Why Conduct Background Checks on Potential Employees?

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by Bridget Miller | BLR

Does your organization conduct background checks as part of the hiring process? Many organizations do, but the type of background check—and the extent of it—varies considerably. Let’s take a look at some of the most pertinent reasons so many businesses opt to perform some type of background check on any potential new employee.

Some of the Reasons for Conducting a Background Check

Probably the biggest reason employers choose to perform background checks on potential employees is safety and security. Employers have an obligation under OSHA to provide a safe workplace—one that is free of known hazards. It can be easily argued that hiring an individual with violent tendencies—tendencies that could  have been discovered with due diligence—would represent a disregard for that obligation. As such, many employers opt to perform at least a criminal background check on potential employees before finalizing any offer of employment.

Similarly, if an individual causes harm to anyone—such as a customer or vendor—the employer may be liable if there was an opportunity to learn about this tendency, such as the existence of a public criminal record.

Security is another concern, especially for jobs in which an individual is responsible for cash or for making decisions that affect the company’s profitability or reputation. For any individual in these roles, employers often consider doing a background check that confirms the individual does not have a history of fraud, negligence, or theft, for example.

Background checks can also be done on a more limited scale. Technically, even calling references is a form of background screening. In these situations, an employer is trying to gauge what the potential employee is like to work with, to better ensure it will be a good fit. These can also be done as a means to try to uncover any fabrications or exaggerations on the application, résumé, or during the interview.

Conducting Background Checks: Some Caveats

Despite these very good reasons to conduct an employee background check, there are limits to what an employer can discover and use. For example:

• Employers should be careful not to make decisions based solely on arrest records. An arrest is not the same as a conviction, and some protected groups may be disproportionately affected by a policy that disallows a perspective employee due to any arrest—thus making such a policy discriminatory.
• Credit checks and other background checks require employee consent. Without consent, such checks can be illegal, depending on what type of check is conducted. Consult legal counsel and get advance permission before conducting background screenings. Additionally, if you use an employee’s credit rating as part of the background screening process, first be sure there is a legitimate business purpose for doing so. Otherwise, this alone can be a form of discrimination if potential employees are excluded based on credit. This is because lower credit scores disproportionately affect some protected groups, and eliminating on this basis alone would create a disparate impact on these groups. Even with a legitimate business purpose for checking a credit score, the employer must also be sure to follow the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) rules.
• Background checks can inadvertently turn up information that discloses an employee’s inclusion in a protected class. Even if this information is not used in the hiring process, it is risky for an employer to have such information at this stage because it raises the possibility of a discrimination claim. For this reason, many employers use third-party services to conduct background checks—and those service providers only turn over information that is relevant to the hiring process, insulating the employer from knowledge about protected class inclusion and other information that should not be used in hiring decisions.
• There are many federal, state, and local laws that limit the type of information that an employer can seek out—be sure to consult local laws and understand the limitations.
• Be sure any background screening is relevant to the job. For example, there is probably no need to get a driving record for someone who will not be driving for the company in any capacity.
• Be consistent in conducting background checks. Do not conduct background checks only for certain applicants but not others who are up for the same job. It’s OK to only conduct background screening after you’ve made a short list, but it’s not OK to only conduct background checks on individuals of specific groups, such as minorities or immigrants. Be consistent in the hiring process for each job opening.
• When something is uncovered during a background screening, consider giving the applicant the opportunity to share more information about the situation. While you still need to be consistent in how the situation is handled, it’s always possible that there’s a mistake that can be rectified or there are extenuating circumstances that change the view of the situation. Of course, if you’re going to give the opportunity for explanations, be consistent and offer this opportunity every time the situation arises.

Does your company conduct employee background checks? What advice would you provide based on your experience?

*This article does not constitute legal advice. Always consult legal counsel with specific questions.

http://trendpersonnel.com/en/news/item/150-why-conduct-background-checks-on-potential-employees

First Contact with the Candidate: Tips for Success

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apply now dallas, attract candidate, dallas jobs, dallas temporary staffing, potential candidate, recruiting company, searching for jobs, trend personnel dallas, trend personnel services

by Stephen Bruce | BLR

Your technique may vary, but you should have a basic process to follow when getting ready to call your candidate. First, prepare what you need to make the call. Next, rehearse what you have prepared so your words sound natural when you say them. Now you are ready to make the call. Regardless of what happens when you call, don’t forget the crucial step that many ignore—following up.

A Matter of Perspective

When you pore over résumé after résumé , especially if you work for a recruiting company, the candidates can seem like just a bunch of files or a set of numbers. But remember, on the other end are living, breathing people who have no idea you exist. Furthermore, if they are searching for jobs, it’s possible that more than a few less-reputable companies have tried to take advantage of them already. They could be on guard. They could be suspicious. Or they could be a delight. The point is, you won’t know until you call—and putting the wrong foot forward could cost you a perfectly good employee. Perspective counts, and taking a moment to remember that really helps.

