As a Doctor of Divinity, hailing from the campuses of the great Universal Life Church, I am saddened by the efforts of these two Yahoo!s to equate themselves with the likes of me.

Dude, Yahoo is being run by the accountants. This is very... Dilbert.

FTA: Loeb also questioned the academic background of the woman who ran the search for Yahoo's new chief executive. Patti Hart holds a bachelor's in marketing and economics from Illinois State University, according a SEC filing. Loeb says Hart received a degree in business administration, not marketing or economics.

This was the woman who came into Excite@Home to close it down. I'll never forget the all-employee meeting where she said we were all losing our jobs - some in a few months, some right then. No severance for any of the worker drones. When someone asked a question akin to 'How can you DO this to us? I've given 10 years to this company!' she said "Look, I understand how you feel. I am not sure if *I* am going to get any severance at this point!"

You can read just how much she got paid to walk in the door here.

I loathe that woman.

Who Cares?

Nice headline subby.

Dana Lengkeek wrote in an email to FORBES. "This in no way alters that fact that Mr. Thompson is a highly qualified executive with a successful track record leading large consumer technology companies."

This is one of the most unintentionally hilarious statements I have read in a while. I mean who hasn't accidentally put a college degree or two on their resume that not only do they not actually have but was not even offered by the college listed at the time, right?

In fairness, he very well could have almost exclusively studied what we now call Computer Science and only been given an accounting degree back then. He just updated the resume so the terminology matched the times.

Lost Thought 00: In fairness, he very well could have almost exclusively studied what we now call Computer Science and only been given an accounting degree back then. He just updated the resume so the terminology matched the times.

If he took one course over and over and over again maybe. According to TFA Stonehill only had one computer science course when he attended.

I'm pretty sure that once you gain those credits you can't claim them multiple times

I'm a pedantic ass myself, but good Lord, this is petty.

Yomoxu: I'm a pedantic ass myself, but good Lord, this is petty.

Petty for calling him out on it?

or

Petty of the CEO to fudge his resume?

Because, I know that I have fudged my resume a little by playing around with job descriptions and duties. However, I have always kept it to a level that could be reasonable argued that I was using an accurate description. Most people do not invent a whole college degree. That is way beyond the line.

vgacolor: Most people do not invent a whole college degree. That is way beyond the line.

You would be amazed. I interviewed guys who took a course and claimed a cert, or took 2 classes for a Graduate Certificate and claimed a Masters Degree.

When confronted they all claimed that "the job market forces people to fudge things". They just don't understand the fudging little things v. claiming outright lies.

Anyone want to give me tips on fudging my resume? I actually did all of the stuff I list on it...

vgacolor: Because, I know that I have fudged my resume a little by playing around with job descriptions and duties. However, I have always kept it to a level that could be reasonable argued that I was using an accurate description. Most people do not invent a whole college degree. That is way beyond the line.

Exactly, you write what really happened on the job because how many times does the title not match the duties you actually performed. But completely making shiat up. That's a whole other can of worms.

DoBeDoBeDo: vgacolor: Most people do not invent a whole college degree. That is way beyond the line.

You would be amazed. I interviewed guys who took a course and claimed a cert, or took 2 classes for a Graduate Certificate and claimed a Masters Degree.

When confronted they all claimed that "the job market forces people to fudge things". They just don't understand the fudging little things v. claiming outright lies.

We had one candidate who claimed to hold a type of teaching certificate that doesn't exist in this state. When we called him on it, he insisted that it should, and probably will in the near future. My reaction to reading his resume was that I hadn't seen that much padding since my senior prom....

jennies1897: Anyone want to give me tips on fudging my resume? I actually did all of the stuff I list on it...

Yeah, don't do it. If anything, it's better to put fewer details on a resume. Write it in such a way as to generate more interest and questions during an interview. "Hey, there are a few interesting things on this one... we should get her in here and find out more."

If the place you've applied to uses HR to screen applicants, they won't bother reading (and probably wouldn't understand anyway) anything beyond what they need to fill in their little checklist so whatever you write or embellish won't matter anyway.

