MANILA, Philippines--(BUSINESS WIRE)--First Advantage, a Symphony Technology Group company and the leading global provider of background screening analytics and identity solutions, today released a whitepaper giving an insight into the hiring trends in the Philippines, one of fastest growing economies in the Asia Pacific region.
Over the last decade, the Philippines has emerged as an important market for most global companies due to the availability of a sizeable workforce that is young, educated and English speaking. These three key factors have given the Philippines a competitive advantage over Vietnam, Thailand and even India, one of the most preferred countries for outsourcing business. The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India revealed that in 2013, India lost over 50 percent of its Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry— worth an estimated US$25billion —to foreign competitors. This shift in preference has led to a surge in job opportunities and demand for an English-speaking workforce in the Philippines.
The availability of jobs has also given rise to a serious problem pertaining to discrepancies in education certifications that most employers come across on a regular basis. Brimming with excellent opportunities and a better lifestyle, the Philippines has also become a favoured destination for immigrants, adding on to the complexity of ensuring the backgrounds of job candidates are thoroughly screened.
Global companies residing in the Philippines have also introduced best practices for background screening to the country. Background screening is now an integral part of the hiring process in most companies in the Philippines. According to the study done by First Advantage, there is a steady rise in employment discrepancies in the Philippines - from 12.8 percent in 2010 to 15.4 percent, with the rise of degree mills adding to the complexity of the candidate selection process. According to the same study, discrepancies related to employment topped the list at 64.9 percent followed by education at 18.0 percent, database at 15.9 percent and criminal at 0.66 percent.
The most common types of background screening in the Philippines includes employment, education and address checks. As companies seek to verify the credentials of the employees, it is advisable for them to collaborate with a credible background screening service provider that leverages advanced technologies to help employers optimize their recruitment programme and also unwarranted situations that could cost the company dearly.
“First Advantage has worked with thousands of Multinational Corporations in the Philippines market and across Asia for more than 15 years. We conduct two million background checks in the Asia Pacific region a year of which the Philippines is one of the fastest growing markets. This whitepaper summarizes our best practices and observations gathered through years of background screening. We hope to help our clients and employers better understand the risks and rewards of hiring in the dynamic Philippines labour market,” said Jim Heeney, Head of Sales, South Asia Pacific for First Advantage.
Sign up for a webinar to hear the details of the white paper! Click on this link to find out more.
For a complimentary copy of the whitepaper “The Risks and Rewards of Hiring in the Philippines," please contact Wei Chong at Weichong.Chin@fadv.com.
About First Advantage
First Advantage provides comprehensive background 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 Atlanta, Ga., First Advantage has offices throughout North America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. More information about First Advantage can be accessed at www.fadv.com.