Hello Seniors, It is an old practice to do a background check of a candidate to assess their credentials and reliability. But what could be done to verify the company's background? How would a new candidate know if the company they are joining is reliable or not?
Verifying a Company's Background
In today's uncertain times, companies start their operations and may shut down in a few years. Additionally, questions arise about the culture and policies of the company. Will it be suitable for a new joiner, and are the policies employee-friendly?
Kindly advise all job seekers on where and how to search for information about a company and how to find the RIGHT MATCH for them. It would be a great help.
Thanks in advance.
From India, Mumbai
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2Verifying a Company's Background
In today's uncertain times, companies start their operations and may shut down in a few years. Additionally, questions arise about the culture and policies of the company. Will it be suitable for a new joiner, and are the policies employee-friendly?
Kindly advise all job seekers on where and how to search for information about a company and how to find the RIGHT MATCH for them. It would be a great help.
Thanks in advance.
From India, Mumbai
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This is a very good question. As a professional recruiter, I always ask candidates to research the company they are interested in, as well as their competitors. The reason for this is that the candidate will invariably be asked if he/she has any questions. This is the one-time opportunity for the candidate to display his/her knowledge of that company (and its competitors); believe me, that will impress!
Start Your Research
The first place to start your research will be to check the Register of Companies (ROC). This will tell you when the company started trading officially, thereby telling you how long it has been trading. You can also check if it is profitable and if all its tax obligations are up to date. If they are not, then what are the chances of YOU being paid on time every time?
If it is a listed company, check its share price over the last three years (at least). This will tell you how the company is performing. While this data will be historical, it will show trends. This data should be compared with the directors. You are looking for any relationship between share performance and directors in post at the time. Remember that it is the directors who drive the company.
Explore Company Resources
Then closely navigate the company website. You can glean a lot of information to ask questions towards the end of the interview. Remember, some of your questions must be those you already know the answers to. This will tell you how truthful the interviewers are or their knowledge of what is happening in their own company.
Do the same with company brochures, pamphlets, and any press adverts, etc. Visit the company premises and look at the state of repair, landscaping, etc. This will tell you if they are proud of their building. In which case, they are more likely to be proud of their staff!
Your visit should be at lunchtime so that you can approach staff leaving and ask them about the culture and ethos. But remember to introduce yourself as a potential employee first; otherwise, they will be guarded.
Engage with the Company
Telephone the company as a potential customer and see how you are received. If you are received professionally, this shows that the company cares about customer service. If not, it shows that it is not so hot on training.
I often telephone companies and ask to be put through to the person responsible for HR if possible (or available). I then tell them that I am conducting a short survey and it will only take a few moments. The questions I ask are:
1) How many staff do you employ in total?
2) What is the staff turnover?
3) What, in their opinion, is the reason for staff leaving?
4) Have these reasons been looked at, and policies changed accordingly?
5) Does the company have a strong training program in place?
You can ask more generic questions if you or the company representative feel comfortable, but you must end the "survey" if any doubts creep in.
Finally, if you are invited for an interview, this shows that the company is interested in you, and you are ready and prepared to "sell" yourself to them. Similarly, the company should be ready and prepared to "sell" themselves to you as well. If not, something is lacking.
I hope the above is helpful and has given some food for thought. I am certain other members will contribute further.
Regards,
Harsh
From United Kingdom, Barrow
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Start Your Research
The first place to start your research will be to check the Register of Companies (ROC). This will tell you when the company started trading officially, thereby telling you how long it has been trading. You can also check if it is profitable and if all its tax obligations are up to date. If they are not, then what are the chances of YOU being paid on time every time?
If it is a listed company, check its share price over the last three years (at least). This will tell you how the company is performing. While this data will be historical, it will show trends. This data should be compared with the directors. You are looking for any relationship between share performance and directors in post at the time. Remember that it is the directors who drive the company.
Explore Company Resources
Then closely navigate the company website. You can glean a lot of information to ask questions towards the end of the interview. Remember, some of your questions must be those you already know the answers to. This will tell you how truthful the interviewers are or their knowledge of what is happening in their own company.
Do the same with company brochures, pamphlets, and any press adverts, etc. Visit the company premises and look at the state of repair, landscaping, etc. This will tell you if they are proud of their building. In which case, they are more likely to be proud of their staff!
Your visit should be at lunchtime so that you can approach staff leaving and ask them about the culture and ethos. But remember to introduce yourself as a potential employee first; otherwise, they will be guarded.
Engage with the Company
Telephone the company as a potential customer and see how you are received. If you are received professionally, this shows that the company cares about customer service. If not, it shows that it is not so hot on training.
I often telephone companies and ask to be put through to the person responsible for HR if possible (or available). I then tell them that I am conducting a short survey and it will only take a few moments. The questions I ask are:
1) How many staff do you employ in total?
2) What is the staff turnover?
3) What, in their opinion, is the reason for staff leaving?
4) Have these reasons been looked at, and policies changed accordingly?
5) Does the company have a strong training program in place?
You can ask more generic questions if you or the company representative feel comfortable, but you must end the "survey" if any doubts creep in.
Finally, if you are invited for an interview, this shows that the company is interested in you, and you are ready and prepared to "sell" yourself to them. Similarly, the company should be ready and prepared to "sell" themselves to you as well. If not, something is lacking.
I hope the above is helpful and has given some food for thought. I am certain other members will contribute further.
Regards,
Harsh
From United Kingdom, Barrow
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Hay Guidance Notes nad Job Description Questionnaires. doc
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