Author: Vanguard Screen Solution

A recent survey by ResumeLab found that 36% of applicants admitted to lying on their resumes. People who falsified their resumes cited lack of experience or long-term jobs as the primary reasons for their dishonesty. According to TribePad research of employees and job seekers , 88 % of the more than 1 in 5 job applicants who understand application tracking systems (ATS) fabricate information on their resumes to avoid being rejected.

It’s been found out that aside from inaccurate employment dates, false academic credentials and certifications, vague skills and accomplishments–-the number 1 offender in terms of falsified information are copy/pasted resumes from the internet! 

This comes as no surprise, as Google has become the go-to resource in coming up with information, even plagiarised ones.

While the resume is not the sole representation of a person’s skills (assessments, interviews, and tests help you better screen a candidate), it’s actually the amount of time and resources spent in processing a candidate only to end up with an unfit endorsement to the next stage of the hiring process.

To better equip yourself here are some sites that you can check out for plagiarism.

1. Prepostseo – The plagiarism checker is the easiest to use for newbies. It’s simple to use and checks for plagiarism in your CV. You can study Prepostseo’s data at no risk as their intellectual property is safeguarded and does not maintain repository material. 
2. Check-plagiarism.com – This plagiarism scanner scans all of the billions of websites and media where your work can be plagiarized. 
3. Grammarly – It is a cost-effective online tool for detecting plagiarized content and enhancing one’s writing style and substance. The tool is a sophisticated writing feedback tool that identifies and corrects grammar issues while also providing comments on the tone, readability, and clarity of the content.
4. Quetext – With the use of this web tool, users can execute advanced DeepSearch methodologies including contextual analysis and intelligent algorithmic word placement. With this application, users can see how much of their material has been plagiarized and take action if necessary.
5. PlagTracker – Plagiarism detection, grammar correction, and proofreading are all possible with this online service. Before posting, publishers and site owners can check to see if the content is their own.

Plagiarism checking software has gained in popularity, especially in the recruiting industry. Employers can use such applications to determine whether the content in a resume is copied from another document. These apps function on a database theory of operation to avoid potential problems, generic resume templates and, more critically, copying material from other people’s resumes, which may result in legal implications.

According to Facebook’s statistics, 2.76 billion people around the world utilized at least one of their products every single day in June. According to estimates from the data firm Sensor Tower, WhatsApp is used to send over 100 billion messages a day and has been downloaded nearly 6 billion times since Facebook purchased it in 2014.

With Facebook and its apps down for over five hours on Monday due to configuration issues, it’s hard not to notice how much bad luck the company has gone through in as little as over a week.

It didn’t help that the outage occurred just as Antigone Davis, a spokesperson for the company, was on CNBC to defend it against allegations made by whistleblower Frances Haugen. Haugen testified before a Senate subcommittee that in pursuit of “astronomical revenues” and “breakneck growth,” Facebook harms children, sows divisiveness, and weakens democratic institutions. Rather than implementing safety on its platforms, Facebook, she claims, has repeatedly sought to maximize its growth while concealing internal research that revealed the dangers of Facebook’s products to the public and government officials alike.

It’s a bit ironic that the recent major outage gained so much massive concern from many users not because they depend on the social network for gossip or news, but because Facebook has evolved into a platform that is used to sign in to so many other apps and services, users lose access to shopping websites, smart TVs, thermostats, and other internet-connected devices. Corporations to small online businesses that rely on the platform were left hanging as they waited for it to be restored. 

The aftermath fueled concern on private information that’s linked to online public platforms such as Facebook, which is why we’ve written a few simple tips on how to protect yourself better in the online world regardless of the platform:

1. Protect your password – Never disclose or use your Facebook password on any other website. Avoid using obviously identifiable information like your name, phone number, birthdate, or mailing address as your invincible password.
2. Manage your privacy – Privacy Checkup can help you ensure that you are only sharing information and articles with the individuals you intend to share them with.
3. Keep your profile wholesome – With Facebook’s strict policies or community standards, it is best to keep your profile wholesome to not have it blocked or temporarily suspended. This also helps when your company plans on conducting social media background checks.
4. Use social media positively – Creating a healthy balance of what you consume and share online is a great way of keeping your physical and digital mindset positively realistic.
5. Don’t make Facebook a habit – With everything almost done online, it is difficult to not be dependent on social media. However, making Facebook as a distraction part of your routine is both an energy and time consuming habit that is hard to break through.

