Ever since my TED Talk on liespotting caught on, I’ve gotten used to receiving calls and messages from businesses concerned that they may have liars in their midst. They worry that job candidates may be deceiving them about their employment history; that employees may be lying about how far they’ve gotten on a project; and that some may even be spying for the competition.
Recently, worries about lying have reached a fever pitch, thanks in part to Representative George Santos, the New York Republican who made up just about everything he said about himself during his campaign. While the Santos case is particularly alarming—Representative Ritchie Torres, a New York Democrat, calls him a “danger to our democracy”—many employers say it serves as a reminder of how often people get away with lies.
Businesses understandably want to be on the lookout for anyone engaging in deception. And they want their staff to alert them if someone seems suspicious.
But there’s a catch. If employees face each day with a sense that they need to be wary of each other, trust levels can plummet. And businesses do better when employees put high levels of trust in each other. According to one study, people at high-trust companies report 74% less stress, 40% less burnout, 50% higher productivity, and 76% greater engagement. What should your business do to catch liars while also fostering trust?
Adopt a mindset of continuous vigilance
Given that 55% of people admit lying on résumé, businesses need to start with more thorough background checks. Confirming a candidate’s previous title at an organization isn’t enough. Explore what their day-to-day work consisted of and how much of their role was outsourced to others. Also look for lies of omission, like a consulting side gig they may have left out, which could be in direct competition with the role they’re applying for.
The same goes for references. In a U.K. study, 21% of people admitted they had encouraged a reference to lie on their behalf. Just as many said they had asked a reference to pretend to be someone they’re not. Find other people who worked with a candidate. Ask them about the candidate’s skills, responsibilities, and trustworthiness.
Related: George Santos’s résumé is a disaster
But hiring is just the beginning. Businesses need to keep looking into employees once they’re on board. Vigilance is a mindset, not a discrete event. A study found that most internal hires are not subjected to background checks and legal record searches even when they’re being considered for a promotion to the C-suite.
An employee doesn’t have to be up for a promotion to have their honesty checked. Many inside threat actors work for a company for years before they begin using their access in a stealthy way that could harm the organization. They may be under financial duress or struggling with addiction. Always be willing to look into an employee. (The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission offers guidance on how to do so without violating rights.) This mindset can be psychologically uncomfortable, because it means a willingness to question people you might interact with every day. But it’s the hard, necessary work of good management.
Train staff in deception detection
Spotting lies is a critical workplace skill. Every employee should learn to keep their eyes and ears open for patterns of behavior that indicate a colleague may be engaging in deception. For example, someone might fill stories with unnecessary details, constantly need to recite an experience in the same chronological order, or repeatedly use qualifying statements such as, “To tell you the truth.” They might take on a self-protective posture when asked a question, shift their vocal tone and blink rate, or regularly deflect to another topic.
Related: The truth about lying at work
Employees should also learn how to elicit the truth from someone whom they suspect of being dishonest. When I teach this, I explain that most people naturally want to go straight to the core, delicate issues, putting the other person on the defensive. They might ask, “Why did you say that this was your idea when two of your colleagues say it wasn’t?” It’s much better to start with broad, open-ended questions such as, “What are your recollections of how this came about?” The more comfortable people feel, the more likely they are to share the truth.
If an employee has a concern, they should pass it along to a manager. But they should also provide their colleague with the benefit of any doubt. Even if a colleague is hiding something, it might simply be personal and irrelevant to the workplace. Honesty does not mean 100% transparency.
Use honesty to foster a team mentality
Business leaders can use this focus on honesty to strengthen workplace relationships. Point out that a commitment to weeding out liars is key to making sure that the company is filled with people who can be trusted.
In a tough business environment, there’s nothing more bonding than going to war together against the competition. To succeed in the battle, everyone needs to know they can put their full trust in each other.
Over the years, I’ve found that as long as organizations present their commitment to honesty this way, it helps cohesion grow—and teams thrive.
Pamela Meyer, a leading expert on deception detection, teaches businesses and individuals through workshops and an online Masterclass. Her TED Talk, based on her bestselling book Liespotting, is one of the most watched of all time.
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