Background checks

With a rising number of frauds and rampant cases of lying on CVs, companies are putting their money in checking backgrounds while hiring than repenting later.

According to latest estimates, background check industry in India is Rs 75 crore now and it has grown nearly five times in the last couple of years.

Corporations are paying: 31 per cent suffered damages worth over Rs 10 crore and 53 per cent admitted to losing Rs 10 lakh each because of frauds.

“Companies are now spending Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,500 per employee for background checks,” said Vikramjit Singh Sahaye, general manager (India) of Yellojobs.com, a Delhi-based job portal.

Headhunters, too, point to the trend. “Till a couple of years ago only five per cent of the 2,000 corporate houses we catered to insisted on background checks. Now, one-fourth of our clients outsource this job,” said Pandia Rajan, managing director, Ma Foi consultants.

At Tata Consultancy Services, recruitment branches employ specialised, background verification agencies. Previous employment records, education details, police records, address and references are checked. The verification process is completed within 30 days. Errant candidates are given a chance to explain. If they fail, offers are withdrawn.

“We also offer the candidates a chance to explain ambiguity and re-verification happens through another agency in certain cases,” said K. Ganesan, vice president and global head, Talent Acquisition & Academic Interface Programme, Tata Consultancy Services. “Candidates who do not clear the background checks are removed from the company or their offers are withdrawn within seven days from the receipt of the verification report from the agency.”

India’s growth story could be seriously hampered by such frauds, said Ashish Dehade, managing director, west Asia operations, of First Advantage, a US-based multinational. “Multi-location operations, dearth of skilled manpower and rapid technological advances have led to an exponential increase in the risks associated with recruitment,” he said.