Filling out an application....

Used to be that candidates would be invited in for an interview and the first thing they would do would be to sit down and complete a paper application. Technology has of course changed that and now candidates generally complete an electronic application for employment on line. Regardless of the method there are still some do's and don'ts you want to consider as you complete a company's formal application for employment (including Pinnacol's!).

• Do list all employment going back a minimum of 10 years. If you have less than 10 years working, list everything you have. If you have more than 10 years you can certainly list it all but employers are most interested in what you have been doing recently than what you were doing 15-30 years ago. Going back too much more than 10 years is also a give-away of approximately how old you are, and I hear from candidates all the time that age discrimination is alive and well out there so think about the real value (how topical is that dated experience to the job you are applying for today?) of going too far back.
• Don't fudge ( to fudge: a highly technical HR term for misleading, misrepresenting, or otherwise attempting to deceive!) on an application for employment. Some HR people frown on any fudging on resumes, but the reality is your resume is your advertisement of skills to the world. In the HR world we know the ONLY purpose of a resume is to get someone in a role like mine to pick up the phone and call you. We also know that fudging on resumes is rampant and the initial purpose of an HR person's call is to see how close the reality is to what you've put on your resume. When it comes to completing the application, fudging can lose you the job, both before you've been offered it, and even after you have been in the position for a substantial amount of time. Stories of people who fudged about degrees, military service, job experience, etc. and who got fired from their positions after their misrepresentations came to light are all over the web. Don't fall into this trap. I often tell candidates that the application is a legal document; Pinnacol's application has some very specific language right before candidates submit that says: By clicking on the SUBMIT button I certify that I am ..., that I have completed this application on my own behalf and that all information I have provided in this application is true and complete. I understand that any false information or omission may disqualify me from further consideration for employment and may result in my dismissal if discovered at a later date. Most employer's applications have language very similar to this.
• Do give professional references if at all possible, preferably those who have actually supervised your work in the past. Let these people know in advance that you are using them as references so that when someone in my role calls them they aren't completely blindsided. After all, you want them to put in a good word about you. When the first thing I hear from the reference is that they weren't even aware you were looking for a job I know my call is starting on a bad note and probably will go downhill from there. 
• Don't ever mislead an employer about the level of education you really have. In today's world it's too easy for an employer to check and verify. If you don't have a degree, even if you are just a couple of credits shy, don't claim that you do. This also goes for certifications, licenses, etc. This is where fudging on your resume crosses the line - if you lead someone to believe you have more than what you do, the discrepancy between your resume and the application is HUGE in the eyes of most employers.

I'm seeing an increasing number of applicants making some of the mistakes listed above so thought I'd pass on some quick tips. Just in the last couple of days I've seen one too many applications giving only the most recent employer, or going back only a year or two, when the resume shows many years of experience with a variety of employers. I've never been an avid reader of the National Enquirer, but their slogan is apropos when it comes to filling out an application: "Inquiring minds want to know". I'll leave you with one more quote, this time from a slightly more reliable source, former President Ronald Reagan, who would have turned 100 this month: "Trust, but verify".