- Heather McGee
Do you know if your employee’s online activity is damaging your brand?
Social media is one of the most powerful tools for businesses to connect with their audiences and create brand awareness, but when it goes wrong it can end up damaging your brand.
We constantly see new headlines emerge about high-profile individuals who have posted inappropriate content online. Not only does this result in individuals losing their jobs, but also damages the brand’s reputation, which cannot be easily undone.
It’s a risk that businesses just can’t afford to take.
In a bid to protect their reputation and avoid costly bad hires, we’re seeing more and more companies implementing social media checks as part of their vetting process. What was once more commonplace for those working with children or the vulnerable, has now become an accepted part of the applicant vetting process across a huge range of industries and sectors including aviation and security.
With over half the world’s population on social media, it’s an efficient method of identifying any undesirable behaviour in your prospective employees. So, with online behaviour under more scrutiny than ever, what do our social media checks highlight and why should you implement them as an integral part of your background checking process? Find out who a person really is Social media checks help ensure that a candidate is a good fit for your business culture whilst also protecting your brand’s reputation. VettingGateway’s fully automated social media checks enhance your vetting process as both public and private posts are scanned against 7 key index measures of online behaviour:
Extremist groups
Swearing & profanity
Negative sentiment
Hate speech
Violent images
Potential nudity
Toxic language
Many vetting specialists ask us, why should I use an automated solution instead of scanning an applicant’s profile myself? The simple answer is, the risk of compliance breaches and human bias are, quite simply, too high. Let alone the risk of checking the wrong individual. When should you consider Social Media Checks?
1. When working in the Aviation Industry
Do you really know the individuals flying your aircraft or working in the airport? For airlines, pilots and cabin crew are the face of your company, and therefore a considerable part of the company’s reputation and global image are dependent on the actions of these individuals.
2. In high security roles
Make your vetting process more thorough by identifying if your candidates are part of, or interact in, any online activity related to illegal, violent, or terrorist topics.
3. When working with children
The Department of Education (DfE) guidance suggests that schools and colleges should consider completing an online check, including social media, as part of their due diligence on candidates.
4. Working with vulnerable people
Similar to working with children, social media checks can identify any offensive or illegal behaviour from your candidates’ online activities. These concerns are not picked up in traditional background checks, but are important for protected vulnerable individuals.
5. Those in high-profile roles This could include a range of individuals such as CEOs, directors, professionals, council leaders or police staff. Inappropriate social media posts and comments from their past could be damaging for themselves as well as the company reputation.
6. Any candidates When you employ an individual, you want to know more about their behaviour and the possible impact it could have on your company’s reputation. So, completing social media checks can help you make the best-fit decision for your company.
Social media checks do not replace any other background checks that are required, but they do enhance your background checks and provide a fuller picture of your future candidate.
If you would like to discuss this further or speak with a member of our vetting team please click the button below to book a meeting.