If you have the actual hiring manager reading the resumes, you want that person to be able to quickly scan your resume for things which might interest them. If they have to get past a bunch of "productively efficientised qualitative misunderestimation blah blah blah" they're going to miss what you really want them to see or just throw it on the "no" pile because all that BS is an indication of what working with you is going to be like. And if you do make it to the interview, you don't want to take the chance that little embellishment becomes the focus of the discussion, you might get called out and turn what would have been a successful interview into a disaster. "So, you say you took three semesters of Parabolic Engineering at Columbia... I happen to know the head of the Parabolic Engineering department there, Archie du Cirque. Does he still have that balsa flamethrower in his office?"

Be honest and be yourself. Any place where you feel the need to lie, fudge or embellish to "make it" isn't worth working for.

I'm just surprised that these CEOs only have a bachelors degrees. I would have thought an MBA from one of the big universities would have been a minimum requirement.

zetar: I'm just surprised that these CEOs only have a bachelors degrees. I would have thought an MBA from one of the big universities would have been a minimum requirement.

I've worked for plenty of billion-dollar businesses that were chaired by people with no degrees at all. Formal education doesn't carry much weight at that level. The people at the top are either there because they started the company, or because they know a guy who knows people with voting control of the company. You don't get to be an Executive based on work history - it's all political.

Yahoo is not so smart when it comes to common sense...

Harvey Manfrenjensenjen: jennies1897: Anyone want to give me tips on fudging my resume? I actually did all of the stuff I list on it...

Yeah, don't do it. If anything, it's better to put fewer details on a resume. Write it in such a way as to generate more interest and questions during an interview. "Hey, there are a few interesting things on this one... we should get her in here and find out more."

If the place you've applied to uses HR to screen applicants, they won't bother reading (and probably wouldn't understand anyway) anything beyond what they need to fill in their little checklist so whatever you write or embellish won't matter anyway.

If you have the actual hiring manager reading the resumes, you want that person to be able to quickly scan your resume for things which might interest them. If they have to get past a bunch of "productively efficientised qualitative misunderestimation blah blah blah" they're going to miss what you really want them to see or just throw it on the "no" pile because all that BS is an indication of what working with you is going to be like. And if you do make it to the interview, you don't want to take the chance that little embellishment becomes the focus of the discussion, you might get called out and turn what would have been a successful interview into a disaster. "So, you say you took three semesters of Parabolic Engineering at Columbia... I happen to know the head of the Parabolic Engineering department there, Archie du Cirque. Does he still have that balsa flamethrower in his office?"


For some reason, this reminded me of the story about an architecture student at the local university. For whatever reason, he copied his entire 5th-year project from an actual project done by an architectural firm. The school of architecture invites practicing architects to help evaluate the students' projects . It got awkward when the architect recognized the student's "work" as his own....

GriffXX: This was the woman who came into Excite@Home to close it down. I'll never forget the all-employee meeting where she said we were all losing our jobs

... and? Its not like she made that bubble-ious company that was going to run out of money soon anyway. That's like blaming the surgeon that couldn't save the person that had a skydiving accident.

jennies1897: Anyone want to give me tips on fudging my resume? I actually did all of the stuff I list on it...

You can only lie about the stuff they can't check. So, don't put a economics degree from M.I.T. on there if you don't actually have one. And don't put a job on there you haven't had, either.

What you CAN do is embellish your skill-set. In my world (the exciting world of corporate FP&A) it's a huge help if you have any/all of the following skills: Excel, Access, SQL, Hyperion, Essbase, Oracle, and SAP. So if I'm advising somebody on how to get a job with my company, I tell them to throw them all on there. Further, while the background checks can verify your degrees, they can't really verify coursework, unless they ask for transcripts, which most don't. So even if you never took an accounting class (and why would you, accounting is f'kn easy), you can still tell the interviewer that you had one or even several such classes, if accounting is required for job.

So it's things like that, which will get you in the door. Sure, you may not be able to do retrievals and drill-downs with Essbase, but they're not that hard, and somebody will show you the first time you need to do one at your new job, and then you will know.

Bada bing, bada boom. THAT'S how you lie on a resume...

Headline made me laugh.

/DRTFA

So, CEO "evolved" his degree from a single to a double? Interesting. He probably learned more OTJ than any class he took in the stone ages.

The reality here is you have a hostile investor trying to win a proxy fight. And he is using every tool in the arsenal to do it. Is it embarrassing for everyone involved? Sure. But that is how you win the war.

