5 steps to better employee background checking

Steve O’Neil is an experienced HR professional and Employee Background Checking Advisor to Zellis. Writing in The HR Director, he shared his insights on how talent screening needs to improve. Here’s a summary

What can organisations do to speed up the hiring process, save costs, and still ensure legislative compliance?

The solution lies in digitalising background checks. Removing semi-automated or manual techniques cuts the risk of non-compliance. It also creates a better experience for both candidates and HR.

Here are five key questions that HR should ask when searching for a viable employee background checking provider:

1. Does the solution support global compliance and align with cultural sensitivities?

It’s an ever-more global world and ‘work from anywhere’ is on the rise. Solutions need securely gather data from multiple sources. They also need to consider local nuances and adapt accordingly.

2. Is it agile and scalable?

Employee background checking shouldn’t take days to complete. Agility and streamlining is key. But so is scalability. Any solution should be able to cope with the needs of a growing organisation.

3. Is it future-proof?

As legislation evolves, how does the provider plan on enhancing its processes and access to data? HR needs to ensure that background checking technology can flex to handle evolving requirements.

4. Does the solution comply with all relevant data protection laws?

Employee background checks are to protect the employer, but they must also guarantee the security of the candidate’s personal information. Where operating in multiple markets, your solution will need to be compliant with all relevant legislation.

5. Does it enable both pre- and post-employment screening?

In many industries, employee verification has become a continuous process that people agree to as part of their ongoing employment contracts. Depending on the industry, this could extend to driving record checks, social media checks, and more.

How faster employee background checking makes a difference

The big delays in air travel have not been helped by slow background checking procedures. Other industries such as retail and hospitality are also struggling to grow headcount and reduce the pain. Effective, efficient employee background checking can keep the talent pipeline moving while reducing risk and admin work for HR.

For more on this topic, read Steve’s full article on The HR Director.

Learn more about Zellis Background Checking.