Harrods Improves Efficiency and Elevates Candidate Experience with First Advantage

Executive Summary

Harrods partnered with First Advantage to modernise its background screening programme and create a hiring experience aligned to its brand values and people strategy. By integrating screening into Workday and simplifying the candidate journey, Harrods reduced operational complexity, improved recruiter efficiency, strengthened compliance, and delivered a more seamless experience for prospective employees.

Customer

• Harrods is one of the world’s most iconic luxury retailers, employing colleagues across retail, hospitality, corporate, distribution, and specialist business functions.
• Harrods is committed to delivering exceptional experiences for both customers and employees and places significant importance on building an inclusive colleague community.

Business Challenge

• Harrods wanted to modernise its background screening programme and reduce reliance on manual processes through automation.
• The organisation sought to improve both recruiter and candidate experiences throughout the hiring journey.
• Harrods wanted greater visibility and efficiency and felt they were lacking a single source of truth for recruitment activities.
• The organisation wanted even more confidence that they were meeting compliance requirements, strengthening privacy, and sharpening governance standards.
• The business required a scalable solution that could support hiring across multiple departments and workforce populations.

Solution

• First Advantage implemented a Workday-integrated, automated screening solution to streamline recruitment workflows and improve visibility throughout the screening process.
• A branded, mobile-friendly candidate experience was introduced to simplify screening and enhance engagement.
• Standardised screening processes helped strengthen governance, consistency, and compliance across the organization.
• First Advantage provided dedicated implementation and ongoing customer success support to ensure long-term programme success.

Results

• Reduced manual administration and streamlined hiring workflows for Harrods’ HR and Talent Acquisition teams.
• Centralised and improved visibility of candidate screening activity directly within Workday, leveraging First Advantage’s Platinum Partner benefits.
• Created a more seamless and professional candidate experience aligned with the Harrods brand.
• Strengthened compliance and governance through a more consistent screening programme.
• Established a scalable framework capable of supporting future hiring growth across the business.
• Uncovered opportunities to adopt automated technologies for digital right to work and employment references.

Business Impact

• Talent Acquisition teams are now enabled to spend less time on administration and more time engaging and onboarding talent.
• First Advantage supported Harrods’ goal of delivering an exceptional experience from the very beginning of the employee journey.
• Helped ensure prospective employees experienced the professionalism, quality, and attention to detail associated with the Harrods brand.
• Provided a more connected and efficient hiring process aligned with Harrods’ people strategy and future growth ambitions.

Why First Advantage Made the Difference

• Strategic partnership approach rather than a transactional screening relationship.
• Deep integration expertise with Workday.
• Focus on candidate experience, operational efficiency, and compliance.
• Dedicated customer success and programme optimization support.

Why First Advantage?

First Advantage helps education institutions simplify domestic and international background screening with centralized workflows, country-specific expertise, and digital identity solutions that improve efficiency while supporting compliance and workforce trust.

With coverage in more than 200 countries and territories and 100+ ATS and HCM integrations, we support faster, candidate-friendly hiring across the entire workforce lifecycle.

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Readers of this content should contact their own legal advisors concerning their particular circumstances. No reader, or user of this content, should act or refrain from acting on the basis of information in this content.  Only your individual attorney or legal advisor can provide assurances that the information contained herein – and your interpretation of it – is applicable or appropriate to your particular situation.  Use of, and access to, this content does not create an attorney-client relationship between the reader or user of this presentation and First Advantage.