UAE, Dubai – HireRight, a leading provider of global candidate due diligence services, has announced findings from its 2018 EMEA Employment Screening Benchmark Report. Finding, retaining and developing talent has been earmarked as a key challenge this year for more than half (52%) of EMEA businesses, according to the latest annual EMEA employment screening benchmark report from HireRight.
In this year’s survey of human resource (HR) and risk professionals in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), employee growth emerged as one of the top priorities for EMEA businesses. 71% of companies reported that they are planning to grow their workforce in 2018, compared to 59% in 2017. Further, there has been a shift from attracting talent to retaining it, with 43% of businesses having identified maximising employee engagement as a top talent management issue (a rise of 30% from 2017). To address this concern, half (52%) of companies report that they are investing in engagement initiatives and improving company culture.
“HR and risk departments have faced a nearly unprecedented year of change and challenge, as they tackle tightening data regulation, Brexit uncertainty, technological disruptions, and the continued move towards contingent and flexible working,” according to Steve Girdler, Managing Director of EMEA and APAC at HireRight. “Despite these changes, business confidence continues to grow, and as a result hiring rates are expected to rise – in many cases, significantly.”
Candidate verification
Verification of candidates does remain a concern for employers, however. 89% of survey respondents report that they have seen candidates misrepresenting information on CVs or job applications. In addition, over a quarter (28%) of businesses uncovered issues during screenings of senior-level staff, with 26% of businesses admitting that it’s possible that board-level staff have never had their qualifications and experience verified.
75% of organisations surveyed say they have discovered candidate history discrepancies that would have gone undiscovered without the use of background screening. Of organisations which screen, ensuring a positive candidate experience was one of the biggest issues of importance – having risen 14% in a year – with half (51%) of businesses investing into initiatives to improve this.
According to Girdler, “With corporate reputational scandals continuing to make headlines and increasing pressures of regulatory compliance, and EMEA businesses are now held to closer scrutiny than ever before. However, many continue to needlessly open themselves up to threats by not implementing simple but effective screening processes when hiring.”
“Discrepancies are continuing to be identified at all candidate levels of seniority – from entry to board room level. The need for employers to hire with confidence is becoming ever-more crucial to avoid business risk.”
GDPR readiness
Respondents to this year’s survey were also clearly focused on the new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) legislation, which came into force on May 25th and impacts the way all EMEA businesses transfer and store data, whether they are EU-based or hire from within the EU. Over two-thirds of businesses (69%) reported that they were ready for the required changes, and that they know exactly how to comply with GDPR. Still, nearly one fifth (18%) of HR and risk professionals say they don’t know how GDPR is any different from the existing Data Protection Directive.
“It’s clear that, as a result of GDPR, companies are now having to paying more attention to all aspects of data handling, including where data is stored and processed around the world,” said Girdler. “As a business, HireRight rigorously planned to be GDPR compliant – including ISO certifications, a separate data centre and updated policies – to ensure a candidate’s data is protected. These efforts and investments have put us squarely at the forefront of the screening industry in terms of embracing the drive toward transparency, accessibility and our compliance when it comes to candidate data.”
-Ends-
Survey Methodology
The 2018 EMEA Employment Screening Benchmark report explores trends and attitudes from EMEA HR and risk decision makers and reveals the key recruitment and screening trends for 2018. This year’s survey was completed by 452 participants across the EMEA region.
About HireRight
HireRight is a leading global provider of background screening services helping organisations mitigate employee risk, make informed hiring decisions and meet compliance obligations. HireRight works in more than 200 countries and territories, and has offices across the globe, including the UK, USA, and Hong Kong.
Almost half of the Fortune 100 and over a quarter of the FTSE 100 use HireRight’s services. For more information, please visit www.hireright.com/emea.
For press enquiries, please contact:
Twister Communications ME
Elena Gramatica or Emma Barber
052 692 3606 or 055 872 3009
egramatica@twisterme.ae or ebarber@twisterme.ae
© Press Release 2018Disclaimer: The contents of this press release was provided from an external third party provider. This website is not responsible for, and does not control, such external content. This content is provided on an “as is” and “as available” basis and has not been edited in any way. Neither this website nor our affiliates guarantee the accuracy of or endorse the views or opinions expressed in this press release.
The press release is provided for informational purposes only. The content does not provide tax, legal or investment advice or opinion regarding the suitability, value or profitability of any particular security, portfolio or investment strategy. Neither this website nor our affiliates shall be liable for any errors or inaccuracies in the content, or for any actions taken by you in reliance thereon. You expressly agree that your use of the information within this article is at your sole risk.
To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, this website, its parent company, its subsidiaries, its affiliates and the respective shareholders, directors, officers, employees, agents, advertisers, content providers and licensors will not be liable (jointly or severally) to you for any direct, indirect, consequential, special, incidental, punitive or exemplary damages, including without limitation, lost profits, lost savings and lost revenues, whether in negligence, tort, contract or any other theory of liability, even if the parties have been advised of the possibility or could have foreseen any such damages.