Prepare and Prevail!

Again and again, experts underline the absolute need for preparation before you make a call. Calling without preparation makes you sound unsure and might cause a potential candidate to leave the recruitment process before you have a chance to assess his or her potential or attract him or her to your organization.

Here are some good ways to make sure you’ll be ready for whatever happens when you call your candidate. A little bit of homework can make all the difference.

1. Know what you are going to ask. Even spending a short time jotting down some general questions you want to ask is better than no preparation at all. If you have the time, a complete list of questions works best.
2. Keep it concise. Summarize who you are and what you want with a few sentences and have it on hand. This way, if someone other than the candidate picks up, or, more likely, the call goes to voicemail, you’ll have a quick, to-the-point response ready to go.
3. What do you already know? Construct a fairly detailed list of everything you already know about the candidate. This serves two purposes: first, you can tailor your conversation around those points; second, simply confirming these points with the candidate is a decent good way to organize an interview.

Rehearse First

You’ve done your preparation. So you’re ready to pick up the phone right away, right? Well, if you want to sound natural (and unlike a telemarketer), you might want to take a few moments to read what you wrote down. A few quick things to consider at this point.

• Make absolutely certain you can pronounce the candidate’s name. It’s amazing how well a call can go when the candidate’s name smoothly rolls off your tongue. It’s equally amazing how defensive candidates can become if you botch their name.

• Be ready to go off-topic. While you may have an agenda for the conversation, sometimes you can learn a lot about a candidate based on how they direct the conversation. Don’t become annoyed if they wander; instead, take notes. However, try to stick to business and the job at hand, as casual conversation can lead to finding out things you don’t want to know, for example, race, religion, or disability.

http://trendpersonnel.com/en/news/item/148-first-contact-with-the-candidate-tips-for-success

Job Interview Best Practices

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apply now dallas, ask questions, attract candidate, dallas temp jobs, discrimination, experience requirements, hiring team, HR Best Practices, Interview preparation, interview questions, interviewing a candidate, interviewing and hiring, Job Interview Best Practices, trend personnel dallas, trend personnel services

by Bridget Miller | BLR

Many of the items on this list are meant to keep the hiring team on the right side of the law and avoid situations in which an applicant could assume any type of discrimination or bias. Other tips are meant to ensure the hiring team is effective and consistent in order to find the best applicant for the role. Here are the tips:

• Be sure that anyone involved in the hiring process is trained in and fully understands the laws that relate to hiring and the implications for each step of the process.
• Avoid behaviors that could imply a discriminatory bias. For example:
  • Do not ask about disabilities. Focus on the ability to do the job.
  • Treat all applicants the same. in other words, don’t require some groups to meet higher criteria than others for consideration.
  • Don’t ask about medical issues or other personal information.
  • Don’t ask any questions that could serve to gather information about:
    • Marital status;
    • Whether the applicant has children; 
    • Race;
    • National origin;
    • Age (besides confirming the applicant is over 18, if necessary);
    • Religion;
    • Sexual orientation (in many states it is illegal to discriminate on this basis); or
    • Protected activities, such as past filings of workers’ compensation claims. 
  • Don’t imply there is any type of problem or bias related to the applicant (e.g., “Our customers may react negatively to a woman in charge”).
• Be consistent in how applicants are assessed. For example: 
  • If an applicant must prove his or her ability to perform the job (such as via a performance test), this should be required of all applicants, not just a few. Requiring it of some but not others can appear discriminatory.
  • Stick to enforcing minimum education and experience requirements that are truly consistent with job needs, and do not vary this assessment for certain individuals. If the minimums are realistic, it won’t be necessary to make exceptions.
  • Be consistent with the questions you ask to avoid the appearance of biases. It can seem biased if some interviewees are required to pass a higher threshold than others.
• Be well-prepared.Before interviewing a candidate, you should:
  • Have questions ready, and know what you’re trying to learn from each of the questions you choose to ask. The questions should be related to the job or the person’s ability to perform the job. 
  • Know what the next steps in the hiring process are and advise the applicant of such either during or at the conclusion of the interview.
  • Review all of the information available about the applicant, including the details of how previous interviews went (if applicable). 
  • Plan to be in a space that is appropriate for the interview, free from distractions, noise, and interruptions. 
• Be aware of subconscious biases. We all have biases that cloud our judgment, but it can help to simply be aware of this in order to take steps to ensure it doesn’t affect the interview process. For example, how an individual dresses or styles his or her hair may create an instant assumption, but it does not necessarily mean that person is not a good job candidate. 
• Allow silences. Sometimes interviewees need time to formulate an answer. By filling in silences too quickly, you may lose the opportunity to hear what the applicant has to say. Always give the applicant time to talk—in fact, he or she should do the majority of the talking—so that you can get a clear understanding about the applicant and how he or she will fit with the organization. 
• Ensure everyone involved in interviewing and hiring knows the next steps, knows who is authorized to make an offer to an applicant, and what processes must be completed before an offer is made (such as conducting background checks, reference checks, and so on). Know what applicable conditions the offer is subject to, such as passing drug screening. 
• Remain objective in your assessments.
• Remember to assess soft skills as well as specific skills required to perform the job tasks. The issue of cultural fit is often just as (or even more) important as skills that can be trained. 
• Be sure that the interviewing team, especially the person making the offer, knows to avoid making any kind of reference to a contract in terms that could be construed as an implied employment contract. (Unless, of course, you’re offering an actual employment contract, but this is the exception rather than the norm in the United States.) This might mean avoiding phrases like “permanent position” or “long-term role” or anything that implies that the applicant cannot be fired without cause. 
• Give the applicant the opportunity to ask questions.