With today’s rise of technological advancements, people are finding and establishing ways on how to protect themselves from a platform that has in so many ways made a difference in their lives. It is best to remember though that companies are just companies and like any third party provider can make use of the private information that you hand over to them. Ever heard of Social media background checks being conducted to not just verify one’s identity but to look beyond interviews and resumes, and be an established venue of determining if the applicant is suited for the position and the company itself? It’s happening now and the only way to protect yourself is to always be careful of ANY information that you put out there—professionally and personally.

In any field, a company’s performance is directly related to the quality of its staff. However, as the economy deteriorates and unemployment rate rises, job seekers also grow more desperate in landing a job. There are circumstances in which hundreds of applicants pass resumes and other needed documents that are not closely related to what they are applying for. Due to this, employers and their HR teams are overwhelmed with the number of applicants and their portfolios.

This is a high-risk situation in the Banking, Financial Services and Insurance (BFSI) industry as its foundation is its employees. They are the lifeblood of companies as they carry their mission, drive profit and ultimately influence the customers leading not just the financial state of the company but also its overall reputation. You may have seen viral videos of altercations between a customer and an employee in banks or in the general workplace. This occurs because of many different factors, but adapting a secure and tight hiring process can be one of the main defenses of an organization in order for it to not have viral videos that will diminish its reputation to “that” company.

Even though the world is becoming more digitized, human staff are still the core part of the BFSI industry hence there is a need to thoroughly filter applicants. Here are some of the most important skills that you should look for in finance:

• Cash handling skills – Aside from having knowledge of ledger balancing, loan processing, and even basic tax preparation, staff should have attention to details when properly handling monetary procedures.
• Customer service skills – some employees are the literal face of the company; when customers arrive, they’re the first thing they see and interact with so they’re communication skills should be reliable especially when they talk to difficult customers
• Technical skills – as staff rely less on their own arithmetic skills and more on the complex programs on their computers, they need to be well-versed in basic computer applications such as data entry skills

Aside from these skills, employers and their HR departments should be keen on requiring and checking their applicant’s courses and certifications that are related to the vacant position and the industry to ultimately ensure that the right candidate will not only be fit for the job but also to the company itself. Here are some examples of top banking degrees and certificates to consider:

• Chartered financial analyst – One of the most well-known and respected investment management qualifications offered at the CFA Institute. It exhibits your applicant’s expertise in securities, investments, equity research, portfolio management, economics, and equity research.
• Certified financial planner – this certification equips your candidates with knowledge in retirement planning, insurance, stocks, bonds and estate planning and ultimately qualifies them to to work in fields like private banking, retail banking and wealth management.
• Certified public accountant – Business owners and managers value this qualification because it indicates extensive understanding in areas such as taxation and auditing as well as risk management and company law.
• Chartered investment counselor – this is a good edge for those applicants eyeing the position related to portfolio management or investment counseling. 
• Financial modeling certification – with this certification, applicants are equipped with knowledge on how to construct financial models, represent financial accounts and analyze investments. They are also well-versed in project finance modeling, merger and acquisition, valuation modeling and advanced functions and charting.

While all these skills and certifications are needed in companies, HR must also look at the employment history of their applicants to determine if they have the right qualifications and experience for the job. However, with these skills and certifications, the candidate already has a good understanding of what to expect for their work in the company making it easier and more secure for the HR department and ultimately the company itself. 

To screen or not to screen?

One of the most substantial investments a company can make is on its newly hired employees. Companies make significant investments in time, training, money, and other resources for each new worker. The first step in getting to know a potential employee is to look over their resume. It provides a general summary of a person’s background, but it is difficult to determine which information is accurate. 