Harvey Manfrenjensenjen: stuff

Everything I've done is in bullet points, but you have a good point there. Perhaps there's a bit of TMI going on. I'll look at it. I'd have to agree that I don't want to work somewhere where I have to lie to get there. See below, I'm starting to think I don't want to work somewhere where the immediate answer is, "LIAR!!" when I talk about what I've done. I didn't expect a real tip. Thanks!

Why Would I Read the Article: stuff

All I have is my skillset. No degrees, just the skillset. I found myself out of a job in 2007 and because so many people embellish the work they've done, my resume goes straight to the "no" pile, it has for the past 6 years. I was stupid enough to actually learn all that stuff on the job and now I'll probably never have decent work again. I'm seriously considering relocating back to where I could find work but am terrified because I've been in a shiat job for so long I have no idea if I'm even a viable candidate. People who lie on their resume make me stabby.

I did take an accounting class. Several of them. Never took the general ed, no degree. Am working on the general ed now. I was considering taking a few Access classes for giggles, but I really only have so much to invest in my education and am currently focused on that degree.

Another Government Employee: So, CEO "evolved" his degree from a single to a double? Interesting. He probably learned more OTJ than any class he took in the stone ages.


You're right that he may have learned more about CS by actually doing the work than from a degree. Still, I must be old school, because I thought you put things like that under "Skills" or similar, and not under "Education".

I'm used to seeing "buffing" and "fudging" on resumes. but "evolving" a degree? In the days before Political Correctness, that was called "lying".

Gough: Another Government Employee: So, CEO "evolved" his degree from a single to a double? Interesting. He probably learned more OTJ than any class he took in the stone ages.


You're right that he may have learned more about CS by actually doing the work than from a degree. Still, I must be old school, because I thought you put things like that under "Skills" or similar, and not under "Education".

I'm used to seeing "buffing" and "fudging" on resumes. but "evolving" a degree? In the days before Political Correctness, that was called "lying".

In the skillset is where it should have been. I'm wondering if the evolution wasn't by some headhunter or secretary in the past and never was addressed.

Lying would have either not completed a degree or not attended the college at all (I've see this a good bit).

I'm wondering if the evolution wasn't by some headhunter or secretary in the past and never was addressed.

I gained an MSCS degree when a contract company rewrote my resume to send to potential employers. I found that out when an interviewer let me see a copy.

Duplicate thread, almost word-for-word headlines, and both still around?...

Did two Admins think these up?

jennies1897:
All I have is my skillset. No degrees, just the skillset. I found myself out of a job in 2007 and because so many people embellish the work they've done, my resume goes straight to the "no" pile, it has for the past 6 years. I was stupid enough to actually learn all that stuff on the job and now I'll probably never have decent work again. I'm seriously considering relocating back to where I could find work but am terrified because I've been in a shiat job for so long I have no idea if I'm even a viable candidate. People who lie on their resume make me stabby.

I did take an accounting class. Several of them. Never took the general ed, no degree. Am working on the general ed now. I was considering taking a few Access classes for giggles, but I really only have so much to invest in my education and am currently focused on that degree.

If you have come to the realization that a degree is holding you back from becoming marketable enough to get at least an entry level job in what you want....... I think you need to go ahead and get it. I would think that six years is enough of a hint, don't you think so?

Don't take this comment as an insult, but you can either play the game or complain about how the game is played from the sidelines. It could very well be that you would make a better employee than one with a degree, but if nobody will give you a chance for the lack of a degree then there is no question about what you should do.

It's like people think CEOs are hired based on their resumes or something. How quaint.

lelio: GriffXX: This was the woman who came into Excite@Home to close it down. I'll never forget the all-employee meeting where she said we were all losing our jobs

... and? Its not like she made that bubble-ious company that was going to run out of money soon anyway. That's like blaming the surgeon that couldn't save the person that had a skydiving accident.

It wasn't that she couldn't save it, the company was doomed. It was the complete lack of empathy for people that were getting cut that day with no severance, no paid out vacation pay, just "Sorry, you don't have a job anymore."

Stating that you feel our pain because, although you made millions for taking the job, you might not make a few more million over the coming months is just rude.

GriffXX: lelio: GriffXX: This was the woman who came into Excite@Home to close it down. I'll never forget the all-employee meeting where she said we were all losing our jobs

... and? Its not like she made that bubble-ious company that was going to run out of money soon anyway. That's like blaming the surgeon that couldn't save the person that had a skydiving accident.

