| | AUGUST 20169Consultants Reviewsuddenly recalled one day having read a news item about a student from the same B-School having been implicated in a murder case. We immediately swung into action and used a leading investigation agency only to discover to our shock that it was indeed this candidate. Given a short time companies get to complete the hiring process, it becomes extremely difficult to probe character misdemeanours in a fresher candidate.2) I had an occasion to hire a very senior leader in a global business role. The incumbent came with an excellent pedigree and having worked with the best multinational organisations at very senior levels in India and globally. After spending almost two years at work, we stumbled on some shocking facts. This individual was a chronic stock market addict and would spend enormous time at work in day trading. Not only that he ran a parallel business in his wife's name and used to divert company business to that firm. On investigation, it was revealed that he was asked to quit from some of his previous organisations for this very reason. Normal ref checks prior to hiring did not throw up this information since referees seldom want to disclose such sensitive information. 3) Recently Scott Thompson, CEO of Yahoo lost his job for falsification of his ResumeApart from the above, there are several instances where employees have produced false degree certificates. In fact, the Police have busted several rackets where degrees, including Medical, of various Universities are fabricated by unscrupulous elements. The recent Vyapam Scam in Madhya Pradesh was an eye opener which shocked the conscience of the nation.I have also had occasions to deal with cases of candidates who are chronic alcoholics or into drug abuse which is assuming alarming proportions. Some other instances where candidates hide their service breaks are also common. Hence the only way to ensure a complete screening is to conduct an independent verification through an external agency since the cost of a wrong hire is enormous. Current Trends in VerificationThe evolution of corporate verification in India started with reference checks which is the basic first step in a hiring process. However, it is now maturing to cover various other areas.Some of the Reputed Verification Companies Now Offer Various Services:a) Writing to the institution/university from where the candidate has obtained the degree and the year of passingb) Talking to past employers to verify the date of joining and leavingc) Checking through all sources of information as to whether the candidate has any criminal recordsd) Checking with friends/colleagues informally about the charactere) Checking from the market/customers about the reputation of the candidatef) Using infographicsFuture of Corporate VerificationThe entire aspect of background verification is now becoming increasingly serious need for every hire irrespective of levels. There are reports of corporates resorting to competitor espionage where they plant employees into a competitor's workplace as an undercover agent to extract secret and proprietary information. Also given the fact that terrorism is assuming alarming proportions, apart from information/data security, there is a possibility that a large number of people are planted into corporate work places to spread terror through radicalisation of workforces. Therefore, there is a huge need for due diligence using very high intelligence/ forensic strategies. Besides, certain industries like healthcare, security, aviation, and banking mayrequire specific screening due to state/federal laws, particularly for corporates having global operations. Besides, some countries require credit verification for providing employment.With the entire world becoming a global village with porous borders and illegal immigrants in various countries as well as increasing Resume frauds, corporate verification has become basic hygiene in every employment which, of course, is a onetime investment but gives lifetime peace of mind!! The evolution of corporate verification in India started with reference checks which is the basic first step in a hiring process
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