According to HR.com, 53% of job applications contain false information, with 34% consisting of outright lies on employee’s experience, education, and the ability to perform the fundamental responsibilities of the position. Exaggerated job titles and duties, falsification of education credentials, inflated wages, misrepresentation of dates of employment, and falsifications indicating that candidates are eligible to work in a specific nation are all examples of resume fabrications. Still, many organizations are hesitant in conducting vital assessments and would just take offers from unprofessional and inadequate services to afford cheap background checks. However, in Bradford Smart’s Topgrading 201: How to Avoid Costly Mis-Hires, the average cost of a mis-hire is actually four times the yearly salary of a supervisor and up to 15 times the annual salary of a manager or executive. 

But the challenge is this. How do we know if the information being collected is legally compliant with the Data Privacy Act?

How far can we go in terms of background checks without overstepping privacy issues and personal information?

Information privacy also covers the regulations that must be followed by businesses in order to protect their data. Furthermore, as new data protection laws are implemented, global privacy requirements and demands will extend and alter as well. In the Philippines, the Data Privacy Act of 2012 implemented by the National Privacy Commission (NPC) is observed and regulated. Data protection is the most effective approach to ensure that businesses are both compliant with the law and committed to protecting customer information privacy.

Below are ways for you to ensure that background checks are done legally and within the bounds of the Data Privacy Act:

• Determine which specific regulations apply to your employees’ or candidates’ information – As you aspire to hire a diverse group of employees, different laws for their identification may be applied so it is recommended you consult with your legal counsel or privacy office to have a better understanding of your circumstances.   
• Establish a Background Check Policy – Because of the wide range of federal and provincial privacy and human rights legislation, it is critical for businesses to have a uniform and compliance background check strategy in place. The ability to properly defend your screening procedure will be enhanced if you have a framework in place to request, receive, and review background checks.
• Observe an appropriate practice of collection, use, and disclosure of information – If you want to develop or sustain an employment relationship, you should only collect information that is fairly essential to do so in accordance with your business requirements, not just information that would be interesting to have. After that, the information should only be utilized for the purposes for which it was originally gathered. In addition, access to personal information under your control must be restricted; only those who require it should have access to the information.
• Consult with a third-party representative – An extra step in ensuring your security practices are compliant to regulations is by conferring with a privacy officer that is not affiliated with your company or the background verification company you hired. This will give you a fresh perspective on the way your background checks are conducted which in turn provide further guidance on those gray areas that your company and the background verification services overlooked.

While it’s true that organizations should strive to provide a consistent and enjoyable experience for all of their customers and employees alike, it’s also important to ensure that all assets are protected and preserved with utmost compliance to Data Privacy Laws.  With this, it is important for employers to invest in the right talent by conducting background checks that are legal, and fall under an appropriate process of collection, use, and disclosure of personal information. 

As a franchisor, one of your most challenging tasks is to identify qualified candidates to acquire your franchise because not everyone interested is qualified to do so. According to Franchise Direct, 41% of those who wish to manage a franchise have never owned or operated their own firm and 46% are not even familiar with the application process itself. 

While franchise consulting companies have already solved this dilemma through better controls and  a stringent qualification process, there is another layer that needs some deep attention.

Employees who are working under a franchisee. 

If not careful,  employees who perform wrongdoing can easily be magnified and can lead to bigger problems such as bad publicity, whether it comes from conventional print, radio, and television media or from today’s world of viral social media, which may have a major impact on your franchise company’s network of franchises. 

In one of the more common scenarios, If a franchisee whose employee injures, commits theft, fraud or violates the space of a customer, who do you think would hold the public responsible for the damage? 

Certainly not just the employee but more of the brand and the image of the franchise. This could result in you losing your reputation as well as a significant amount of money in court expenses and penalties.

Enter Background Checks. A more cost-effective yet foolproof solution to adding that layer of protection between a franchise’s employees and customers.

Essentially, background checks helps in:

• Selecting successful franchisee owners and employees who will represent and promote the brand image and values of your franchise organization by spotting the following:

• Misdeclared information
• Education, certification and performance discrepancies
• Criminal records
• Debt/Financial records
• Compliance violations in the past
• Behavioral issues that can pose a risk to data security or customer sensitivity

Verifying people involved in your franchise company saves you time but also protects not just your investment but also your relationships with your networks. Along with safeguarding your financial resources, maintaining the good name of your franchise should be a major priority. Without doing a background check, you run the risk of putting your franchise’s reputation in the hands of a bad apple. By doing background checks, you can assure that the people who represent your company will enhance rather than harm your franchise’s reputation.

