Background Checks

Most large companies outsource background checks on potential employees. And sometimes the results are astounding. Did you ever get turned down for a job and ask for a copy of your background check? Sometimes the smallest errors can turn a 'you have the job' to 'we regret to inform you...' (alas, no job!)

I spoke to a job applicant a few days ago who had an unusual result to his background check. It seemed it had turned 'he' into a 'she' (or in this case, turned him into his wife.)

How did it happen? A simple error on the applicant's part. He used auto fill when he was filling out a job application at home. The problem? His wife had also been applying for jobs using the same computer and auto fill put her driver's license number into the application.

You would think if a company got back results where the applicants information had the same last name and same address they would presume this was an simple error. But they have so many applicants that the accuracy of your job application is your responsibility.

After he contacted the company's human resource department and the company who ran the background check to have it corrected, he eventually got the job. But only after a lot of angst. And in this economy who can take the chance on missing out on a job opportunity because they made a simple mistake?

So save yourself some anxiety and do everything you can to be sure your job application is filled in correctly. Double check any numbers, addresses, and verify your contacts. And please disable the auto fill option.

No Call Back After An Interview?

There are any number of reasons you might not be getting a call back after an interview, and some of them have nothing to do with you or the person who interviewed you and if they want to hire you.

My spouse, who until recently was one of the long term unemployed, recently applied for a job at XYZ Company (OK, OK, so it wasn't really XYZ Company, but keeping it confidential). He'd found a hot lead, the interview went well, the company liked him...and he was REJECTED!

Why? For a reason you might never suspect. No one would provide a reference for him. I don't mean a specific person, I mean the companies he worked for.

His old companies were just not answering when the company he interviewed with called for references. They were just ignoring phone calls. Or it had been more than five years since he worked there and after that amount of time they'd archived their previous employee files and would not even verify that he'd been an employee at their company.

Wow! Who would have thought? I mean he knew they all had policies of not giving references other than dates of employment but to not answer when a potential employer of a former employee called for a reference? Call me naïve, but yes, I thought they'd at least verify dates of employment.

So take the time to find someone who will write you a personal letter of reference from your old company. Or if you know someone at the company who has knowledge of your former employers and can verify where you worked even if they can't verify exact dates, be sure to provide the employer with their name, address, and current phone number and email address. Have you taken the tech route and posted your prior employers on LinkedIn? Have people write a recommendation on LinkedIn. It will remain there where employers can view it.

Provide a list of personal contacts who can verify where you have worked. It's not optimal, but in a pinch it just might be enough for the potential employer.

So just in case it's been awhile since you were employed, and especially if you worked for a company that went out of business or was taken over by another company, be sure to have a backup for your references. And good luck!

(Oh yes, in case you are interested, he got the job! One of his personal references who also happened to work for the company verified his employment.) That was a close call!