Applicant process explained for many civil service openings

By Test Ready Pro

Background investigations typically happen after you've applied, been screened during the application process, are interviewed and are then assessed. This often where applicants with a lack of volunteer involvement, post secondary education or work consistency get turned down. If you're competitive enough you will be put through to the background investigation portion. Some services will just put you through their background when you're successful with interviews however, some will first assess your application/resume and make a decision from there compared against other applicants who are also waiting for their background investigation. If selected to move on to the background investigation, a specific investigator will be assigned to your check, they will check with your school, volunteer, work and personal character references. Now, keep in mind you've offered these references but at anytime you could receive a call saying that you need to supply extra references as the ones you've provided could not be contacted or any variety of issues that could occur. Also this is the time when your pre-background questionnaire is drawn upon for reference against traffic accidents, tickets, criminal charges etc. Typically they take four weeks but can take as little as two weeks. Problems with the length of your background investigation occur if you were not born in Canada, have studied outside of Canada or lived abroad.

Letters of reference are great for this process because you know exactly what the person who wrote the letter feels about you. Letters of reference can even be from your friends/personal character reference. Letters of reference are great to bring along with your during your early interview stages, put them in your portfolio along with your OACP COR, other certificates/awards. I highly recommend having letters of reference written specifically to the job you're applying for, either "I have no hesitations in recommending ______ for a career with the _________ Police Service."

A quick note about references: Don't just assume that because someone agrees to writing you a letter of reference or agrees to be a reference that they will give you a good reference. Letters of reference in sealed envelopes intended only for the recipient can be bad news if you're not sure that the reference writing the letter is absolutely happy with you. Also, make sure you references are available, because they write a letter doesn't mean they're off the hook.

If you don't have any letters of reference, dig up your old bosses, current bosses, teachers etc. and have them write something simple. Make sure they include the date, their name, mailing address and a phone where they can be reached. If they're having a hard time writing one or don't know what to do, use google to search reference letter form generators or simply "how to write a letter of reference."

Background checks include credit checks and it's important that you take the responsibility to use the resources out there to check your credit score and determine if it needs to be improved upon.



Posted by Pebi Services President Tyra Hearns

New Zealand writer enlightens readers on needs for background investigations

By Gill South

In a tight labour market, it can be tempting to hire someone who can start as soon as possible, without doing a thorough background investigation of their references, says Peter Sherwin, New Zealand spokesman for Grant Thornton, which recently published a survey on undiscovered fraud in New Zealand private companies.

Some people are lax when they take someone on. "It's, 'Oh yeah, I know that firm, when can you start?"'

And some of us may have grown up with the idea that it was fine to "massage the facts" when writing our resumes. Once we had our foot in the door, it wouldn't matter any more; we'd just work hard and prove they were right to hire us.

But these days, embroidering details of your employment history is not a smart move. Increasing numbers of companies are using what are called pre-employment background screening organizations - companies that are trained to root out the anomalies in people's employment histories. As a result, you are unlikely to get offered the job - and may suffer some embarrassment as well. If there's a suggestion that you have blatantly lied about a key factor, like your qualifications, it can even lead to police investigation, as in the admittedly extreme case of Immigration Service head Mary Anne Thompson.

New Zealand companies are, like others around the world, taking recruitment more seriously in a market where human capital is so precious.

What they want to check is: has this person delivered in their previous jobs and what will they deliver in the future? Hence the increasingly common use of psychometric checking and professional reference checking. As well as employment history and qualifications,these companies look at people's integrity and honesty, and financial backgrounds. Have they ever been bankrupt? Perhaps not the best life history for a chief financial officer.

And a tip for job-seekers: make sure your past employers really are fans of yours. When checking references,quite frequently the employer will say: "They're not that great."

You might assume that background check companies are used just for top management but they may actually be working right across the board, from the receptionist to the general manager for some companies.

Even if the person is reasonably well known to the management, they are still using background check companies. executive boards don't "want any surprises". That's why there is a procedure in place.

Companies prefer to find out about a problem, rather than have a journalist discover the issue.

Be warned about changing your story or reinventing yourself when you go for a new job. The problem in New Zealand, of course, is that if you have blotted your copybook, you can never escape. Background Investigations are very important for people who have "access to the cheque book", such as chief executives, chief operating officers and chief financial officers.

Some common problem areas, such as the person's behaviour in the workplace, are often not to be found anywhere on a resume and those are the things that can make someone a poor fit. Do they use intimidating tactics in the office? Do they regularly slope off home at 4.30 to go to a "meeting"?

Posted by Pebi Services President Tyra Hearns

Background Investigations: What you need to know

by Chad Terhune
Business Week Magazine


Most jobs nowadays, from cashier to a senior executive, require a background check. And more employers are vetting longtime employees, too. These investigations are done increasingly by outside screening companies. Here's some things applicants and employers need to know:

JOB APPLICANTS
Check prior background reports. Under federal law, you are entitled to a copy of any background report that had been done on you, for a minimal fee of $10 or less. In three states, California, Minnesota, and Oklahoma, they're free. You need to know which screening firm out of the nearly 2,000 nationwide did the report. A previous employer can tell you and then contact the screening company directly.

Know who's checking your past. Examine the consent form that gives an employer permission to conduct a background check. It should list the screening firm doing the work and the scope of the investigation, whether that includes criminal records, credit history, driving record, or reference interviews.

Act fast if something's wrong. If you're rejected for a job based on your background report, an employer must tell you this and hand over a copy of the full report. Federal regulators have said employers have to wait only five business days before hiring another applicant while you dispute information in your background report. Contact the screening firm immediately and demand, in writing and by phone, a reinvestigation.

EMPLOYERS
Know what you're getting from a background investigation. The quality and depth of background investigations vary widely in an industry where many companies are startups offering low prices to win business. Be wary of Web sites offering instant checks. They may not be familiar with compliance and federal law. Some background companies search for criminal history in only one or two counties where an applicant has lived primarily, possibly missing information elsewhere.

There's no national database of all criminal records. Despite some marketing claims to the contrary, no master file exists of all state and federal criminal arrests and convictions. Searching criminal records remains a fragmented task across 50 states and thousands of courthouses. Diligent searches require screening firms to send workers to pull court files by hand for accuracy.

Know how reference checks are done. Some screening firms grant anonymity to friends and former bosses and co-workers in exchange for unvarnished opinions about applicants. Others identify all sources to guard against unsubstantiated gossip and innuendo. Ask how a screening firm checks references and whether you can provide specific questions to be asked that pertain to the position being filled.

Posted by Tyra Hearns of www.pebiservices.com

The oral interview is not the final say on whether you get hired

Many times applicants erroneously believe that the oral interview is the final phase of the hiring process. Contrary to popular belief the oral interview may just be the middle or early part of the hiring process. A complete and thorough background investigation will begin to emerge as the trained background investigator continues to accrue new and revealing facts about an applicant. Hand shakes in the boardroom do not necessarily mean you will be hired or retained. A comprehensive and complete background investigation will be conducted by myself and my talented staff at www.PebiServices.com

Tyra Hearns
President of Pebi Services Inc.
www.Pebiservices.com