PRO FILE : K E ITH ROSSER
MAKING THE WORLD OF WORK
SAFER Keith Rosser, director at Reed Screening, believes Right to Work checks and hiring must become more digital to increase the safety for workers and jobseekers. Sue Weekes reports
hen Recruiter caught up with Keith Rosser, group director of recruitment business, Reed, and director of Reed Screening, he had just finished speaking to MPs about the need for digital Right to Work checks to remain in place after the pandemic. Rosser played a decisive role in the campaign to get the digital checks extended until 1 September when, at the time of writing, the plan is for them to revert to physical checks. “Right to Work is going backwards,” he says. “We’ve got this new-found flexible or hybrid remote working model, which sees people in Cornwall working for an IT firm in Manchester, so it’s simply not practical to go back to physical checks.” Rosser’s overarching mission is to make the world of work safer for workers, jobseekers and employers. To achieve this, he contends hiring must become more digital. And there is also an economic imperative for this to happen. “We’re about to embark on a post-lockdown labour market, and the things we need to underpin seamless recruitment aren’t in place yet,” he says. Continuing, he says: “We need to be able to validate people’s credentials digitally whether that be via blockchain or some other method. We have an outdated way of supporting hiring
W
24 RECRUITER
and recruitment in the UK and we need to change that after Covid, which is why I’m pushing the digital hiring agenda.” Rosser’s own credentials to lead such campaigns as well as define and implement this digital future are top-class. Reed Screening, established in 2011, has grown into one of the UK’s largest screening organisations and runs as a separate business. It provides employment background checks on permanent and supply workers for a range of companies and sectors, as well as Reed clients. He is also responsible for Reed Group’s risk and corporate governance agenda, sitting on the audit and risk committee at board level. While these are the day jobs, he wears a number of different hats that help to further the cause, including being chair of the Better Hiring Institute (BHI). Set up as a partnership between the UK government and industry, the BHI aims to help modernise hiring, steer ethical hiring and develop digital pathways. Its advisory board includes the Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) and Cifas, the non-profit that aims to reduce and prevent fraud and financial crime in the UK, of which Rosser is also an advisory board member. He is also a council member of the European global pre-employment vetting trade association, the PBSA (Professional Background Screening Association), and chair of the
JUL/AUG 2021
Keith Rosser_Recruiter JULY AUGUST 2021_Recruiter.indd 24
15/07/2021 09:38
