What Is a Resume Background Check? 7 Reasons to Conduct One

To achieve your business goals, you need qualified and trustworthy employees. However, building a high-quality team is not easy.

Research shows more than half (56%) of people lied about work experience, education, skills, or job duties on their resumes. While a small lie may not be a big deal in some industries, it could be dangerous and irresponsible in others.

Candidate omissions can be just as bad, if not worse, than lying. For example, someone with a recent history of violence may not be honest about their past. An incident in the workplace could put customers and other employees in danger, leading to negligent hiring lawsuits and damaging the company’s reputation.

Running a background check can help you reduce these risks and improve the quality of your hires.

In this article, we’ll take a deep dive into what a resume background check is, why conduct it,and how to conduct an effective one.

What is a resume background check?

Background verification involves confirming the accuracy of the information provided by an employee or applicant on their resume or job application.

This process usually involves verifying the individual’s education, employment history, and references. It may also involve a criminal background check and/or a credit check.

Why should you conduct a CV background check for applicants?

When preparing to hire a new employee, it’s crucial to conduct thorough background checks.

This process offers insights into applicants’ work experiences, education, criminal records, qualifications, and suitability. All of this may not be adequately reflected on their resumes.

This means conducting resume background checks is essential for making informed hiring decisions.

Here are 6 reasons why you should conduct background checks:

1- Protecting company reputation and assets

A resume background check is crucial to protect your company’s reputation. Working with a reputable screening company or recruitment agency like Tawzef can help ensure your hires reflect your brand’s values.

Depending on the check, you can gain insights into the candidate’s history, credentials, or driving record.

2- Minimizing hiring risks

Consider the following: Every new hire poses inherent risks. What if a candidate’s stellar resume conceals a troubled past or potential liabilities?

Conducting pre-employment background checks can prevent financial and legal issues for your company.

3- Preventing Fraud

Background checks can prevent workplace fraud, such as falsifying information, identity theft, and other scams.

Thorough background checks during recruitment can help detect and resolve these issues.

4- Ensuring workplace and employee safety

Background checks help you identify any previous criminal history and, accordingly, ensure workplace safety.

While a criminal history doesn’t automatically disqualify an applicant from being hired, it’s important to consider the nature of the charges in relation to the job role.

Conducting a criminal history background check is necessary to make informed hiring decisions.

5- Determining if the applicant is a fit for the job

Employers use background checks to assess applicants’ suitability for a job. In some industries, Disclosure and Barring Service Checks are mandatory to provide information on an individual’s criminal record, especially for roles involving vulnerable groups.

6- Connecting with better employees 

Performing thorough pre-hiring background checks not only reduces liabilities, but also ensures the honesty and integrity of each new hire.

By prioritizing trust as the foundation of business relations, you can move forward with confidence, knowing you’ve taken the necessary steps to safeguard your company’s best interests.

How to conduct a resume background check

Running a criminal record check is straightforward. However, it may not be easy for every company to perform. Certain information may be more accessible to recruitment and manpower outsourcing agencies.

While there are various types of background checks, the process is the same.

• Review local laws

Before conducting a background check, you should familiarize yourself with the laws that apply to you and the country where you operate or where you will hire the candidate.

For example, in the United States, each state has its own laws regarding employee screening. It’s crucial for business owners to adhere to these regulations.

• Gain consent

You should obtain the candidate’s explicit permission before conducting a background check. Many companies accomplish this by having job candidates sign an agreement granting permission for background checks to be carried out.

• Collecting personal information

Besides consent, you may be required to gather specific personal details. These will vary from one country to another, but generally include a candidate’s  full name, physical address, phone number, etc. In the United States, personal information may also include a person’s Social Security Number.

• Run the background check

Employers may conduct background checks themselves using free online databases. However, some of these databases may be unreliable or illegal (depending on how they collect information).

You should conduct thorough research before making any hiring decisions. It’s important to use a compliant background check provider.

• Review the results

When doing a background check, it’s important to know what red flags to look for, such as spotting resume fraud.

Take time to review the results thoroughly and develop a process to easily determine if people are honest on their resumes.

Conclusion

Resume background checks are an essential part of the recruitment cycle and hiring process.

Conducting these checks helps to ensure the safety and security of the workplace, and protect existing employees as well as company assets. They also ensure you make well-informed decisions when bringing new individuals into the organization.

Need help hiring individuals to join your organization? Want to conduct mass-hiring but worried about running background checks? 

Leave the heavy lifting to Tawzef. We’ll ensure a thorough and smooth hiring process, including background checks, for you.