knows what the person claims to have and what evidence they presented. I only would consider doing that because I work in education and would want someone to notify my institution. From a management standpoint, though, I agree with everyone else. OP doesn’t need to get involved.

    I also think, professionally, no institution under US jurisdiction would have provided that information unless you misrepresented yourself or your role in your company. If you used the National Student Clearinghouse to verify any of that info, they do track who makes those requests, and if she attended any of those schools at all, she has a right to see to whom and when that information released. You also violated their TOS. If that’s your “evidence,” that’s evidence against YOU.

    1. Kristin*

      Please keep in mind that we do not know what information about her academic background that the OP is accusing her manager of misrepresenting. Under FERPA (The Family Educational Rights & Privacy Act), the student’s name, major field of study, credits earned toward a degree, degree(s) awarded, and dates of attendance are all considered public information unless the student has requested a FERPA hold on that information. The OP would not have had to misrepresent him/herself or violate anyone’s terms of service to get that information.

      While I agree with the majority that this is none of the OP’s business assuming there is no danger to others from the alleged misrepresentation, I do not think it is fair to attribute selfish or nefarious motives to the OP. It is possible that the OP came across the information innocently, is genuinely worried about it, and did not express him/herself well. We spend a lot of time at work and the OP has spent 15 years at this company. It is understandable that a person who has put in that kind of time at a company would feel protective of it and get a bit worked up after discovering that someone may have gotten a job by misrepresenting her educational and/or professional background. When people are extremely nervous or worried about a situation, they do not always express themselves well.

  34. Anonymous*

    “Moreover, our working relationship is already problematic (perhaps because I shine light on her failings, through the normal course of reviewing materials she created)”

    Combined with making a point about her seniority compared to her manager (and their manager), it seems to me that the questioner might feel as if she is not getting credit for the work she completes or feels undervalued. That is a different question altogether…how do you handle a situation when you think you aren’t getting credit for the work you accomplish, or even if you think your manager is taking credit for the work you accomplished?

  35. Steve G*

    I wouldn’t use Linkedin as a way to judge someone’s credibility. Its not a resume. And I’m guessing alot of people leave like 1/2 of their history off of it because Linkedin has definite space limitations.

    But your other issue is valid (if it is real and not just perceived or desired) – the fact your boss doesn’t like you discovering her mistakes. It seems like there is animosity there that needs to be addressed, regardless of whether it is mutual or started with one of you. You may be intimidating the new Mgr, someone who is used to being in charged will be intimidated by someone with lots of tenure and experience of that specific company.

  36. Anonymous*

    Hey, why doesn’t the OP also figure out if their manager is using sick time instead of vacation time? Lol serious influx of questions where the answer should be: mind your own business and do your own work.

  37. Anonymous*

    I would report it and do it annoymously, open the bag then let the chips fall where they may. Its the principal, plus this person who perhaps may have moved her way up the ladder by lying is my boss and if they have no business doing the job, then I don’t to work with someone who has no integrity. Good luck!

  38. N.*

    I am a somewhat private person, have no Facebook, never had Myspace and my linkedin I never did anything with after signing up. People are not supposed to send a photo with their resumés in the US so it is a constant fear of mine that with the 5 or so other “N. Nymous’s” running around (that I know of) that I may be mistaken for one of them… and it would not be flattering to me. Sometimes I wonder how many jobs never called me back because they thought they found pix of “me” partying in Mexico… Food for thought.

    1. Anonymous*

      Ditto. I have an increadibly popular name so it definitely bothers me that potential employers could be judging me based on the someone else’s internet presence. You wouldn’t even be able to narrow it down by using my location. The last time I checked there were at least 10 others with my name that live in my city (or you would think so according to spokeo/FB, etc)

  39. Not So NewReader*

    “I feel I have an obligation to protect the company when falsified credentials have been uncovered. ”

    In today’s world reporting falsified credentials could keep you very busy, OP.

