Workplaces are transforming at a fast pace. Emerging technologies like AI (artificial intelligence), ML (machine learning), big data, and blockchain are turning physical workspaces into digital ones. The COVID pandemic has already given a further boost to this process. Currently, employers are hiring globally as work from anywhere gathers pace. However, as the workplace transformation progresses rapidly, it raises the risk of fraudulent activities. Given that credential of candidates plays a critical role in making the hiring process successful, enterprises globally are looking at ways of vetting the entire process. Similarly, genuine professionals are trying to cross check the veracity of claims made by employers before entering into a job contract.
Ironically, digitalisation of both these processes remains at a low level.This problem further aggravates in a huge country like India with its 1.4 billion population. With more than 40% of India’s population below 25 years, the country has a working class population of 540 million. Every year, around 6.5 million students graduate from colleges. No wonder, such vastness creates its own set of problems with instances of job scams, fraud candidates, and imposters becoming frequent. During the pandemic years, such a trend has touched menacing proportions. Against this backdrop, digital resumes with the help of blockchain technology can mitigate such risks to a great extent. In a country like India, its relevance is beyond discussions.
Leveraging blockchain technology for secure & efficient HR recruitment:
HR (human resources) technology has evolved a lot over the years with increasing automation playing a bigger role. The advent of ChatGPT kind of generative AI tools has added a new dimension to this space. Despite such transformation, most of the data about candidates and professionals is stored in an unorganised manner. These remain paper-based or digital-based records without any central access system. Moreover, there is no way to track the veracity of the credentials of candidates, nor any way to check the tampering. In this context, blockchain technology can be very useful for its unique features. A blockchain is a form of decentralised ledger technology that enables the secure storage and transmission of data. Here, each transaction is recorded across each node on the network. Therefore, no record can be changed without altering subsequent blocks in the chain. This makes the whole system tamper-proof. In the HR space, this feature will help in checking unintended changes to the resume. Secondly, blockchain creates a depository of digital resumes with the entire history of academic and professional history stored in one place. Such depository can be shared by several employers in the same field for checking the veracity of candidates for higher education or employment. Moreover, decentralisation of data recording provides security and stability to the information stored. As educational institutions and corporates have seen cybersecurity attacks mounted by nefarious elements on a regular frequency, blockchain-powered solutions can provide much-needed security and privacy.
Digital resume leveraging blockchain:
Globally, corporates are in pursuit of hiring the right talent for manning operations. Post globalisation, India has emerged as a talent hub for the world. The technology industry alone has employed more than 5.4 million people with most Fortune 500 companies having their presence in the country. The country has also emerged as the third-largest startup ecosystem in the world. As China Plus One plays out across the world, India is also seeing traction in the manufacturing sector. With the growth of the Indian economy, employment opportunities are also on the rise. It requires the right selection of talent for ensuring efficiency. In this context, blockchain technology can be a great enabler.
Making selection process better & faster:
During 2020-22 period, most businesses have opted for an online recruitment process. This was accompanied by scams and frauds as many potential candidates used fake resumes and experience letters to get jobs. These instances were caught during the background check process. Many companies including Accenture, Infosys, Cognizant had laid off staffers owing to fraudulent activities. Such concerns can be easily addressed by building digital resumes of candidates, leveraging blockchain technology. With the use of this technology, individuals and organisations can generate a secure and unalterable digital record of their academic achievements, professional experience, and competencies. This will make the process easier for employers to verify the authenticity of a candidate’s qualifications. Such records will do away with the manual process of background checking as all the databases will be available in one place. Moreover, many processes can be automated, leading to a lot of cost savings for organisations and enterprises. For instance, organisations are currently employing a team of HR professionals for conducting recruitment and taking the help of external agencies for a background check.
Blockchain will not only enable organisations to hire effectively, it will also empower individuals in getting the right job. Given the huge working population, job scams in India are very frequent. Recently, a massive job fraud duping 50,000 candidates was unearthed by Odisha police. Such scams can be thwarted to a large extent if blockchain-powered solutions are used to create digital profiles of organisations.
Boosting jobs:
Blockchain can not only be used in the white-collar job space. Even blue-collar jobs will get a leg up from this technology. India has seen an increasing formalisation of blue-collar jobs by multiple ecommerce and related startups. Even the government is trying to promote skill-based job recruitment to boost employment. Blockchain technology can be leveraged to create digital resumes of skilled workers for employment in various sectors. Such a common depository of resumes can be accessed by several employers and individuals for various services. Digital records of skilled individuals will increase job opportunities in the blue-collar job space.
Right technology partner:
Many global technology firms have started deploying blockchain technology in the human resources space. Last year, an online resume-validating network run by Velocity Network Foundation garnered support from than a dozen board members from companies including Aon, Oracle, SAP, UKG, and ZipRecruiter to reduce the time and cost of vetting job candidates. Many blockchain-focussed specialised firms in India such as Dhiway Networks have come up with solutions that can help enterprises to create digital resumes of candidates. India houses the largest number of young people in the world, which is likely to continue for the next three decades. Therefore, it becomes important for organisations to collaborate with the right technology partner for leveraging blockchain technology to the fullest. This can not only save cost but also improve return on investment by hiring the right talent.
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