ALPHARETTA, GA--(Marketwired - Dec 2, 2013) - First Advantage, a Symphony Technology Group (STG) company and the leading global provider of screening analytics and identity solutions, today announced the release of its latest study, "First Advantage Employment Screening Trends Report: Asia Pacific."
As more multinational organizations expand their presence in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region, they often face challenges, such as continually changing regional legislation surrounding anti-corruption, data privacy and consumer protection. These legislative changes can complicate the screening process and make it difficult for employers to perform proper background checks on their candidates, which can ultimately cost businesses a significant amount of revenue.
To help multinational organizations better understand the screening trends in the APAC market, First Advantage conducted the report: "First Advantage Employment Screening Trends Report: Asia Pacific." The study reveals key macro and micro trends and provides the insight for organizations to benchmark their current programs against other employers and fine-tune their existing screening practices in the region.
The report is based on data drawn from nearly one million employment verifications and reference checks conducted by First Advantage in APAC from January 2012 through March 2013. The screening results represent a cross-section of the company's clients located in Japan, Korea, China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand. Moreover, the report presents results segmented under five critical discrepancy types (employment, education, financial-related, database and criminal), and examines the discrepancy breakdown by country and by industry.
Key findings from the report include:
- More than 1 in 10 of all Asia Pacific employees have some form of background discrepancy.
- Results with a discrepancy in employment history have increased by 13.6 percent year-over-year, constituting close to 50 percent of all discrepancies in Asia Pacific.
- In general, Asia Pacific employers have increased their use of background screening, with 40.4 percent of all cases subjected to at least six checks in Q1 2013, compared to 38.5 percent last year.
- Despite the growing use of background checks, 18 percent of all candidates screened were subjected to only one check, indicating that some employers take a very minimal approach to screening.
- Employers who conduct six background checks or more were nearly nine times more likely to uncover an alert (26 percent discrepancy), compared to those who conducted only one or two checks (3 percent).
- There has been a growing trend toward "infinity screening," in which screening programs are extended to include contractors and vendors and to introduce periodic rescreening of existing employees, accounting for a drop in discrepancy rates in certain countries.
- The APAC region has experienced a significant shift in the types of discrepancies encountered since Q4 2012, with employment verification checks now comprising more than 50 percent of all discrepancies.
"The goal of this report is to help employers in the Asia Pacific region identify the current employment screening trends and challenges common among First Advantage's clients throughout the region and understand how they can adjust their screening programs accordingly," said Chin Wei Chong, marketing communications director of First Advantage. "The results of our study show how enhanced screening practices in the region have helped employers find more discrepancies when hiring, enabling them to ensure they onboard and retain the best talent possible."
For a complimentary copy of the "First Advantage Employment Screening Trends Report: Asia Pacific," please contact Chin Wei Chong at weichong.chin@fadv.com.
About First Advantage
First Advantage provides comprehensive screening, identity and information solutions that give employers and housing providers access to actionable information that results in faster, more accurate people decisions. With an advanced global technology platform and superior customer service delivered by experts who understand local markets, First Advantage helps customers around the world build fully scalable, configurable screening programs that meet their unique needs. Headquartered in Alpharetta, Ga., First Advantage has offices throughout North America, Europe and Asia. More information about First Advantage can be accessed at www.fadv.com.
About Symphony Technology Group
Symphony Technology Group (STG) is a strategic private equity firm with the mission of investing in and being a partner in building great software and services companies. In addition to capital, STG provides transformation expertise to enable its portfolio companies to deliver more value to clients to retain and attract the best talent and to achieve best-in-class business performance. All STG portfolio companies are expected to grow through innovation. STG's current portfolio consists of 12 global companies with combined revenue of approximately $2.5 billion and thousands of employees spread across North America, Europe and Asia. For more information, please visit www.symphonytg.com.