    Let’s say for a moment that everything you are saying is right on the money. (We are pretending… bare with me.) Not only have you knocked this manager out of her tree, but you have also knocked her hiring manager out of another tree.

    This is not good, OP.

    This puts you in an extremely precarious situation. When people make reports like this what typically happens next is the reporter also goes under great scrutiny. This means YOU. Are you prepared to be without a pay check? Is it worth it to you?

    As other posters have said, if you cannot work through the agitation from this situation, your next step is to look for a new job.
    I have had two friends – different situations but same punchline. They were going to right the wrongs in their work places. They thought they were being discrete. They ended up unemployed.

    1. devil's advocate*

      So even if it’s true and two people (the manager and the one who hired her) aren’t qualified, it’s okay to just bumble along and let everyone else suffer their incompetence?

      You feel it’s okay for someone who knows a teacher was in trouble in another state for molesting a student, or a nurse who knows another nurse failed her exam, to not say anything to protect their own interests? So that HR can keep screwing up background checks and hiring more people like them?

  40. Tyrion*

    I especially like how such a long-winded, pretentious monologue was smacked down with a short ‘n’ simple “MYOGDB, FFS!”

  41. BCW*

    I’d really like to see the OP respond here, see if there is some way she can defend herself, because she really just sounds petty. I’m hoping that the tone of the email was just off and she can do a bit more explaining.

  42. devil's advocate*

    I’m seeing a lot of responses which either come right out and say “Mind your own business!” or go on for paragraphs and essentially say the same thing.
    What concerns me is that there are many instances where people get hurt because someone else minded their own business and didn’t report something they should have.
    I’m not saying this is necessarily the case for the OP. Her manager’s falsified credentials could have nothing to do with the job (a master’s when the job doesn’t even require it, etc). But sometimes it’s important, like the fake engineer story someone linked to above, or health professionals who aren’t qualified to be performing their duties. If we shame everyone who wants to call out a liar, it’s going to lead to situations where someone has information that should be shared, but doesn’t because they’re afraid of being that busybody.
    It’s one thing to caution the OP that she might create tension at work by reporting this and that she’ll have to decide if the situation is important enough to risk that. But to just throw a blanket ban on ever looking into something unless you’re a hiring manager isn’t fair either. Some hiring managers are idiots, and I don’t want the entirety of the workforce to have to rely on their ability or willingness to do their job thoroughly.
    I have school-age kids. It’s scary with all the stories out there about teachers being accused of molesting kids, where you find out after the fact that they “resigned” from their past job under the same suspicion. I don’t want to think that the receptionist had her suspicions about the coach and decided it “wasn’t her business” to follow up on them and that HR would have found whatever their was to find.

    1. "OP"*

      Well said.

      This situation doesn’t rise to the level of protecting the innocent from crime or predators, so I probably have to let this go because the wrong I *might* be correcting is not significant enough to risk my job.

      That said, I do not believe I can find career success working for this manager. I’m also confident that her work is ultimately going to affect the viability and success of the company. For the sake of the company’s workers’ success and livelihoods, I believe something has to be done.

      Several have said that my only choice is to look for a new job. Really, there’s no other choice? A manager makes a poor hiring decision and the only resolution is that I have to resign?

      I’m not sure why so many are questioning my motivations. I’m looking for guidance on what is the right thing to do, and trying to analyze my motivations in this matter just adds color to a situation that I want a black-or-white answer to.

      Lastly… when I did my research, I didn’t use any information that isn’t on the LinkedIn profile. I didn’t use any confidential or privileged information to verify her qualifications.

      1. Ask a Manager* Post author

        No, resigning isn’t your only choice. You can also stay and try to work harmoniously with her. What you can’t do, without significant risk to your own reputation and possibly your job, is try to use this against her. It’s just not significant enough, and you’re going to look quite bad yourself for what is coming across like a fairly hysterical pursuit of her. It doesn’t matter that you only used the LinkedIn info; the fact that you were digging around to try to verify her background will make you look Crazy, capital C.

