Background Screening and Verification
Overview to Background Screening
Background screening is a holistic process to verify an individual’s personal information. It ensures the individual is open, transparent, and truthful about their credentials. The aim is to ensure that the candidate is who they say they are, including the authenticity of their qualifications, previous positions, and previous employers. It also determines whether their personality and skills align with the job profile.
We also conduct Background Screening on a company’s vendors and suppliers.
We don’t look at different information to screen people.
We look at this information differently.
EmployInsight offers a complete service of trusted people and excellent pre-employment screening tools. Our X-factor lies in three unique components that are critical to minimise human risk and mitigate corruption effectively.
Social and Human Behavioural Scientific Lens
Firstly, we apply a social and human behavioural scientific lens to evaluate the information at hand, which naturally means we look at the information differently. We identify negative or counterproductive behavioural traits in reports or information that seems “clear” or “positive” at face value. Our “Profile of the Fraudster” assists us in identifying possible traits that may lead to potential red flags.
Secondly, we leverage the best combination of people and pre-screening solutions available to compile comprehensive human risk profiles. These profiles provide deep insights into past and present behaviour to predict future behaviour.
Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, we offer a comprehensive, integrated report to empower you to make an informed decision immediately. We remove the guesswork by highlighting possible human risk behaviour. Our professional insight provides a conclusion, enabling clients to make informed decisions.
Benefits of Background Screening
Conducting comprehensive background screening on candidates is critical for these reasons:
- Information on curricula vitae (CVs) is questionable
- Institutions incur financial loss due to bad hires
- Ensure the right person for the position
- Emphasise the candidate’s work behaviour, applicable from entry-level to CEO and Board positions
- Reduce the need for disciplinary actions and dismissals due to dishonesty and dysfunctional behaviour
- Mitigate company losses and reputational risk
- Around 40% of all background screenings will detect at least one discrepancy in job applicant resumes
- People who are trying to hide serious issues are discouraged from applying when a company applies background screening consistently
It’s an irrevocable fact that the cost of appointing the wrong candidate to a position far outweighs the cost of comprehensive background screening.
Background Screening because CV’s alone are Questionable
For this reason, EmployInsight doesn’t compromise. We follow a meticulous and thorough process for all background screening profiles we compile.
“When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.”
Wayne Dyer
We Produce Dramatically Different Results
We request the same information as other verification agencies typically used by recruiters, but we process it differently. We look at this information through social and human behavioural science filters, which may produce dramatically different results.
Counteracting Human Risk begins with Identifying and Eliminating Counterproductive Work Behaviour
EmployInsight compiles comprehensive human risk profiles, assisting businesses to eliminate counterproductive behaviour and instil a culture of productive work behaviour.
What is counterproductive behaviour?
Employers should seek to hire individuals who are less likely to engage in any counterproductive work behaviours (CWB), and some pre-employment tests can help assess the likelihood that an individual is more prone to CWBs. Specifically, behavioural and integrity or honesty tests can help employers mitigate risks related to CWBs.
CWB’s come in many forms, including substance abuse, workplace bullying, absenteeism, aggression, theft, fraud, sabotage, sexual harassment and tardiness.
What is productive behaviour?
Productive behaviour refers to human conduct that has a positive impact on the goals and objectives of your business and that leads to improvements in performance, procedures, counterproductive work behaviours, services, and products.
Human risk profiles can help to predict your business future
EmployInsight builds human risk profiles by blending proven human behavioural and social science with psychometric testing and pre-employment screening solutions.
Our aim is to investigate past conduct and understand present conduct to form an uncannily accurate prediction of future conduct. Most importantly, we seek to determine whether the candidate in question has that highly sought-after trait which we refer to as ‘the ethical factor’.
The ‘ethical factor’ speaks to that innate, internal moral compass that guides a person’s conduct and ensures that unquestionable integrity prevails, regardless of stressors and triggers. This is ultimately proven to be the difference between productive and counterproductive work behaviour.