What would you add to this list?

http://trendpersonnel.com/en/news/item/143-job-interview-best-practices

Why You Can’t Afford Not to Hire College Graduates

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apply now dallas, companies now hiring, employees for hire, Hire College Graduates, hire for potential, Hiring, hiring temps, performance rewards, Provide training, rockwall jobs, Support staff, trend personnel services

By Krista Williams | BLR

I have been working with college students … well, since I was in college. In most, if not all, of my positions I have had the fortune of working with interns, new graduates, placement offices, faculty, and students. My support has not only been to assist in job placement but also to support the transition of students from the life of ramen noodles and 10 a.m. classes to meeting the demands of a completely connected work environment with high expectations.

I enjoy the aspect of the students being full of life, holding huge aspirations, and having absolutely no idea how to get where they are trying to go. I have partnered with placement offices at several colleges and managed college hiring programs for several organizations. Over the years, some things have changed and some things haven’t at all. Here is what I have learned and what I would advise hiring managers to keep in mind:

Students have very limited views of the types of positions they can actually perform once they graduate.

They need to speak with a lot of people in various industries in order to be able to make an educated decision about where they should be focusing their career search efforts. There are several places that we are able to assist and make an impact on college graduate entry into our desired markets.

As a prospective employer, you can offer internship programs, volunteer to be a guest speaker, participate as a guest panelist, and/or sign up for career day involvement as a start.

Companies should hire for potential, not experience.

A pickle we often get in is that if we do have entry-level positions, we think we are too busy to slow down enough to train someone without experience. I disagree. This is an opportunity to take someone without any preconceived notions about what it is like to work for an employer—someone who has not developed any bad habits yet—and completely mold him or her into the type of worker we would like. This particularly helps in high production environments of companies with really elevated goal structures. If you are able to attract highly talented, motivated, bright, competitive staff, they will only have one another to compare themselves to—not a slower paced previous past place of employment.

Provide training and opportunity.

Whether it is on the desk or in the training room, make sure you are providing an environment where your eager, fresh graduates can continually learn. They are coming off many years of absorbing lots and lots of information and let’s face it, if you don’t use it, you lose it. Make sure that you keep your new hires challenged, interested, and involved.

Don’t worry about whatever path you thought was good enough for you or others several years ago. Allow effort, production, and results to speak for themselves and reward based on performance.

Although I will be the first to admit that sometimes time is the best teacher, as you get to experience lifecycles and events recurring, don’t let too much time go by and allow the next best opportunity to come from an outside employer. The first several moves or promotions for fresh graduates (once earned) should be made in shorter time intervals their first 2–5 years of work. Otherwise, you may stand to lose your rising leaders to competitors who may appear to value their worth sooner than you do. Stay abreast of talent, how marketable they are, and make sure they are rewarded appropriately.

There is a great amount of opportunity for everyone if we work together and have the right frame of mind. So, next time you think you must have 3–5 years’ experience in a hire, think again. And take a close look at the advantages of hiring a fresh college grad.

http://trendpersonnel.com/en/news/item/142-why-you-can-t-afford-not-to-hire-college-graduates

Interview Take-Along Checklist

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apply now dallas, applying for jobs in dallas, carrollton staffing, Company Research, dallas temporary staffing, dfw area jobs, Interview Checklist, Interview preparation, interview questions, Professional References, rockwall jobs, trend personnel services

By Christine F. Della Monaca | Monster

You’re interviewing for a job tomorrow, and you think you’ve done all the interview preparation you need to do. You’ve practiced your answers to a multitude of common interview questions and have thought up some questions to ask the interviewer. Your interview suit is pressed and ready. But what do you bring to the interview?

We’ve created this handy checklist, with the help of Interview Expert Marky Stein, so you won’t forget a thing.