      2. Min*

        I’m looking for guidance on what is the right thing to do, and trying to analyze my motivations in this matter just adds color to a situation that I want a black-or-white answer to.

        I apologize in advance if I’m wrong, but I’m not sure you are looking for guidance on what to do so much as looking for advice on how to do what you’ve already decided and how to protect yourself when you do it.

        There’s been a pretty solid consensus that you should not do anything at all about what credentials she may have claimed so to write that you’re still looking for a black-or-white answer strikes me as disingenuous.

      3. Jamie*

        If your concern is really for the success of the company and livelihoods of your co-workers, I wouldn’t lose sleep over it because very few people are in the position to cause that kind of damage without their bosses stepping in.

        It sucks to work with people for whom you have no respect, sucks even more when they are your boss. I’ve worked with a cople of people in my life where I was absolutely incredulous that they were employed at all, much less making more money than I was.

        That was back when I was new to the work world and I expected everything to be fair. I really did – I’m over that now and it makes for better sleep at night.

        I would just take heart in knowing that your business most likely has checks and balances to keep one bad hire (if that’s what this is) from bringing the place to its knees. I would also try to remember that if she’s truly incompetent then she’ll crash and burn her own. You don’t have to push someone who is already falling off the cliff.

        In the meantime I would try to find a way to work with her in peace. This much resentment will only hurt you, not her.

  43. Snow Hill Pond*

    If I discovered that a person has falsified her credentials, then I would bring it to light. Period. It protects the integrity of the workplace.

    Now I wouldn’t go looking for it, but if it’s staring me in the face (like seeing a diploma from “Hawvardd University” hanging in their office), then come on, it’s gotta be reported.

    1. Min*

      But as you said, you wouldn’t go looking for it. I think many people might mention the fake diploma on the wall, but few would take it down and dust it for prints. ;)

  44. Lily*

    Interesting. This happened in my company, and it was a low-level employee that brought up the fact that someone very high up had lied on her resume. Her “whistleblowing” led to our company doing a bit of investigating, and they also found out that the executive had been illegally doling out contracts to her buddies and falsifying bids from other companies in order to cover her butt. The young woman that turned her in had no ulterior motives except for wanting to do the right thing. I really have no issues with Alison’s advice; just wanted to report how it went down at my company.

      1. "OP"*

        Again, with the motivations!

        Well, thank you AaM and the gallery for saving me from myself.

        Until next time,
        The “OP”

          1. Min*

            Not only do motivations color how others see our actions, they alter our own perceptions, as well. I know the OP was being sarcastic with the comment about “saving me from myself”, but since she doesn’t seem to understand how disturbing this behavior is, it really is kind of fitting. I’d like to think if the OP didn’t dislike this woman so much and didn’t want to be rid of her, this behavior hopefully wouldn’t seem so reasonable to her

            1. leslie*

              I think you should just do your work and let the problem run its course. your not losing or gaining any brownie points. have you ever heard of the word (hippa) this is not face book you are not allowed to go on your work computer and look up co worker information.

              YOU CAN LOSE YOUR JOB

              1. Anon*

                HIPAA is actually spelled the way I just did (one P, two As), and pertains only to health information and only to certain entities who have access to that information, to put it very briefly. So, if I were an employee at a hospital, it would be illegal to mention that I saw you at the hospital, or what you were there for. If I were a fellow patient at a hospital and saw you in a waiting room, it wouldn’t be illegal for me to mention to someone that I saw you there, or even to wildly speculate on what you might have been there for (rude, but not illegal). It’s also not illegal (at least not under HIPAA) for people to discuss non-health-related information with each other, as private as it may be. So this post doesn’t pertain to HIPAA in the slightest, though the poster probably should still MYOB.