To get a FREE copy of How to do Background Checks Correctly go here: https://www.vanguardscreen.com/background-checks/

The improvements in technology have brought forth a slew of new security issues, which financial institutions must address if they are to continue to provide their consumers with the best and safest services possible. 

According to studies, the financial-services industry is the most targeted of all businesses, with organizations in this area being 300 times more vulnerable to cyber-attacks than those in any other industry. The fact that most banking assaults are directed at customers rather than financial institutions implies that digital banking—a technology that wants to delegate more control to customers from the start—remains vulnerable to a wide range of security threats. In addition, the more “digital” banks develop, the greater the number of channels for potential points of attack from hackers, who are continuously innovating to exploit new weaknesses.

Banks and their developers work together to make digital banking as convenient and comfortable as possible for their customers. However, as we all know, convenience and security are not the best of friends. In the financial services sector, there are numerous specialized security solutions available, and it is this fact that is the fundamental reason why these solutions are considered “unique” in some way. 

Here are some of the ways in protecting your digital banking account information:

• Avoid public Wi-Fi networks while accessing your digital banking accounts.
• Regularly change your passwords, and not use the same login credentials for all banking applications.
• Understand how to identify situations where you are most likely to be targeted by scams related to your digital banking accounts.
• Adapt a Multi-factor authentication (MFA) in your accounts where it requires you of at least one extra form of identification verification in addition to a text password. 
• Use biometric identification which utilizes biological characteristics such as fingerprint, speech pattern, and ocular retina to access your account. 
• Inquire for a card locking feature in your digital bank account; this allows you to temporarily lock your debit card so that your funds aren’t vulnerable if it is misplaced or stolen.
• Ensure that you transact with banks that have a track record of doing the necessary and periodic background checks for new and current employees to check for criminal records, patterns and compromising activities.

The security measures that the bank has implemented go far enough to protect customers from dangers, but customers should still expect to be vulnerable to any assaults. As an online banking client, you help secure your account information by playing an essential part in the online banking system. By practicing safe online banking and learning more about it you may, therefore, have peace of mind knowing that your financial data is protected when utilizing digital and mobile banking.

There is a high cost when a company employs incompetent people. The employers must also consider a pre-employed person’s personality and background history. Their personalities are often predictors of what their job performance will be like. Assessing a candidate’s behavior in certain work environments will enable the employers to know whether they are suitable for the certain job position they are applying for, as well as the culture of the people working in the company.

There’s a lot more to consider before hiring someone for a specific job. Traditionally, the employers rely on the pre-employed person’s curriculum vitae (CV) that consists of their education, work experiences and skills, then the candidates are assessed during the interview. By doing this, it could be difficult for the employers to determine if a candidate will be successful in their position or not.

With the help of technology, assessing one’s fit has become more accurate and easier to do, which is why most employers rely on background screening and online assessments before hiring a new employee.

Lately, there have also been a steady increase in different Personality Assessments that companies use for hiring their employees. These kinds of assessments helps the employers identify the pre-employed person’s traits, behavior and performance which will give them the idea of what the person will be like in the workplace. Personality assessments capture a person’s “tendencies” and are able to identify a person’s leadership skills, sociability, confidence and other traits that are needed for working in the company. 

Background Screening and Personality Assessments are also used to identify what position/s fit best for the pre-employed person. For example: A company is hiring senior executives. For this, the company will be assessing their overall personality traits. When a company hires a waiter/waitress, they will be assessing their social and communication skills. 

Employees who aren’t able to pass the background screening and assessments will not be able to fit the company’s standards which means that they will eventually underperform or cause liabilities to the company. This is why it is important for companies to consider personality assessments and proper background screening since this will help the employers and the company hire the right people in the right positions.

P.S.

📌To get a FREE copy of How to do Background Checks Correctly go here:

https://lnkd.in/gKBHjQE

We all know that Background screening is basically completing an employee’s identification and verification procedures.

Due Diligence is a more intensive way of checking a pre-employed person’s background and this is usually conducted on business partners, investors, and other high ranking employees since the risk of hiring employees with higher positions can also affect the company and its reputation.

