Where did you work three jobs ago? Is the company still in business? Does the branch where you were employed still exist? How quickly could you get your supervisor from that post on the phone?
When you ask your HR department to verify these sort of facts for employment candidates, you are asking them to do for strangers what many of us can’t even efficiently do for ourselves. It certainly isn’t impossible, but it also isn’t easy. There is an excellent chance that you could save money by outsourcing your verification efforts and likely get more reliable results.
The Importance of Verification
Studies have shown that more than half all resumes or job applications contain fraudulent or misleading information. These falsifications can range from wholesale lies to inaccurate job descriptions to someone misremembering the month they left the company. It isn’t easy to identify the errors from the white-lies, from the mistakes. There are plenty of reasons to consider one as deplorable as the next, but many of us would like to know more before dismissing a viable candidate.
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Dishonesty is certainly not the only consideration to recommend thorough verification. Modern Americans change careers (not just jobs…CAREERS) far more often than our predecessors. No longer are candidates searching for positions within a well-connected community. Applicant’s skills may fit your opening in a unique way though they have never worked in your industry. Verifying the critical points of their resume is becoming almost as important as knowing the correct questions to ask during verification.
Verification Challenges
Go ahead and scroll back up to the opening of this article. Many of us would have difficulty verifying our own resumes in a timely manner. Consider this in combination with the fact that many have diverse resumes these days. There may be four to five prior jobs or licenses (or degrees, references, etcetera) that you need to be certain of to know that this candidate’s resume is correct.
If you own a smaller business, your HR department is probably already spread relatively thin. There’s a good chance that they are dealing with compensation, payroll, benefits, and improving employee culture. Your HR team is busy, and if they are doing a great job, you probably don’t even notice just how busy they are. Tracking down multiple former-employers, references, universities, and so on, is likely a poor use of their time.
This waste of HR’s time becomes even more detrimental if you have already contracted a company to perform background checks for you. Verification checks can often be performed in conjunction with background checks, and if you are already paying for the latter, you can usually get a price break on them.
What’s the Solution?
Verification of a potential new hire’s resume is essential. Your HR department is already very busy. You are likely outsourcing background checks already. Speak to your background check service and find out how much you can save by transferring these duties from your HR department to a team of seasoned professionals. Free up your Human Resources department to actually provide resources to the people in your company and save some cash in the effort.
If you’re looking for a reliable and established company to perform background and verification checks on your prospective employees, CNET Technologies can help. Contact us today to learn more about our comprehensive services, or download our free ebook, “The Definitive Guide to Selecting the Best Pre-Employment Screening Service.”