        2. LJL*

          The other thing to remember, OP (if you’re still reading), is that you used the words “recently” and “new,” so it seems to me that she has not been on the job long. If she’s been performing as badly as you suggest, it’s entirely possible that the management above her is working on the very issues that you point out. If this is the case and if it’s being done properly, you would have no way of knowing about it. I’d advise to wait to see if things change in the next few months (either in her behavior or in personnel). If you bring this issue to the upper management, you’ll look petty even if you are only concerned with the well-being of the company. No need to get yourself dirty, especially if you consider that the work with her may be in process now. Good luck, as I know how it can stink.

        3. Lily*

          OP, I was actually attempting to stick up for you by posting what happened in my office but I think you misunderstood what I meant by saying my coworker didn’t have ulterior motives. I was trying to imply that maybe you were just trying to do the right thing as well. I’m starting to think I was mistaken in giving you the benefit of the doubt.

        4. HRforYears*

          I know this is an old post and long ago resolved in one fashion or another, but I have to disagree with all of the postings about the need to just keep your mouth shut. Though it depends on the situation, such as if the manager in question has a personal relationship with the higher ups, any employee should be able to go to higher level management or HR with concerns about a fellow employee, regardless of their position. That being said, the employer, unless harassment or some other illegal activity is taking place, is under no obligation to do anything. I would approach it carefully, though. Do not mention the falsification in her online profile or the suspicion that she falsified credentials. Address only the conduct that has been a poor representation of the company and its policies or the failures in her direction or performance, explain how it is inhibiting you in your performance or position, and then keep a journal of any similar issues in future. What you have then done is given management or HR documentation or evidence needed should they decide to take action in any form, whether retraining, disciplinary action or termination.

  47. Higher Standard*

    As a person who has worked very hard for a designation, I find it very disturbing that someone fakes theirs. If it is just someone listing a skill they really don’t have, I would let it drop but if someone is lying about a degree or designation it needs to go to the agency that regulates that.

    If the agency finds wrong doing, they should publish the information to save the next employer the expense of these fraudsters.

  48. Anna*

    I can understand how OP feels – it is very frustrating when you have worked hard to get where you are and then comes along an imposter who actually gets paid more than you who has less experience. I think this may possibly be the case for OP. I agree with the person who said don’t tell the town crier at work – don’t tell anyone at work for that matter. One day they may be your friend and then there may be a misunderstanding and they may report you for what you have said. A lot of times at work people will gossip for a number of reasons and they won’t worry about what is morally right from wrong. They will be more interested in getting something out of the situation i.e. getting on-side with the boss or possibly even getting your job. I would be tempted to send the evidence to everyone including co-workers, go right up the ladder and send them a copy and to whoever can act as a referee for them and make sure that you remain anonymous. HR will probably try to figure out why you sent it. Also too, I would not do it via email for this reason. But firstly, I would pretend that I liked and was getting along with the boss. I also think that there are too many ostriches now-a-days who stick their heads in the sand when they know of inappropriate behaviour and this is one reason why society is getting more dysfunctional.

  49. Anna*

    I made a mistake on my previous comment HR will not obviously know that you sent the letters if you don’t put your name on them hence they won’t be wondering why you sent them.

  50. Tami*

    You have every right to investigage someone who is your boss. Your employment is directly affected by their actions. Dig on. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be able to perform the search legally. It is public record for a reason.

  51. Joe*

    I’m shocked by the attitude you portray of “it’s none of my business” toward a potential lie by management. As a Financial Auditor and CPA I know that management of the company I work for is my business because their unethical behavior affects me too.

  52. Scott*

    I disagree completely with the advice given. You work for this company, thus, the health and success of the company are a valid concern. If management chooses to overlook the falsification of credentials because the applicant has proven themselves, that’s their choice, but you are absolutely within your rights to bring this to their attention.

    Cheaters affect everyone. Wrongdoing thrives in an atmosphere of indifference.

Comments are closed.