It wasn't that she couldn't save it, the company was doomed. It was the complete lack of empathy for people that were getting cut that day with no severance, no paid out vacation pay, just "Sorry, you don't have a job anymore."

Stating that you feel our pain because, although you made millions for taking the job, you might not make a few more million over the coming months is just rude.

what you had there was a professional axman (axwoman). I worked for a guy who was a professional axer previously in his career. They're paid big bucks to do horrible things that no one wants to do.

I mean, look, I've turned down a job that paid 50% higher than I was making because it was a new position titled "Director of Outsourcing".

Money can buy all sorts of things, but you still gotta look at yourself in the mirror.

CSB time. Had a guy submit his resume and, as luck would have it, we'd worked at the same company 5 or so years prior and that company had gone under a couple of years later. I told my boss at the time that, if this guy was who I thought he was, he was trouble (got fired for CC fraud) and we needed to avoid him like the plague.

Guy shows up, and, sure enough, he's the same guy who'd been fired for fraud. Told my boss but he insisted on going through with the interview. It becomes painfully obvious that he has nowhere near the technical abilities/certifications he claims to have. Boss asks if we have any more questions for him:

Me: "So, I see your resume states that you worked for Company XYZ starting in 1997?
Him: "That's correct."
Me: "Well, how can that be, considering that company wasn't founded until 1999?"
Him: "Umm, are you sure?" (stars noticeably sweating)
Me: "Yes. My former boss was the second employee hired on there."
Him: "Oh, you worked there too?"
Me: "Yep."
Him: "Oh, I meant to put 1999 down, that's an editing error." (sweating profusely now)
Me: "Oh, ok. So you list you were there until 2005, but the company closed its doors in 2002?"
Him: "It did?"
Me: "Yep, they closed it down at the end of 2002."
Him: "Ummm, wow, I must've missed that in editing too."
Me: "No problem, I'm just wondering about the 5 year gap on the resume."
Him: "..."
Me: "I don't have any other questions."

The best part? My boss had a look of utter shock that I was asking those questions. You know what? He was wasting my time, so damnit, I deserved to have some fun with it.

/CSB
//Yes, it was fun
///It's truly a small world

ehh... i've set up his wifi in a board room. so there's that

EnderWiggnz: Money can buy all sorts of things, but you still gotta look at yourself in the mirror.

Look at the arrow I am making that points at your comment in agreement

vgacolor: jennies1897:
All I have is my skillset. No degrees, just the skillset. I found myself out of a job in 2007 and because so many people embellish the work they've done, my resume goes straight to the "no" pile, it has for the past 6 years. I was stupid enough to actually learn all that stuff on the job and now I'll probably never have decent work again. I'm seriously considering relocating back to where I could find work but am terrified because I've been in a shiat job for so long I have no idea if I'm even a viable candidate. People who lie on their resume make me stabby.

I did take an accounting class. Several of them. Never took the general ed, no degree. Am working on the general ed now. I was considering taking a few Access classes for giggles, but I really only have so much to invest in my education and am currently focused on that degree.

If you have come to the realization that a degree is holding you back from becoming marketable enough to get at least an entry level job in what you want....... I think you need to go ahead and get it. I would think that six years is enough of a hint, don't you think so?

Don't take this comment as an insult, but you can either play the game or complain about how the game is played from the sidelines. It could very well be that you would make a better employee than one with a degree, but if nobody will give you a chance for the lack of a degree then there is no question about what you should do.

Please don't take this as an insult, but you didn't read what I wrote, did you? I'm forgoing the Access class (which sounds fun and likely would give me better skills for a job) and am taking a bunch of crap general ed and liberal arts classes. First I made myself debt-free to handle my newfound crappy life status and 60% paycut (but hey, FT work with benefits!), then I started going to school. I'm just pissed off about being on the sideline. Hell, I knew back in the day that not holding a degree would hold me back. My strategy was to load up on the courses relevant to what I did. My problem? I cannot get even a shiat job in THAT field that will let me get by & give me benefits. Meanwhile, all my skills are atrophying and I'm taking crappy courses that really lead to nothing in the working world.

jennies1897: Anyone want to give me tips on fudging my resume? I actually did all of the stuff I list on it...