Indian Companies swear by PBS process
By George K. Plammoottil in Mumbai, The Asian Age May 16, 2005

More and more Indian companies are opting to verify the credentials of candidates “professionally” before employing them.

Pre-employment Background Screening or PBS is the process of thoroughly verifying the educational and professional qualifications, the employment history of a job applicant and conducting a search of appropriate public records to ascertain any information which is relevant to his or her application.

“The results of the process are fully documented in a standardized, easy-to-read report. All screenings must be authorized by the job applicant and carried out in a strictly legal, overt and ethical manner, “ said Mr. Yogesh Bhura, managing director, India Operations, First Advantage – Asia Company Ltd.,one of the first companies to start PBS services in India and with a reach across South-East Asia.

“These services address a growing demand for security by providing a single-source risk mitigation and business process solution for enterprise clients and consumers,” he added.

“Companies today are jittery of sensitive client data leakages and therefore want to be sure they employ the right kind of people to handle this information. Besides, with specialization coming into the foray, it makes sense to employ a correct person for a specific role,” said Mr. Johnson John, manager electronic data processing, Bedrock Limited.

“The importance of PBS is unquestionable. It is always better to pre-verify the credentials of a candidate than employing the person and later regretting it.” said Mr.V.K Sood, executive director, human resource, Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.

“Indian Oil employs an external agency that verifies not only each documentation provided by the prospective candidate, but also his past track record, performance appraisals among others,” he added.

Background Screening is a nascent industry in Asia. Estimates put the industry size at about Rs 250 crores and growing at a pace of 30 per cent annually.

Said Mr. John Long, chief executive officer and president of First Advantage Corporation, headquartered in St.Petersburg, Florida, US, with offices across the US, Canada, and Bangalore, “ The business of employment background verification is growing one in the Asian continent and primarily in India. With more Indian companies opting for the same, we see a growing market here. This is the reason of our recent acquisition of Quest Research Ltd., which expands our presence in India and East Asia.”