[Exclusive Interview] This HR Tech Startup Creates Trust Score For Employees & Helps Organizations Save Billions Of Dollars

Recently, we interacted with Mr. Sudhakar Raja, Founder & CEO, TRST Score – An Employee Trust Score Platform that helps companies to reduce company costs and losses by hiring trusted employees.

Here are the interview highlights:

1. What is TRST score? Can you shed some light on its business?

TRST Score has coined the term “Human Risk Mitigation Platform” which looks at a 360-degree view of the risk of dealing with a person. India loses $100 Billion every year due to Human Risks. 30% of SMEs and MSMEs go bankrupt due to Human Risks.  

It has many use cases of TRST Score viz-a-viz when hiring employees or appointing an agent, when hiring gig workers, when banks and NBFCs lend money or when insuring customers etc. TRST Score can even be checked when you are renting a property or for co-living or when a bride or groom may want to tie the knot. The use cases are endless. 

Mr. Sudhakar Raja, Founder & CEO, TRST Score 

There are many risk silos that exist today. Take the case of some of the top IT organisations firing thousands of employees due to fake experience letters or for unethical behavior. Data sitting within the organization is a risk silo. TRST Score is democratizing data to be made available in seconds to make instant decisions. It also dissuades people from crossing the line. 

Designed around integrity as the core value, TRST Score is revolutionizing the workforce recruitment process or how banks and NBFCs view their customers. Leveraging AI (artificial intelligence) and NLP (natural language processing), it is the most reliable way to judge the character of an individual. 

2. What are the major issues that employers are facing while hiring talent and how is TRST Score addressing these issues?

Employers often encounter several challenges while hiring talent. Some of the most faced commonly faced issues are:

Accepting offer letters and not joining: 54% of candidates who accept job offer letters do not join. Candidates may choose to abandon you despite your marketing efforts to attract the most qualified applicants. It can be very frustrating for HR and managers when a candidate fails to show up on the day of hire. Not only is this unprofessional, but in some ways it is also unethical, as the company has invested time, effort, and money in the hiring process. At this point, it is crucial to notify a background check organisation like TRST Score’s human risk mitigation platform about these candidates.

The company loses Rs. 1 lac every time something like this happens besides lost cost of opportunity. Not only is it essential to select candidates, but also to ensure that they join the organisation. Before issuing an offer letter, employers can use TRST Score’s unique platform to determine if a candidate has accepted an offer from another company.

Virtual Interview or Identity Scams: During the hiring process, employers face the greatest risk of being victimized by fraud. Fake job applicants / ineligible candidates are able to conduct video interviews under a different identity by using a face overlay. Such activities must be reported on TRST Score.

Traditional BGVs do not help mitigate such situations. Employing TRST Score’s Automated Risk Services (Instant Checks) to verify a candidate’s identity during the interview or pre-interview stages is a good way to prevent such occurrences.

Fake experience letters or Questionable exit from previous company: Many a times candidates inflate their experience to get a better salary or hide their experience to hide the wrong doings they committed in their employment. This includes scenarios of fraud, absconding, sexual harassment charges etc. 

TRST Score acts like bureau of sorts to track such behavior and thus bring to light issues. Even one instance of wrong hire can cost the company lakhs or crores. Just like there is a “credit behavior”, there is a also a “trust behavior” which will show a pattern. 

The challenge of hiring agents, part time workers or gig workers etc: An agent of an insurance company as an example can do as much or even more harm to the company than even an employee. A gig worker of a platform can cause as much harm as an employee can, as can be seen in several instances. It is very difficult to check such individuals as many a times there is no work history recorded or one can hide it very easily. 

TRST Score can help companies mitigate such risks by acting like a bureau and also helping people in many  cases so that such workforce can be brought into the formal economy. 

Recruitment Agency Commission Fraud: Typically, companies pay 8.33% of a candidate’s annual CTC as commission to the Recruiter. This comes with a three-month replacement guarantee if the candidate leaves within this time frame. After three months, the recruitment agencies continue to place candidates with various companies and collect commissions. Such recruitment agencies should be reported on TRST Score. TRST Score has also developed a “Rating System” for businesses such as recruiters, surveyors, and valuers, among others. Today, we rate delivery agents, for which we pay anything between Rs. 20 and Rs. 50, but these large contractors, to whom companies pay lakhs, are not rated. 

How can employers avoid being duped during the employment process using tech and how is AI playing a role here?

Employers can mitigate the risk of being deceived during the hiring process by utilising technology like TRST Score. Companies can use tools like the Automated Risk Services offered by TRST Score to do checks which will reduce the risks many folds. TRST Score allows reporting issues and democratizes such data as it becomes available in seconds and at will. AI tools can analyse such behavior and start giving predictive analysis. For example, is there a correlation between accepting multiple offers and not joining and performance, attrition predictions, employee satisfaction preditions etc.  

AI-powered tools can examine resumes for inconsistencies, automate background checks, scour social media profiles for red flags, and evaluate candidates’ behaviour and interview responses. AI can also provide organisations with the capability to analyse large data sets resulting from the digitization of identity records, criminal records, and other records in relation to background checks and identification fraud in the recruitment process. Intelligent algorithms are now able to decipher data, select relevant data, conduct rapid analysis, and provide valuable insights basis the same. 

What does the future of HR Tech in India look like?

According to a recent report by IMARC Group, the Indian HR Tech market will reach $1,640 million by 2028, increasing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.5% between 2023 and 2028. HR Tech is anticipated to transform various facets of the employee lifecycle as a result of the increasing adoption of digital technologies and the emphasis on automation and analytics. SAAS-based tools and advanced technologies such as AI and ML have become more accessible and cost-effective with the advent of high-speed internet and cloud technology. This has led to the HR Tech industry becoming one of the most heavily invested sectors, by both large corporations and startups. Mobile-friendly solutions and cloud-based platforms will provide convenience and accessibility to India’s mobile-first population. The emphasis on employee experience will motivate the creation of personalised self-service portals and chatbots powered by artificial intelligence and with integrated HR ecosystems that utilise data analytics, will allow organisations to gain insights into workforce trends and improve HR operations overall.

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