Background Screening Tools
EmployInsight can provide employers and recruitment agencies with various bespoke solutions for information verification and psychometric testing. We conduct background reference checks for profiling candidates. These solutions are available as a complete solution or individually.
Reference Checks / Comprehensive Work Enquiries
Reference checks refer to contacting a job candidate’s previous employers and supervisors to verify the accuracy of critical employment information.
EmployInsight uses trained human behavioural and social science experts to conduct these reference checks. To:
- obtain the basics, but also
- elicit and verify critical information on past and present conduct, and
- analyses the possible impact on a candidate’s future behaviour and performance.
The work enquiries include detailed information regarding the candidate’s work performance and competencies, personality, ethical behaviour, etc. The reports include fit to position, management concerns, human risk behaviour and a conclusion.
CV Verifications
We verify whether a potential employee held the positions and responsibilities claimed on the CV. The purpose is to expose inflated resumes and falsified employment histories. Some people inflate their abilities, role, duties, and past work experience on their CVs to secure the position they have applied for. It places the business in a position of weakness and negatively affects its workflow and performance.
While everyone knows that employee cost is one of the highest operational costs of any organisation, the cost of employing the wrong candidate is not so commonly known.
The non-integrity of information provided in CVs is food for thought. The CV Uncover Report by Hedd, the UK Higher Education’s official service for candidate verification and university authentication, revealed the following key findings:
- More than half of CVs (52%) had red flags due to discrepancies in employment history data.
- A quarter (25%) had inconsistencies, of which 15% were related to academic achievements.
- 83% of employers are convinced that some of their hires were untruthful about their degrees and qualifications.
- 49% of corporates and 48% of SMEs encountered an applicant who lied about their qualifications.
Work History Verifications
EmployInsight confirms a candidate’s previous employers with the Human Resource department only. We verify the following:
- dates of employment
- the candidate’s current and prior positions, primary responsibilities and reason for leaving,
- disciplinary warnings and ethical behaviour,
- re-employment, and the reason why, as well as the reference position.
Integrated Report
The Integrated Report contains all the relevant information, including red flags, strengths, development areas and a conclusion. We remove the guesswork by highlighting possible human risk behaviour and including our professional insight in conclusion. Our clients can make an informed decision armed with this report.
Frequently asked Questions in Background Screening
Background Check/Pre-employment screening
EmployInsight boasts a cutting-edge approach to Pre- Employment Screening, as we combine a Background Check with Psychometric Tests for a holistic profile of the candidate’s past and current behaviour, performance, and authenticity.
By leveraging this process, we assist clients to predict the candidate’s future behaviour and performance in the world of work.
Our process is scalable, depending on the level of risk of the position in mind. For a high-risk position, it may be necessary to conduct the full Pre- Employment Screening process, but it is possible to request only a criminal record check or a qualification check etc. We will always advise our client on the most important actions needed, but it is the client’s prerogative to decide what he/she prefers.
Feedback is in the form of an integrated report, focussing on possible human risk behaviour that may be to the detriment of any business.
Is a CV a sufficient source of information for the screening process?
Although a CV is a valuable tool it is not sufficient and needs to be augmented with additional actions or tools. Unfortunately, candidates embellish their CVs and international research (HARVER) indicates that 78% of people lie about their experience in their CVs.
Please describe CV Verification and Employment History Verification
The last 5-10 years (or as agreed with the client per risk position) of a candidate’s work history is verified during the verification of employment history. This includes dates, job title, key functions, reasons for resignation, disciplinary actions, quality of work delivered and general impression regarding work ethics and integrity. It enables employers to identify any career gaps and current employment history.
These actions are done telephonically with either the supervisors/direct managers or HR departments. Although only basic information is verified, any negative information will be clarified and confirmed with another referee to ensure objectivity and confirmation of information. The questions asked during this enquiry are based on fair labour practice.
This information is included in an EmployInsight integrated report. The benefit of these enquiries is that embellishments can be detected.