Interview Checklist Items for Your Briefcase

• Your Resume and Job/Professional References: But don’t just throw these crucial documents in your bag. According to Stein, linguists and psychologists have found that 93 percent of all communication is nonverbal. How you present this information says a lot about you.

To that end, Stein recommends you buy an inexpensive two-pocket folder in blue, since this color appeals to both men and women and conveys a business feel. On the left side, place your resume, and on the right, your letters of recommendation and list of references. When you get to the interview, say, “I wanted to bring an extra copy of my resume — here it is,” and open the folder, turning it around for the interviewer to read.

“This is a sign you are open and honest as well as organized,” Stein says. “The more you show you are prepared, the more you are showing respect.”

• Pad and Pen: Taking a few notes during your interview (while being careful not to stare at your notepad the whole time) is another sign of respect. “It makes them feel you are listening,” Stein explains.
• Business Card: People either take in information visually, audibly or through touch. “The more you give them to touch, the more real it seems to them,” she says.
• Directions: “These lower your anxiety,” Stein says, adding that it’s preferable to drive to your interview location in advance and park so you can see how long the journey takes.
• Cellphone: You can always leave this bit of modern life in your car, but if you must take it with you, make sure it stays turned off and in your briefcase; it’s a huge sign of disrespect to be interrupted during an interview or give the appearance you’ll be interrupted. “If you’re a man, don’t even wear it on your belt,” Stein recommends. “Keep it hidden.”

The Intangibles

• Company Research: In almost every interview, you’ll be asked what you know about the company, Stein says.
• A Smile: It may sound sappy, but this nonverbal clue is an immediate rapport-builder. Interviewers are often nervous, too. “In one-sixteenth of a second, we assess whether someone will harm, help or hurt us,” Stein says. “(A smile) immediately tells someone that you’re not going to hurt them.”

http://trendpersonnel.com/en/news/item/134-interview-take-along-checklist

Résumés—Stop Wasting Time!

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apply now dallas, dallas temp jobs, dfw careers, dfw staffing, dfw staffing agency, online applicants, Recruiting, resume tips, staffing agencies, trend personnel

by Stephen Bruce | BLR

By the way, if you  end up in that cartoonish position of having 2,000 online applicants, you  probably need to find some knockout requirements to get that pile smaller. Or,  you could, for example, decide to look only at the first 250. Whatever system  you choose, be sure that it doesn’t discriminate.

Your Time Is Precious

You need a system to keep all those unqualified candidates’ credentials off your  desk and off your computer desktop as well.

Clear and Detailed Postings

First of all, in all your advertising and posting, be clear about the requirements and be specific about the job. Unqualified candidates will self-select out, and the best candidates will be intrigued by the close match between what you seek and what they offer.

Complete and Consistent Data

In many cases, you’re stuck with a variety of application material such as application  forms filled out by walk-ins, e-mail notes, letters from various people recommending candidates, and letters or résumés with little information in them.

Before you review, try to get as much information as possible in  the same format. You can’t compare one candidate who submitted a brief letter  to one who sent in a detailed résumé and filled out an application. If  information is too brief, ask the person to apply online with full information or request a more-detailed résumé.

Review Efficiently

Next, be careful to review credentials efficiently. In the winnowing process, you  want to spend as little time as possible with the obvious rejects—and more time on serious candidates.

http://trendpersonnel.com/en/news/item/133-resumes-stop-wasting-time

Questions You Can & Cannot Ask Applicants!

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by Steve Bruce

Questions you may ask during an interview include the following:

• Please tell me of a major accomplishment or project that you are most proud?
• What has been your biggest frustration or disappointment in your previous (or current) job?
• What skills and experience from past jobs do you think will help you succeed in this position?
• What would you consider your three greatest strengths? Three greatest weaknesses?
• Describe specific job duties and tasks that you completed in your past (or current) job?
• How do you spend a typical workday in your current (or previous) position?
• What are your expectations from this job?
• Please describe your career goals for the next one to two years? Three to five years? How about the next five to ten years?
• How will being employed here help you achieve your goals?
• Tell me why we should hire you? How will you be an asset to our organization and team?

You’re NOT ALLOWED to ask questions about an applicants:

• Age
• Birthday
• Marital Status
• Familial Status
• Pregnancy or plans for pregnancy
• Childcare arrangements
• Disability or impairment
• Health history (past or present)
• Illness (past or present)
• Birthplace or ancestry
• Native Language
• Religion
• Racial Group
• Religious holiday or practices

Never use these prohibited questions in any written or verbal form.  You’re to focus only on the candidates experience and skill sets in regards to the position they’re applying for. Nothing else is  in the Laws eyes. If you ask an applicant about anything listed above then you are violating the law putting yourself and your company in jeopardy.

http://trendpersonnel.com/index.php/en/news/item/103-questions-you-can-cannot-ask-applicants