Impacts of Social Media Screening on Building a Work Culture

Most employers know to conduct background checks on potential employees before bringing them into the workforce, but traditional background checks can only do so much. Social media screening is a separate service that many background check companies also provide, and it is something that employers should consider incorporating into their hiring process.

Social media screening may allow you to determine potential problems before they arise, or it might confirm your idea that a particular candidate is the perfect fit for your company. Either way, incorporating social media screening both during and after a candidate’s hire can promote a better work culture, as long as you go about it the right way.

Why You Should Conduct Social Media Screening

Social media screening is a useful practice for businesses because social media can help you get a better idea of who a potential candidate is than a traditional background check can. What a person posts on social media says a lot about their character and their personality.

Many employers use social media screening, not as a way to spy on their employees or stalk them, but as a way to mitigate potential problems. For example, a person who has a history of talking bad about their previous employers on social media or who frequently posts about doing drugs or other illegal activities may not be a good fit.

Alternatively, if someone’s background check comes up with some flags, like a prison sentence, but their social media seems clean, that might be a sign that they would be a good fit despite any previous but disclosed legal matters.

Even after an employee has been hired, periodic social media screening can help employers make sure that employees are still conducting themselves in a manner that reflects positively on the company they work for.

Maintaining Ethics in Social Media Screening

As you can see, social media screening can be a very useful tool, both during the hiring process and after a candidate has been brought onto the team. However, employers should always approach social media screening in an ethical way. That starts, of course, with clear communication between employer and employees about the screening process, and consent on the behalf of the employee.

That’s where professional social media screening and background check companies can come in handy, as having managers personally screen their employees’ social media takes away valuable time that they could be spending fulfilling the actual responsibilities of their position. Additionally, a lot of unintentional bias can come into play if an employer is personally screening their employees.

A third-party background check company can solve both of those problems in one go, providing employers with a fair and objective report of their employees’ and potential employees’ social media activities. Plus, with their access to advanced AI & specially trained people, an outside screening company can ensure that the person whose accounts are being investigated is actually the right person.

The goal of social media screening shouldn’t be to control or scare potential or current employees, but simply to keep a finger on the pulse of the workplace. Employers can use the information gathered to make necessary changes to the company culture, either by removing problem employees or by making changes to systems within the company itself in response to problems its employees are having.

Social media screening allows companies to adapt to the changing needs of their employees, and it can help prevent PR disasters that may come from outbursts from employees on social media.

Where to Get Started With Social Media Screening

Whether you need a traditional background check or an online one, Affordable Background Checks is here for you. We believe that every company should include background checks as part of their hiring process and that financial restraints shouldn’t keep anyone from being able to conduct one.

You can trust us to provide a complete and detailed report at a price that won’t break your budget. If you would like to learn more about the services we offer, including online background checks or social media screening, please feel free to visit our website or contact us to get more information. We will help make your hiring decision easier.

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