Geos: Segment candidates based on location

This article will help you:

• Segment your candidates and background checks by geography-based location
• Segment your Checkr users (such as requesters or adjudicators) into geography-based locations
• Determine what to do if a candidate’s home and job location are different
• Get deeper insights into key metrics at the market or geographic level

This article is for the following user roles: admin

The Geo feature allows you to segment candidates based on the city or market where they will be working. Using Geos is a powerful way for Checkr to support your compliance with state and local laws, and to make your Program more efficient. See our Checkr Check-In video for a basic overview of Geos:

Here’s how Geos support efficiency:

• If you have recruiters who are responsible for certain regions, you can use Geos to limit the candidates they see in the system to just those regions. They will also receive email notifications for candidates in only those Geos.
• When looking at analytics, you can segment information like Turnaround Time, Adverse Action, or Exceptions by Geo.

Here’s how Geos support your compliance efforts:

• Fair hiring laws vary from region to region, so you’ll want to make sure that you’re applying the right rules based on both the candidate’s home and work location.
• If you have adjudicators in multiple regions, those adjudicators are likely more familiar with local fair hiring laws and what is considerable. Geos help you pair the right adjudicators with the right candidates.
• Job location can determine how you handle disclosures and adverse action procedures, so Geos help you manage job location properly.

Set up Geos

To add a new Geo, go to Screenings Settings > Geos.

Note: We recommend doing this based on your hiring/office locations when you first set up your Checkr account. Then create a new Geo each time you open a new location.

1. Enter the name of the Geo. This could be the name of the city/metro area, or another label like “Corporate Office.”
2. Select a state from the dropdown.
   
   Note: You can have multiple Geos per state. For example, in California, you may have different Geos for Los Angeles and San Francisco. Selecting the state and city ensures that Checkr can apply the correct compliance filters.
   
   
3. Optional - Select a city. This is especially important if you have multiple hiring locations within a state. Also, some cities (such as Los Angeles, New York, and Philadelphia) have their own compliance rules.
4. Click Add.
   
   
   
5. Optional - Click Require geos for all new candidates (in the Settings section) to require your recruiters to assign a geo when inviting new candidates.

Assign Users to Geos

Once your Geos are set up, you can assign different users to different Geos. For example, if you have recruiters who only hire candidates in a certain location, you can add them to that Geo.  

To assign users to certain Geos, go to Account Settings > Users. Click Edit Geos next to the name of the users you want to assign, then choose the Geos that you want to subscribe them to. Now they will only be able to see reports for users in those Geos.

Users will only receive notifications and have access to reports in their Geo. This allows you to increase your Program’s accuracy and reduce room for error.

Assign Candidates to Geos

Once your Geos are set up, you will have the option to apply those Geos to candidates. This should be based on your candidates’ work location, which will allow Checkr to apply the proper compliance filters based on the combination of their address and job location.

To apply a Geo to a candidate, select that Geo when you are inviting the candidate.

Combine Programs and Geos

Programs and Geos are both powerful features that can be used in tandem. Geos should be used for work location and Programs should be used for position type or client (if you’re a Staffing/BPO company). Checkr can set up your Programs, and you can set up your Geos. Contact clients@checkr.com if you need help setting these up.

How would you use Geos and Programs together? As an example, if you hire certain positions in certain locations (e.g. Customer Service Representatives in Palm Beach and Corporate Officers inTrenton) you can combine Programs and Geos to provide more granular targeting for each set of candidates.  

Or if you’re a staffing agency with a client who recruits warehouse workers in Dallas, Atlanta, and Philadelphia; and another client who recruits data analysts in Boston, Philadelphia, and New York, you can use a combination of Geos (for the locations) and Programs (for the client/position type).

Pairing Geos and Programs has two benefits:

• More specific segments for candidates:
• You could segment finance positions (Program) in your Los Angeles office (Geo), which may have different requirements for packages and compliance.
• An on-demand transportation network company (TNC) may create Programs for drivers vs. FTEs, then segment those by each location (Geo) where it does business.
• A staffing agency may create a segment for positions hired for SampleCo (Program) in Atlanta (Geo), and a different segment for positions hired for GeneriCorp (Program) in Jacksonville (Geo).
• A BPO firm could create a segment for each client it supports (Program), by call center site (Geo)
• Better user management: By combining Geos and Programs, you have deeper control over user permissions. For example, you may want a recruiter (who may have a requester role in Checkr) only to initiate background checks and manage candidates in a certain role and location.

By adding Geos to Programs, you can restrict a certain Program to be run in those Geos. This will give your recruiters/requesters a more focused set of packages to offer to their candidates, rather than seeing all available ones. It will also give you better insight in your analytics.

Filter analytics by Geos

In the Analytics section of the Dashboard, you will see reporting on Turnaround Time, Adverse Action, Positive Adjudication, Exceptions, and more. Using Geos allows you to filter these reports by your different Geos and take a more data-driven approach to your hiring process. For instance, you can more easily see which Geos have longer turnaround times, or which Geos are more likely to initiate Adverse Actions.

For example, by using Programs and Geos to filter analytics, you could answer questions such as:

• What is the turnaround time for reports being generated for Client X in the New York metro?
• What are the top offense categories being adverse actioned in our corporate Program in the Huntsville metro?

To filter reports, click Filters to drop down the available filters. Then select Geos and insert the Geos you want to use as your filter.

Use job location for Geos, not home location

We recommend using job location for your Geos. Job location means the candidate’s primary place of employment. Because candidates may reside in a different state than where they work, job location Geos better support your compliance with state consumer reporting and hiring laws.   

Because these laws may be applied to either to both the state of employment and state of residence, Checkr needs to know both in order to support your compliance.

For example, New York typically has more stringent reporting requirements than Connecticut and will report less, so if you have a candidate with a home address in Connecticut but who will work in New York, Checkr can use New York’s compliance requirements if you select it as the Geo. 

Checkr will already have the candidate’s home address as part of the candidate flow, either because the candidate completed Checkr’s hosted flow or because you imported the ZIP code using the API. With that information, we can apply the proper compliance filters based on their home address. Then Geos will supply the job location.

Note: If you have another use for Geos besides job location, or simply don’t want to use them at all, we recommend you set up a Default Hiring Location for your account. Default hiring location further supports your compliance by ensuring that proper consent disclosures are presented to your applicants and proper adverse action procedures are followed. Contact clients@checkr.com if you’d like to set one up or require a custom solution to hiring locations.

What's the difference between Geos and Programs?

Use the chart below to reference the differences between Programs and Geos as business tools.

Reminder: What do Geos do?

• Segments candidates by their work location
• Assigns your Checkr users to see candidates & receive email notifications in a specific Geo

Reminder: What do Programs do?

• Segments candidates by their position type or group (by department, by client, etc.)
• Groups your screening packages so they are easier to manage