Here's how to hunt for ethical employees

Employers in Singapore now view a candidate’s ethical behaviour as a non-negotiable when they recruit. And this desire for ethically sound candidates is apparent across all industries, although it is most obvious in the banking sector.

Employing ethically sound people can be achieved through a few simple strategies.

It starts with firstly identifying not only the technical skills you want in a candidate but also their integrity and standards of business conduct. Your job specification should also address ethical expectations and you can then use this information to draft competency or targeted selection questions for each point in their job specification and competence criteria.

We recommend behavioural-based interviewing in order to determine how a candidate has acted in a previous role, which can give an indication of their future performance.

Also, pay attention to any red flags during an interview, such as if a candidate is evasive, tries to control the interview or is argumentative. This provides an insight into their professional conduct.

Make cultural fit just as important as technical skills when you select candidates. This will ensure you recruit candidates who are the right fit with your way of doing business. And you can use your Employee Value Proposition (EVP) to define the company’s culture and ambitions.

Then use this information to ask the right questions of candidates to identify those with the right cultural fit for your organisation. For example, you could ask, ‘Tell us of a time when your own personal ethics did not align with those of a client. What did you do and how was the situation resolved?’

Today, some employers will also use social media sites like Facebook or LinkedIn to find out more about a candidate. When it comes to references, do not rely on written references; we have never seen a bad one! Instead call. Previous employers are a good source to help you determine a candidate’s overall credibility, integrity and performance in the workplace.

Many employers are also turning to psychometric assessment to explore a candidate’s ethical behaviour, preference and motivation. But it’s important to remember they are not a cure-all solution and a person’s track record remains one of the best predictors of their future performance, which is why face-to-face behavioural-based interviewing is still recommended.