Social Media Screens

Should You and Your HR Team Use Social Media Screening?

Today’s background screening industry is a fast paced market with no room for error. Assuring job candidates are a good fit for a company is crucial, and social media is a great resource to use in helping you evaluate the ultimate hiring decision.

Social media screening can help you avoid making a potentially bad hire, but it is also useful in finding positive information that will allow you to better understand the skills of a candidate. Social media screens are used to determine a candidate’s written communication skills, ambitions, cultural fit and creativity, while viewing any red flags that may arise.

Now is the best time to run a social media screen due to the advances in technology. You may be surprised at the amount of information you can garner by screening a candidate’s social media and online presence.

5 Tips for Social Media Screens

For employers who want to include social media checks as part of the background check process, we offer some tips and advice:

Consistency is key: It’s very important to be consistent while performing social media screens for anyone so that your company stays within the law. If you decide to conduct a social media screen on a candidate, then you should be consistent and screen everyone under that same job description.
Transparency between both parties is vital in order to avoid any legal complications. Candidates should be advised when a company decides to run a social media search.
Public searches only: Legal compliance is a common theme while discussing the topic of social media screens. When searching for candidates online profile; only scan pages that are visible to the public.
Timing is everything: The best way to greatly reduce the risk of a potential lawsuit is to perform a social media and online search at the end of a hiring process. Don’t waste your valuable time and money on a candidate who may not be a serious contender.
Set up guidelines between you and your outside background check firm. Make sure you understand which social media channels are being checked and also what information is used.