Authbridge

GONE are the days when background checks were done only for matrimonial purposes.  The company where you just applied for a job may just be quietly checking your education, work experience, residence details and even criminal records.

Those who think they will get away with filling out incorrect details while applying for a job need to think again.  An increasing number of multinational companies insist on checking prospective employees’ backgrounds before hiring them and not without reason.

“About eight per cent of the prospective employees had given fake education records and 15 per cent fake employment records,” said Ajay Trehan, founder and CEO of AuthBridge – an employee screening company which has been providing the service since 2006 and has screened around one million employees from about 1000 companies pan India.

“Indeed the number of employees being screened every year is increasing by almost 100 per cent,” said Trehan, adding citing an instance in Baddi in Himachal Pradesh, where 75 of 200 employees of a new company were fired as they had submitted fake domicile certificates.

Talking about the industries which are getting screening tests done, Trehan said that almost all big Telecom, IT companies and even BPOs conduct background checks on their employees.  “It is now catching up with companies that deal with health care and hospitality,” he said.  According to Trehan, of all the companies they conduct screening tests for, about 80 per cent are mid-level or big companies and only 20 per cent are small companies.  “But screening is being done for employees across board – right from a clerk to a CEO and from region specific test to international,” he added.

The concept, said Trehan, originated post 9/11 but did not take off then due to economic recession.  “But now that all is smooth on the business front, it has gained momentum,” he said.

Wayne Tollemache, Executive Managing Director of International First Advantage – a company conducts over 1.5 million background checks every year in India – said that more than 90 per cent of Fortune 500 companies now have a formal policy for background screening of their employees.  “Organizations realize that their reputation is at stake in case they hire someone with a dubious background.  Brand equity and value can also be adversely impacted and hence they do not mind paying for the service,” he said.

Tollemache said that the first quarter of 2011 showed a discrepancy rate of 10.9 per cent.  Of this 75 per cent were related to previous employment record and four per cent to education record.”

He added that 21 per cent of the total discrepancies and misrepresentations were found during address checks, criminal record verification, identity checks, global regulatory and compliance database checks and drug testing.

The cost of these background screening tests ranges from Rs. 300 to Rs. 15000.

“The time taken for background screening can range from five to 20 days,: said Tollemache.

Deepak Kaistha, the Director of an HR firm, said, “Background screening is important to protect one from lawsuits and costly hiring mistakes,” he said.