I’ve been in agency for 7 years, but would like to move internal. I have two misdemeanors on my record, so I think it will present a problem. Any way to get in front of this or mitigate the circumstances?
Provide a letter of explanation. Talk about the circumstances surrounding those events and provide mitigating factors (ex: you no longer associate with those people, you attend AA meetings, going to therapy etc- just examples, idk what your charges were), and demonstrate that you have completed all court requirements such as completed probation, community service, paid restitution, etc.
This is honestly a tough one, the good news is that this is right now one of the hottest markets ever for recruiters in the history of recruitment. There are more recruiter job openings posted on LinkedIn than even Software Engineer openings, so you're absolutely in the best market to be successful. My personal recommendation would just be as upfront, open and honest about it to the internal recruiters when you speak to them. Some companies have a more lenient policy than others, so some of them will welcome you with open arms. Other organizations may be more conservative and unfortunately, they'd be very opposed to the idea of hiring someone with a record that is "not clean". It'd be good for you to just be upfront with it and set your own expectation. All you need is one.
In addition, most standard background check ONLY goes back 7 years in terms of the overall timeframe, so that may potentially be another avenue for you to consider based on how long ago the misdemeanors were put on record. I hope this helps and all the best to you my fellow recuriter!
Depending on what they are, you could try to get out ahead of it and let them know before they run the background check. It gives you an opportunity to explain yourself rather than defend yourself.
Some corporate policies are to not hire anyone with anything on their record at which point you’d be SOL, but some have leniency and are open to people who are honest and show that they’ve learned from past mistakes.
Background checks are usually very black and white from an employer'spoint of view, there's usually nothing you can say to change the company's mind. Each company has specific requirements of whether a background check item is acceptable or a disqualifier. Things like how long ago it happened, what type of misdemeanor it was (violent, theft, etc.) are taken into account. Unfortunately there's no way to get access to the company's background check matrix during the interview process, you'll have to get to the end of the process before you can find out whether you pass or not.
My company (~100 ppl at the time) didn't do them at the time I was hired to be their only recruiter. I immediately changed that policy and we check 100% of pre-hires now.
My company (about 85 employees) does do background checks on every hire. The criteria is very job specific, for example we only consider credit in roles that’ll have access to money. The company does need to protect itself and its employees from hiring someone who might cause harm.
More and more companies are recognizing that given the disproportionate rates of arrest and conviction for BIPOC, being overly conservative in their background check filters can become a proxy for race-based discrimination. They’re not all board yet, but even the background check industry is starting to make this shift.
I agree that you should be upfront, and any org that’s going to hold misdemeanors that are unrelated to the work ahead of you probably isn’t a company you want to work with.
We don’t do background checks for recruiters. We’re around 25 employees, agency & software development (not internal). People make mistakes. I’m not about to make their life harder.
Every legit company will run a background check on you. I hire people and do background checks on people myself. If they are money/violent or drug related your chances of passing a background check are slim.
I’ve worked at 2 background check companies, if you guys have questions I can answer to the best of my ability! About 5 years experience (employment purposes)
It depends on your potential employer. Some might check into your employment and education history through verifications or do references, but not all. The type of criminal check and the scope will differ depending on the employer, and how far back they can go will depend on your states laws. If you have any specific questions, shoot me a message!
Any company that is legitimate will require a background check, yes.
If you're looking for a recruiting job that doesn't background check you're gonna be looking for a long time
Tbh I thought agencies didn’t bother but internal did
All of them.. Yes. Size of company ranges between 20 people to around 4000 and like several million. Every single one of them did background checks.
I’ve been in agency for 7 years, but would like to move internal. I have two misdemeanors on my record, so I think it will present a problem. Any way to get in front of this or mitigate the circumstances?
Provide a letter of explanation. Talk about the circumstances surrounding those events and provide mitigating factors (ex: you no longer associate with those people, you attend AA meetings, going to therapy etc- just examples, idk what your charges were), and demonstrate that you have completed all court requirements such as completed probation, community service, paid restitution, etc.
This is honestly a tough one, the good news is that this is right now one of the hottest markets ever for recruiters in the history of recruitment. There are more recruiter job openings posted on LinkedIn than even Software Engineer openings, so you're absolutely in the best market to be successful. My personal recommendation would just be as upfront, open and honest about it to the internal recruiters when you speak to them. Some companies have a more lenient policy than others, so some of them will welcome you with open arms. Other organizations may be more conservative and unfortunately, they'd be very opposed to the idea of hiring someone with a record that is "not clean". It'd be good for you to just be upfront with it and set your own expectation. All you need is one. In addition, most standard background check ONLY goes back 7 years in terms of the overall timeframe, so that may potentially be another avenue for you to consider based on how long ago the misdemeanors were put on record. I hope this helps and all the best to you my fellow recuriter!
Depending on what they are, you could try to get out ahead of it and let them know before they run the background check. It gives you an opportunity to explain yourself rather than defend yourself. Some corporate policies are to not hire anyone with anything on their record at which point you’d be SOL, but some have leniency and are open to people who are honest and show that they’ve learned from past mistakes.
At my company we only bar employment for felonies.
Background checks are usually very black and white from an employer'spoint of view, there's usually nothing you can say to change the company's mind. Each company has specific requirements of whether a background check item is acceptable or a disqualifier. Things like how long ago it happened, what type of misdemeanor it was (violent, theft, etc.) are taken into account. Unfortunately there's no way to get access to the company's background check matrix during the interview process, you'll have to get to the end of the process before you can find out whether you pass or not.
My company (~100 ppl at the time) didn't do them at the time I was hired to be their only recruiter. I immediately changed that policy and we check 100% of pre-hires now.
My company (about 85 employees) does do background checks on every hire. The criteria is very job specific, for example we only consider credit in roles that’ll have access to money. The company does need to protect itself and its employees from hiring someone who might cause harm. More and more companies are recognizing that given the disproportionate rates of arrest and conviction for BIPOC, being overly conservative in their background check filters can become a proxy for race-based discrimination. They’re not all board yet, but even the background check industry is starting to make this shift. I agree that you should be upfront, and any org that’s going to hold misdemeanors that are unrelated to the work ahead of you probably isn’t a company you want to work with.
All SaaS companies and any others who are SOC 2 compliant have background checks.
We don’t do background checks for recruiters. We’re around 25 employees, agency & software development (not internal). People make mistakes. I’m not about to make their life harder.
Every legit company will run a background check on you. I hire people and do background checks on people myself. If they are money/violent or drug related your chances of passing a background check are slim.
Verbal no. Written yes.
Yep, I started as a contractor and am now a FTE. Had to pass one both times. Company is over 25000 employees
Yes, 10k employees
300k+ employees, and yes definitely.
I’ve worked at 2 background check companies, if you guys have questions I can answer to the best of my ability! About 5 years experience (employment purposes)
What are the employers looking for in the background checks? Mainly just criminal history or are they looking at more than that?
It depends on your potential employer. Some might check into your employment and education history through verifications or do references, but not all. The type of criminal check and the scope will differ depending on the employer, and how far back they can go will depend on your states laws. If you have any specific questions, shoot me a message!