To make applicant screening easier, employers should develop a standardized employment questionnaire. This will ensure that all applicants are asked the same questions and will provide employers with some categories for comparison.

A standardized application form is the first stage of applicant screening. By announcing that the firm plans to conduct drug screening and employment criminal background checks, employers can keep candidates who have something to hide away. Using an application can provide an employer with legal protection in the hiring process.

Employers need to conduct the job screening process carefully. They need to ensure that all the information that they seek as well as the information that they use in the hiring process are compliant with the law.

Job employers should be careful while reviewing resumes. This is one of the most preliminary stages of applicant screening. Employers compare the information contained in the resume with information obtained through a background check.

The resume also helps in the job screening process as it contains the names and numbers of references. Employers should call on the references to get a better understanding of the applicant.

However, while reviewing a resume as part of the employment screening process, employers need to be careful about the information that they use to hire the candidate. An individual's political affiliations, religious affiliation or race cannot be considered while awarding an individual a job. This information even if contained in a resume cannot be used while taking a decision about the candidate.

Another advantage to a standardized application form is that it provides a uniform platform for employment screening. A standardized application makes it easier to spot unexplained gaps in employment. That is a critical part of exercising due diligence.

A standardized application form also helps applicant screening because it allows employers to get written consent from all applicants for a employee background check and drug screening.

The words and language of the standardized application form needs to be precise for it to be effective in applicant screening. In addition, the questions asked should conform to law. For example, even if a standardized application form asks candidates for criminal history records it should state that such a record is not an immediate disqualification.

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