How Yoti and Sterling Automated Employment Screening Checks

Creating environments of safety and trust are at the centre of Sterling’s mission. Sterling relies on rigorously tested processes, proven best practices, unparalleled knowledge of the highly regulated and complex world of background screening and identity, and an unwavering commitment to keep companies and their workforces safe.

Challenge

Sterling believes that every background check should start with identity verification. We made a decision in 2019 to make identity a strategic pillar and deliver state-of-the-art identity verification to clients – specifically using digital identity approaches.

This was accelerated further due to the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020; employers still needed to complete background and right to work checks throughout lockdown, but physical identity options often proved infeasible. Many governments around the world needed to react quickly and introduce digital options to support businesses.

In April 2022, the UK government updated legislation to enable safe hiring during the pandemic. Under new legislation, right to work and criminal record checks could be completed digitally using an Identity Service Provider (IDSP).

Yoti became the first certified IDSP under the UK Digital Identity & Attributes Trust Framework, to undertake certified right to work and DBS (Disclosure & Barring) checks. The change in legislation represents a significant shift in policy toward digital identity as a valid form of proof of identity, greatly improving compliance processes in our digital world.

Solution

With the global pandemic and introduction of trust frameworks, Sterling had an opportunity to rapidly evolve its UK right to work offering, adding a digital identity solution that could be delivered globally. Sterling looked to revolutionise the hiring and screening process using the sharing of pre-verified candidate information. In particular, they sought to bring some of the benefits of Yoti’s reusable Digital ID app to a secure web-based experience.

Sterling partnered with Yoti in 2022 to streamline background checks and expand their digital identity solutions. This collaboration brings together Sterling’s 45+ years of expertise in background screening with Yoti’s innovative identity verification technology. The global partnership expands Sterling’s digital identity capabilities in EMEA and APAC globally (excluding US), and accelerates their vision to create privacy-centric, portable identities for candidates.

Results

In 2023, Sterling launched the first iteration of its partnership with Yoti, leveraging digital identity verification for UK right to work and DBS criminal record checks. This helped to bring a much-improved digital identity option to clients, accelerating the hiring process whilst helping employers create environments of trust and safety for their most important resource – people.

The Sterling and Yoti partnership is:

• Enabling an exclusive digital verification workflow to be integrated directly into the hiring process. This allows employers to take an identity-first approach where a candidate’s identity is verified before completing other background checks and before being hired. This ensures that the correct individual is being assessed and presented as a candidate.
• Strengthening pre-employment checks for companies worldwide.
• Reducing the need to use physical documents, creating a simplified hiring and onboarding experience for both employer and candidate.
• Introducing secure reusable digital identities for candidates that can be shared with businesses.

This partnership is providing Sterling’s clients with an exclusive, fully-integrated digital identity solution that streamlines and simplifies identity verification in hiring processes, while improving the accuracy of background checks. Furthermore, candidates who verify their identity through Sterling and Yoti will be able to seamlessly create a secure, reusable digital identity. This allows them to verify their identity once and then share their details with businesses in seconds, making the verification process more streamlined and frictionless for employers and candidates. Individuals will be able to use their digital identity for future job applications and any other process requiring identity verification.

Sterling and Yoti are offering companies the most comprehensive, secure, and efficient employment checks, featuring:

• Higher completion rates: Introducing digital identity verification with real-time guidance for users has ensured that 25% more candidates complete the identity verification process.
• Quicker, more efficient checks: Since implementing Yoti’s digital identity at the beginning of the background screening process, completion times are now four times faster, compared with the previous identity verification solution.
• Identity-first approach: Over a third (35%) of global employers are now embracing an identity-first approach as standard for all new employee screening programs.