2 mins readThis Resume Screening Checklist is for HR teams, hiring managers and recruiters. It provides practical steps to organise CV review, reduce compliance and operational risk and improve consistency across hiring decisions.
The checklist includes:
Compliance and Policy
- Verify right to work and required legal authorisations
- Confirm compliance with equal opportunity and diversity policies
- Identify role specific regulatory or certification requirements
- Apply consistent screening criteria to all candidates
- Record objective reasons for rejection to support auditability
Planning and Preparation
- Clarify essential and desirable criteria from the job description
- Set minimum qualifications and experience thresholds
- Agree screening timeline and shortlist size with the hiring manager
- Prepare a standardised scorecard or checklist for reviewers
- Define documentation requirements for shortlisted candidates
Execution and Process
- Scan CVs for core skills, achievements and role relevance
- Check employment dates and account for unexplained gaps
- Verify role titles and career progression for consistency
- Identify transferable skills and measurable accomplishments
- Flag inconsistencies or possible falsifications for investigation
- Apply the scorecard consistently to each application
Documentation and Records
- Log candidate details, screening scores and outcome codes
- Attach concise notes explaining scoring decisions
- Store CVs and screening records securely and accessibly
- Maintain an audit trail for compliance and reporting
- Retain records in line with data retention policies
Review and Follow Up
- Shortlist candidates who meet the threshold and notify the hiring manager
- Schedule screening calls or interviews for shortlisted applicants
- Provide timely, documented feedback to rejected candidates where required
- Update candidate status in tracking records or systems
- Review screening metrics and refine criteria based on outcomes