How to Differentiate Your Organization Based on a Better Screening Process

Building the best possible Applicant Journey sets you up for the win

According to the SHRM 2024 Talent Trends Report, more than three in four employers found it difficult to recruit full-time positions in 2023, with 55 percent citing competition from other employers, 46 percent citing an increase in applicant ghosting, and 19 percent citing a lengthy or complicated hiring process.

If ever there was a time to deliver a premium applicant experience, it would be today. Right now. Anything to help differentiate your business in a vast sea of employers is a feather in your cap, and a good place to begin is with your background screening process.

This involves thinking like your applicants. What are their pain points? What do they dread? How do they prefer to communicate? What can you do to keep them interested and engaged? How can you avoid missteps that might turn them off and cause them to drop out of the process?

The Applicant Journey inspires many of our new products and technologies. Consider the following two:

Instant Oral Drug Screening: Cost-effective, applicant-focused virtual drug screening and the technology to enable same-day hiring without compromising workplace safety? It's possible.

We found a way to make things a lot easier and more pleasant for applicants with our instant oral-fluid drug screening. It's fast, with non-negative results available in minutes. For non-negative results that require confirmation testing or for lab-based oral fluid screens, the turnaround time is nearly a half-day faster than urine-based lab screens.

It's also extremely versatile and applicant-friendly, reducing barriers from shy bladder issues and potentially uncomfortable collection observations associated with urine testing. And, it's a federally endorsed drug testing option that's highly effective and legally defensible.

Employers are taking note. In two years, the use of oral-fluid drug testing methods by First Advantage customers has jumped 74 percent, now comprising 30 percent of all our drug tests. Of that 30 percent, instant oral fluid testing represents two-thirds of that volume.

"Mobile First" Process: The latest research confirms what you already likely know-smartphones are ingrained in our daily lives. According to Deloitte research, 98 percent of people between the ages of 18 and 75 use them every day, and 74 percent use their smartphone as soon as they wake up.

Meanwhile, recent applicant benchmarking research shows that "disrespecting applicants' time due to poor communication or never receiving feedback" is the biggest reason applicants drop out of the hiring process.

The bottom line is this: if you're not meeting applicants where they are (on their smartphones) with regular communication and updates, you're missing a huge opportunity to stand out. Worse, you could be losing prime applicants who are frustrated with your lack of communication.

This is why we built Profile Advantage®, our mobile-first solution that aligns with how today's applicants want to engage with employers.

Applicants can take control of their background check with the ability to quickly enter their own data, self-upload required documents, and independently check the real-time status of their background check.

Applicants enjoy "more swipe and less type" since all Profile Advantage® forms are streamlined using advanced pre-fill capabilities and predictive technology.

Applicants also receive text alerts as they move through the screening process, which gives them immediate visibility and helps keep them engaged in the process.

They can also text recruiters with questions and vice versa, which helps nurture their connection and relationship with your company.

An estimated 90 percent of our global Enterprise Advantage customers are using Profile Advantage today to create better applicant experiences and drive improved internal efficiencies. Increasing applicant participation in the screening process saves the time and expense of data collection. Likewise, built-in error checking and dynamic field/form validation enable you to capture the most accurate and complete data, and avoid processing delays due to input errors and incomplete data.

Takeaway: If you're focused on the applicant experience (which you likely are) and how you can improve it, be sure to work with a screening provider who shares your mindset and has a proven, vested interest in delivering applicant-first ideas, strategies, and solutions.

Getting help navigating today's labyrinth of compliance mandates

Few things can interfere with hiring faster than a compliance misstep. Maybe an adverse action decision was mishandled, and proper notice wasn't provided to the applicant. Or a criminal check was performed at the start of the hiring process in a ban-the-box jurisdiction where it's not permissible.

These and other compliance issues are landmines that can drain your internal resources, damage your brand reputation, or even put you at risk of legal action being taken against your organization.

"Compliance relative to the many laws and regulations governing the workplace will remain at the top of HR's priority list, especially for those employers operating in multiple states," according to a recent SHRM article.

We understand the critical importance of compliance support, which is why we bake it into all levels of our background screening solutions, technology, and service. We constantly evaluate evolving regulations around hot topics like AI, criminal checks, marijuana legalization, and more, and we incorporate those insights into our product roadmaps, customer support resources, and outreach and continuous learning courses.

Compliance-assisted background checks thanks to a built-in compliance engine: Few people are compliance experts, making it possible to inadvertently select a background check that might not be permissible in a particular state or country.

Our Enterprise Advantage platform features a built-in compliance engine that ensures you can only select permissible background checks. It also guides you to complete all required fields and forms before submitting a search request. The best part? The compliance engine is regularly updated to align with changing local, state, national, and global requirements and regulations, guaranteeing that your hiring compliance is always optimized.

Benchmark compliance with the First Advantage Annual Global Trends Report: Your compliance efforts may be adequate, but you're sure to agree that it helps to see what other companies-especially those within your industry-are doing.

Each year, we publish an Annual Global Trends Report that compiles a wealth of anonymized performance data across our worldwide customer base of more than 30,000 employers and more than 100 million background screens. It's a deep dive that slices and dices the data based on individual states, regions, and countries. Dedicated coverage is provided on hot topics, compliance concerns, and industries, while detailed analysis explains usage rates and outcomes of the various background check components.

You'll learn the who, what, why, how much, and where behind all things background screening, which you can use to benchmark and enhance your own screening compliance and performance. Get your copy of the trends report here: https://fadv.com/2024trends/

Takeaway: Ultimately, compliance is about putting guardrails in place to better protect your applicants, your employees, and your business. Yet, those guardrails won't work if you don't understand them or lack the information and processes required to adhere to them. Look for an informed background screening provider, one who is committed to sharing their compliance knowledge with you throughout your background screening partnership so you can worry less and stay focused on your core competency: quickly hiring and onboarding the best employees.

First Advantage is at the convergence of people and technology - with solutions that enable you to protect your brand and help create a safer environment for all your stakeholders. Every day, we're on a journey to help you make your HR processes more manageable and effective.

We're here to help. Connect with us to learn how we can help your business Hire Smarter and Onboard Faster®.

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