A new Express Employment Professionals-Harris Poll survey exposes a significant disconnect in today's hiring process: while many job seekers admit to embellishing their resumes, hiring managers report far higher rates of mismatched skills, and AI tools are amplifying the problem by making exaggeration easier and more convincing.
Quick Intel
Hiring managers frequently encounter resumes that promise capabilities candidates cannot deliver once on the job. Examples include a forklift operator who caused immediate damage, a kitchen lead who walked out by noon due to lack of knowledge, a POS system "expert" who froze at the terminal, and negotiation "specialists" who quickly capitulated in role-plays.
These incidents underscore the real-world consequences of resume inflation: wasted onboarding time, immediate terminations, operational disruptions, and lost productivity. Employers emphasize that the issue extends beyond isolated cases, with a majority observing frequent discrepancies between claimed and demonstrated skills.
Job seekers, surveyed separately, acknowledged their own resume "creativity," such as claiming unlicensed trades expertise or proficiency in tools they barely understood. This admission contrasts sharply with the higher detection rates reported by hiring managers, suggesting underreporting or differing perceptions of what constitutes exaggeration.
The rise of generative AI intensifies these concerns. With tools enabling polished, fabricated credentials, deepfake-like enhancements, and instant skill embellishments, 86% of hiring decision-makers see it as lowering the barrier to dishonesty. Nearly half strongly agree it poses a growing threat to effective hiring.
"In today's market, you don't need a perfect resume; you need a truthful one," said Bob Funk Jr., CEO, President and Chairman of Express Employment International. "When job seekers exaggerate their abilities, they set themselves up for stress, failure and lost opportunities. But when they're transparent about their skills and what they know, and eager to learn what they don't, employers take notice. Integrity is still a competitive advantage."
The findings highlight the need for more robust verification methods, behavioral interviews, skills assessments, and reference checks to bridge the gap between resumes and reality. In a competitive talent market, authenticity and a willingness to grow continue to differentiate strong candidates.
Discover more research and real-world workforce trends from the America Employed series at ExpressPros.com/Newsroom.
About Robert (Bob) Funk Jr. Robert (Bob) Funk Jr. is the Chief Executive Officer, President and Chairman of Express Employment International, a global staffing franchisor founded and headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He leads a portfolio of workforce solution brands, including the flagship Express Employment Professionals franchise, along with several affiliated brands serving specialized markets. The Express franchise brand is an industry-leading, international staffing company with franchise locations across the U.S., Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.
About Express Employment Professionals
At Express Employment Professionals, we're in the business of people. From job seekers to client companies, Express helps people thrive and businesses grow. Our international network of franchises offers localized staffing solutions to the communities they serve across the U.S., Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, employing more than 11 million people globally since its inception.
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