Obtaining employment is almost always stressful.
When hiring in high volumes, employers can quickly look past the individual and focus solely on the headcount. However, for each candidate, a job you are offering can have a significant bearing on their quality of life for years to come.
Regardless of its nature, a new job opportunity is a risk, and making new hires feel comfortable in their roles from the beginning can help them perform better and encourage greater loyalty.
The background screening process is one of the most stressful parts of the hiring/onboarding phase for many candidates.
It requires trust for a candidate to allow an entity to search deep into their personal history, and an employer can lose a portion of that trust from the very beginning if the candidate’s background screening experience is poor.
While background screening may be handled by a third party, through a candidate’s eyes, any result or outcome is a reflection of the employer. For this reason, it’s crucial to ensure a positive candidate experience during this stressful portion of an already stressful process.
Here are some ways Peopletrail is able to provide a positive candidate screening experience as an extension of your hiring arm.
Clear Expectations
To CRAs and hiring managers, employment screening is reasonably straightforward.
To candidates, on the other hand, this process can be intimidating and confusing if not properly executed.
Providing highly-sensitive personal information, heading to a clinic to offer a urine sample, and sitting idly by as individuals review sensitive details of your past are not typically things that fall within most people’s comfort zones.
It’s important to ensure the candidate is duly briefed on the process so they know exactly what to expect and who to contact if they have any questions.
Applicant Portal
A candidate should know the real-time status of their report.
Before we launched our applicant portal, we noticed candidates calling in from time to time, confused and concerned about the status of their reports. This is not an ideal impression.
Every candidate should be afforded clarity and transparency with regard to their file, and a simple, easy-to-use applicant portal accomplishes that.
Timeliness & Accuracy
Usually, a candidate can’t start work until the employment screening process is finished.
Every hold-up during the screening process means delayed income for the candidate, which can inevitably lead to concern and frustration.
Timely completion and accurate reporting are two ways Peopletrail can help seats get filled more quickly, benefiting both our client and the candidate. With a national average turnaround time of 1.6 days, we rarely give candidates an opportunity to worry.
Communication
At times, candidates will have a question about their report’s status or results.
When one’s livelihood is hanging in the balance, it’s not comforting to be bounced around from person to person or placed on hold for hours when a concern arises. Candidate questions must be addressed quickly, effectively, and respectfully by kind and competent support staff.
Conclusion
The candidate’s employment screening experience is important and directly reflects on the hiring organization.
Having resources and processes in place to ensure a positive candidate screening experience is primarily the responsibility of your screening provider. Don’t let a lack of regard for these things negatively impact your organization. Be sure to inquire about candidate experience processes and protocols as you conduct your vendor search.
While it may seem small, it can make an appreciable difference in employee morale as they walk through the doors on their first day.
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