Social media screening is conducted by utilizing publicly available information obtained through widely used social media networks in order to get insights into a job candidate. The goal of this screening is to ascertain if there is any red flag that the employer must know before making a recruiting decision.
Why conduct Social Media Screening?
Social media screening can turn out to be very beneficial for you because;
- It provides you with information on the candidate's personality.
- You can get to know the types of internet content that candidates view and share.
- It enables you to determine their opinions and thoughts.
- Assists you in reaching out to potential applicants who are currently unemployed.
- Allows you to double-check and confirm the candidate's information.
What can a Social Media Screening Reveal?
Traditional job interviews and background checks may not reveal information about an applicant that can be discovered through social media screening. When doing a social media background check, evidence may be discovered that indicates an employee is not a good fit for the firm.
There are so-called red flags that may or may not truly hinder a person's ability to execute the job, but can put a company at risk. The following are red flags that may appear during a social media background check and should be taken carefully by businesses:
- Unlawful behavior (drugs, underage drinking, etc.)
- Racist and Sexist Remarks
- Aggressive or violent behavior
- Hate Speech
- Harassment and Abuse
Benefits of Social Media Screening
Screening candidates using social media can be very advantageous, here are the reasons why;
- Get to know the candidate better
- Quick Solution
- Accessing Beneficial Candidate Data
- Instantly Eliminating Unfit Candidates
- Examining Professional References
The most common reason for doing social media screening is to learn more about a prospective future hire. During an interview, it's easy for a candidate to act in a specific way. However, a candidate's social media profile frequently reveals a lot more about how he or she really acts.
Background screening companies frequently have to wait for responses to their enquiries from other persons or firms. However, in the case of social media screening, the screening process does not necessitate the presence of third parties and your partner background screening company can swiftly and efficiently screen the candidates without having to spend any excessive time.
A social media background check isn't just used to uncover unfavorable information about potential employees. Instead, it might help you discover a candidate's favorable characteristics. Candidates may overlook essential qualities that they possess as they often grow apprehensive during interviews. In such a case, implementing social media background checks assures that you learn this information about them.
With social media screening, employers can make sure that they are not hiring potentially harmful candidates with divisive views or histories as this can have disastrous consequences for a company including employee turnover and the possibility of legal action.
Certain social media platforms allow their users to obtain endorsements from people who they have worked with. This feature can help to get essential data to learn more about possible prospects.
Winding Up
On the surface, social media screening may appear to be a simple task. However, thoroughly and compliantly evaluating a person's enormous online behavior isn't something that just anybody can perform (including your HR department). This is why you should work with a screening company that specializes in social media background checks and surveillance.
Social media screening may appear to be a simple task but it involves thorough and compliant evaluation of a person’s enormous online behavior which is the reason you should work with a screening company that specializes in social media background checks and surveillance. At De RISC, we make sure that you get the information you require to make better hiring decisions while respecting the privacy of job candidates.
