What do you think is the company’s biggest investment?
According to the employer, hiring a resource is the biggest investment for a company. Yes, you read it right. A strong team of employees in the face of the company builds its brand. Hence employers ensure confidence in the candidates they are hiring. To verify if the candidate is trusted to hire, background checks are performed.
Employee background check is the most common term heard among people working in large-scale and mid-level companies. Globally, many companies admit that poor hiring decisions may have adverse effects immediately or later.
What do you think a Poor hiring decision means? Is it fake educational or experience information?
We would say not Solely they. Yes, Poor hiring not only relies on education, experience, and skills, but it also depends more on the candidate’s traits, background, and professional discipline. And if we talk about the past two years, there have been many unforeseen operational changes thrown by the pandemic. Every employer should be aware of the fact that hiring talent adds business and security risks to company assets and information. Hence performing background checks on candidates before confirming them is an effective way to uncover the potential issues which may impact the business and company.
Companies conducting background checks are indeed a messy affair, but also a crucial step to be taken. With increasing frauds like mentioning wrong information on resumes, it somewhat becomes necessary to put a little extra scrutiny on a new candidate applying for a job.
There’s also a clause that has to be noted here- there is a certain protocol every company has to follow while conducting background checks.
What are Employee Background Checks?
Employee background check is a process undertaken by the employer or through specialist firms. It is to scrutinize and verify the applicant’s education, skills/employment history, civil offenses history, and personal background. The mode of undertaking background checks varies from comprehensive database searches to personal references. However, digitization of public records makes background checks easier and more effective in less time than manual checks.
There is no particular time to conduct background checks –
We mean here, that employment background checks can be done at any phase of confirming the applicant for the role. These may include;
Right before the first level of the interview process.
After the first or second-level screenings.
At the end of the hiring process, mention it as a condition in the offer letter.
Read about Reference check
Before we go deep into the process of background checks, let's understand
Why candidate background verification is important for an employer.
It's easier to not hire than to fire
Are you Confused? Ok, Let’s make it clear for you.
Screenings help in reducing the odds that surprise employers when the candidate is hired and fully involved in the work.
A bad pick is a loss of revenue
If you remember the first line of this blog, we said that hiring the candidate is the company’s biggest investment. If that hiring is not proper or genuine, the investment in the candidate remains to be a loss.
What happens in a Background Check?
Do you know what happens in a background check process? Keep reading to find out!
A background check is conducted on a person applying for a job after they have been interviewed. As mentioned earlier consent must be taken from the applicant to run a background check.
A basic background check involves checking whether the candidate’s portfolio is genuine or not. This can include educational qualifications, additional skills, and work history.
Apart from this- criminal records, medical records, drug tests, personal background, and credit
scores are also checked depending on the job requirement. During the process, make sure you follow the consent from the candidate before initiating the background verification process.
Need for candidate consent
An employer must take consent from the applicant in writing, or else legal action can be taken against the company.
You can refrain from providing your consent, but it will only lead to further speculation about the credentials mentioned in your CV and resume.
However, there is a thin line between conducting background checks and finding out information about the applicant that is unnecessary for the job profile.
Hence, there are a few norms that should be followed while conducting background checks.
Know more about How Do Background Check Companies Get Information?
Simple steps to make your candidate background checks hassle-free and efficient.
Verify Applicant is Qualified
Being an employer, you know what your requirements are and what are the candidate qualifications or skills you need to fulfill them.
Start verifying their employment history. In some cases, the candidates present false employment in their resumes. Coincidences like these are rare but it's important to validate against the requirements.
The next important factor to consider is their educational records. Neeyamo found that 1 in 6 employees mix presents with their educational degrees creating fake completion certificates. This causes true harm to the business.
Don’t forget to check on job-related qualifications. Cross-verify if the candidate possesses the professional certifications that assure the candidate is rightly qualified.
Confirm the applicant is telling the truth
Every applicant tells the truth till he gets hired by your company. I don’t mean everyone but a few applicants who mislead their employers. Always follow up with the references shared by the applicant. Make sure you get at least one contact as a reference and follow up with them to confirm what the applicant claims to be true. Ask open-ended questions, and ask about the applicant’s work ethics, loyalty, and morals.
Cross-verify the applicant is trusted to hire
Every employer-employee relationship moves on Trust. Build a strong trust in the candidate before you give your data. Criminal records and credit checks hold a lot of valuable information. Hence pull out as much as possible about these in compliance with laws. It is important to know if your potential hire has any criminal remarks professionally and personally.
Tips to choose the most reliable background check service.
Article 21 in the Indian Constitution
In the Indian Constitution, Article 21 states that:
‘No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by the law’.
Article 21 manifests the Right to Privacy for every Indian citizen. If any screening or background check has to take place, it should happen legitimately.
Click here to read more about Article 21.
Work with a background check provider like Proquest
For a company, partnering with an efficient and experienced background check provider is the key. It is not just collecting the information, but there involves a lot of internal screenings to make the process efficient. Every phase of background verification involves law and judicial regulations varying with the employer and the job role. Hence, a well-qualified background investigator carries out the process by avoiding odds.
Proquest provides Background verification services in Hyderabad, Pune, Mumbai, Delhi, and also Bangalore covering all states of India. We offer a wide range of vendor screening services that fit your needs. We are known for providing data security and affordable services with help of cutting-edge technology. Our fast TATs, High Quality, and affordable prices make us the best option in the industry.
Click here to avail of Proquest’s Self-Background Check Services.