“我喜欢控制。” 在那里，我说了。我的家人、朋友和同事早就知道的事情。我想说清楚。这并不是我一直否认的特质。相反，我更清楚它对我和我周围的人的影响。
我会诊断自己患有轻度但慢性的控制主义病例。我很欣慰地知道我不是这个星球上唯一一个遭受这种痛苦的人，因为我相信所有人都在努力控制他们生活的某些方面。
那么控制与背景筛查有什么关系呢？很多！
申请人筛选经验的
历史 从历史上看，在背景筛选期间有控制权的人和没有控制权的人。申请人通常不受控制。雇主将进行背景调查，然后从申请人的角度决定雇用或不雇用。申请人对流程没有太多了解（如果有的话）。
随着公司开始使用第三方背景审查公司进行背景调查，申请人获得了更多控制权。根据《公平信用报告法》（“FCRA”），第三方筛选公司被视为“消费者报告机构”，当雇主从 CRA 获取信息时，FCRA 中内置了许多消费者保护措施。例如，申请人根据 FCRA 享有的权利包括：
从雇主那里收到雇主将进行背景调查的书面披露；
向雇主提供他们进行背景调查的书面同意
在某些情况下获得他们的背景报告副本；
在他们的背景报告中质疑信息的准确性。
然而，尽管有这些保护措施，从申请人的角度来看，整个过程仍然是一个黑匣子，给他们一种他们无法控制的印象。
提高申请人的满意度
在当今的背景行业中，雇主、申请人和背景审查公司之间的合作更加紧密。每个人都希望申请人在整个过程中获得积极的体验。
在过去的几年里，我接受了一个挑战，即在申请人通过背景筛选过程时准确控制他们的经历。我推动了旨在给予申请人更多控制权的流程改进，包括申请人能够根据他们的条件（智能手机、手机、文本、聊天、人员）与我们互动，能够查看背景报告的状态以及所有待处理的活动、电子签名文件的能力、从任何设备上传文件的能力等等。我的假设：感觉控制力强的申请人就是满意的申请人。
通过这些创新，我亲眼目睹了申请人的满意度从 84% 攀升至 93%，这意味着不满意率下降了 56%。在支持我们客户的就业品牌的同时，让求职者的生活更美好，这是一项了不起的成就。我们现在还看到，超过 90% 的申请者表示，背景筛选过程与招聘过程中的其他主要步骤一样好，甚至更好。
赋予申请人权力 不过，
我们可以做得更好。我们的申请研究表明，一个准备充分的申请人是一个非常满意的申请人。准备充分的申请人知道背景筛选过程中的谁、什么、何时和如何：
世卫组织将与他们联系以运行背景报告？
背景筛选过程对他们有什么要求？
什么时候会对他们进行背景报告？
公司将如何使用这些信息来支持他们的招聘决定？
最基本的控制形式是能够高度准确地预测一个人的未来。做好准备允许申请人做到这一点。
数字不言自明——没有准备好的申请人对筛选过程不满意的可能性是其他人的 2.5 倍。这个简单但关键的步骤是让申请人准备好对背景筛选过程的期望，这是满意度的强大驱动力。大约 38% 的申请人表示他们没有做好准备，因此有很大的机会对申请人的满意度产生积极影响。
那么这对雇主意味着什么呢？您的背景筛选提供者可以做很多事情来为申请人创造积极的体验，但满意度最重要的方面是期望设定和准备。
您是否有正式且可衡量的流程来为申请人的背景筛选做好准备？如果没有，您可以通过招聘计划的这个简单补充来极大地帮助您的就业品牌。
I would diagnose myself as having a mild, yet chronic case of control-ism. I take comfort in knowing that I’m not the only one on the planet who suffers from this, as I believe all people strive to have control in some aspect of their lives.
So what does control have to do with background screening? A lot!
History of Applicant Screening Experience
Historically, there were those who were in control during background screening versus those who were not. Applicants typically were not in control. The employer would conduct a background check and from the applicant’s perspective decisions would then be made to either hire or not hire. The applicant did not have much, if any, visibility into the process.
As companies began to use third party background screening companies to perform their background checks, the applicant gained more control. Third party screening companies are considered “consumer reporting agencies” under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”), and there are a number of consumer protections that are built into the FCRA when an employer obtains information from a CRA. For example, applicants have rights under the FCRA that include:
Receiving written disclosure from the employer that the employer will conduct a background check;
Providing their written consent to the employer conducting a background check
Obtaining a copy of their background report under certain circumstances;
Disputing the accuracy of information in their background report.
Despite these protections, however, the overall process from the applicant’s perspective still remained something of a black box, giving them the impression that they were not in control.
Driving Applicant Satisfaction
In the background industry today, there is much stronger alignment between employers, applicants, and background screening companies. Everyone wants the applicant to have a positive experience throughout the process.
For the last few years, I’ve taken on the challenge of controlling exactly what an applicant experiences as they go through the background screening process. I’ve driven process enhancements targeted at giving the applicant more control, including the ability for an applicant to interact with us on their terms (smart phone, mobile, text, chat, person), the ability to see a status of a background report and all pending activities, the ability to electronically sign documents, the ability to upload documents from any device, and many more. My hypothesis: An applicant who feels in control is an applicant who is satisfied.
Through these innovations, I’ve witnessed applicant satisfaction rates climb from 84% to 93%, meaning the dissatisfaction rate has declined by 56%. This is an incredible achievement in making applicants’ lives better while supporting the employment brands of our clients. We also now see that more than 90% of applicants report the background screening process is as good as, or better than, other major steps in the recruiting process.
Empowering the Applicant
We can do better, though. Our application research shows that a well prepared applicant is a highly satisfied applicant. A well prepared applicant knows the Who, What, When, and How about the background screening process:
WHO will be contacting them to run the background report?
WHAT will the background screening process require of them?
WHEN will the background report be ran on them?
And HOW will the company use the information to support their hiring decision?
The most basic form of control is that of being able to predict one’s future with a high degree of accuracy. Being prepared allows an applicant to do just that.
The numbers speak for themselves — applicants who are not prepared are 2 ½ times more likely to be dissatisfied by the screening process. This simple, yet critical step of preparing an applicant on what to expect from the background screening process is a strong driver of satisfaction. With approximately 38% of all applicants indicating they were not prepared, there is significant opportunity to positively impact applicant satisfaction.
So what does this mean to employers? Your background screening provider can do a lot to create a positive experience for applicants, but the most important aspect of satisfaction is expectation setting and preparation.
Do you have a formal and measurable process for preparing your applicants for their background screen? If not, you can greatly help your employment brand by this simple addition to your recruiting program.
