Fast, Fair Background Checks Help Companies Compete for Talent

In the war for talent, background checks are fast becoming yet another hurdle companies have to leap over as they race to find great candidates before the competition scoops them up.

Traditionally, those checks have been slow, manual and inefficient — often taking two or more weeks. And they’ve been anything but transparent for employers and candidates alike.

“If the background check process is lengthy, difficult and confusing, applicants may give up and go elsewhere,” Naeem Ishaq, executive vice president and chief financial officer at Checkr, told PYMNTS. “So, it’s vital that this stage is seamless and efficient to prevent candidates from giving up on a job that could be a strong fit.”

Delivering Quick and Easy-to-Understand Reports

Checkr solutions use technology to make the process faster, easier and more compliant. On April 12, the company announced it had acquired GoodHire to expand into the small business market.

Companies can use the artificial intelligence (AI) tech Checkr offers to speed up checks in any number of ways. One example: It can automatically categorize criminal charges from jurisdictions across the U.S., making the language easier to understand and reducing the time spent on manual review.

“Checkr’s background check solution provides employers with quick and easy-to-understand reports so they can make faster and fairer hiring decisions,” Ishaq said. “Jobseekers are onboarded faster, creating a better candidate experience.”

It’s also important that the employment screening process be transparent so that candidates can alleviate the stress of applying for a job, understand the screening stages and review the results, Ishaq said.

“Background checks are an important part of the screening process to assess applicants’ eligibility and organizational risk,” Ishaq said. “However, we understand that this stage can confuse candidates — making communication crucial.”

Expanding the Pool of Candidates

Technology also helps employers expand their talent base with an untapped pool of candidates: those with criminal records. One in three Americans have a criminal record, and even minor infractions can exclude them, Ishaq said.

Checkr can facilitate fair chance hiring by helping organizations clarify their adjudication requirements and only see charges relevant to their needs or the needs of the job role. It also enables applicants to demonstrate their rehabilitation efforts and commitment to work.

“A fair chance hiring process means looking thoughtfully at your hiring and adjudication criteria,” Ishaq said, “removing bias and being open to hearing the context and any remediation around a candidate’s criminal background before making a final decision.”

Fast, Fair and Accurate Application Process

Businesses of all sizes are still struggling to find talent, Ishaq noted, and there are still more than 11 million job openings in the U.S.

“In addition to the record-high labor shortage,” he said, “companies are struggling to keep up with the pace and scale of hiring needed to compete in this highly competitive market.”

But the right solutions can help savvy employers better compete for talent in the aftermath of the Great Resignation, Ishaq said.

As Checkr and GoodHire are combined, they aim to work with businesses of all sizes to help streamline the hiring process, expand company growth and provide job seekers with an application process that’s fast, fair and accurate.