Companies that perform Due Diligence background screening for these types of individuals may ask any amount of questions since the answers to their questions will ensure the safety and future of the company and the partnerships.

What is the difference between a normal background check and a Due Diligence check?

The term “background check” is often perceived as a procedure done before hiring a new employee. This includes checking a pre-employed person’s criminal records, reference interviews, education background, employment background and other verifications. 

Due Diligence background checks are mostly conducted on business entities. An example of this is a firm that is conducting a background check for a banking investor before starting the investment. The objective of a Due Diligence background check is to prevent fraud and the risk of a company being exposed to liabilities.

A Due Diligence background check often asks these questions:

“Does this person own a legitimate business with legal requirements and credentials?”

“Has this person been involved in any fraud or corruption cases?”
“Are the business owners involved in any illegal action/s that may negatively affect the company”

Companies that perform Due Diligence background screening for these types of individuals may ask any amount of questions since the answers to their questions will ensure the safety and future of the company.

In conclusion, background screening is an important part of company due diligence. With the increasing number of threats to companies (organized crime syndicates, money launderers and more), it’s crucial that firms perform thorough background screenings on partners, employees who will be in contact with sensitive information or assets. 

To get a FREE copy of How to do Background Checks Correctly go here: https://lnkd.in/gKBHjQE

A teacher’s credibility is being able to give the students knowledge and believe that they can learn from them because the teacher has the ability to inspire and form a bond of trust between their students.

Having an educational background is one of the important requirements that most companies require before hiring an employee and even the biggest company leaders have an educational background.

An employer must consider the characteristics and personality of a pre-employed teacher since this is what makes them a good quality employee. A teacher should be passionate about their job to ensure that they will be able to motivate their students and give them the learning abilities that they will be able to use in school, outside of school, and even as adults in their future workplace. Most importantly, an employer should consider hiring teachers that are high-powered to ensure the positive growth of the students and reputation of the school.

What should an employer consider before hiring teachers for a school and other educational organizations?

1) Research about the teacher’s certifications, work history and reputation to ensure that they are fit to teach in the certain school. Proper investigation will also ensure the safety of the students and the school. 

2) Consider that the teacher/s must be passionate about their job in order to give the students a meaningful and memorable experience.

2) Ask the teacher about any past experiences. This will benefit them and the school in the future by helping the students have a better academic and learning outcome.

3) Understand the background of the students and their expectations for their future lesson plans. This will give the teachers an idea on how they will make their lessons be more effective and understandable for the students.

4) Ask for referrals from other teachers and schools. Companies would always refer their best employees. Having employees with good reputation will give the school a better image.

Without competent and credible teachers, there would be less educated people because teachers are the pillars to the success of every student. 

P.S.

📌To get a FREE copy of How to do Background Checks Correctly go here:

https://lnkd.in/gKBHjQE

Conducting an employee screening upholds a company’s high-standards when it comes to providing a background check before hiring a new employee. This has been a universal routine for many companies all over the world, wherein a company’s Human Resource team ensures that the pre-employed person’s background such as their work history, criminal records, educational background and other information are properly investigated on in order to avoid any counterproductive behaviors in the workplace that could be a threat to the company and its other employees.

What are the Top 3 trends in conducting background checks.

1) Artificial Intelligence and Automation

AI machines are of great use in today’s time. Technology has been an extremely helpful tool in many aspects, especially with automated background checks that have reduced the time needed in background screening compared to the traditional background checks.

2) Commercial Database Use

Background screening has a lot to do with database use since the employers need to be aware about the millions of records coming from various sources such as courts, criminal records, agencies and other platforms that collect records. Employers should take into account the legal requirements needed in background screening to avoid having false data records and other complications that will affect the hiring process.

3) Criterion Validity Check

Having a criterion validity check would ensure the relationship between the background information and behavior of the pre-employed individual. A background check is a better predictor of what the employee’s behavior and performance will be like in their workplace.

In doing a background check, a company will be able to hire the right person in the right seat. When you hire the wrong person, there will be a cost to revenue since employee training will be involved and in the case where the employee leaves, return on investment is wasted.

P.S.

📌To get a FREE copy of How to do Background Checks Correctly go here:

https://lnkd.in/gKBHjQE