A marketplace with a difference, Authblue makes verifying blue-collar employees easy, fast
DIPP-registered Authblue is an online marketplace that connects individuals and businesses with companies that conduct background verification of blue-collar workers.
From drivers and delivery personnel to domestic help and cooks - there is ever increasing demand for blue-collar workers. Moreover, hiring is mostly ad-hoc, and most of it is through word-of-mouth and driven by who can join work the earliest.
This, however, may not be the safest way to find an employee. According to a report published by NCRB (National Crimes Records Bureau), Ministry of Home Affairs, in 2016, the number of crimes in residential complexes and homes were reportedly on the rise due to lack of proper authentication of domestic help.
“This isn’t just restricted to homes. With the growing gig economy, even businesses believe there is a need for verification,” says Sujeet Buddiga, Co-founder of Authblue.
To help people verify blue-, and even white-collar workers, Authblue was set up in Hyderabad in 2018. Founded by 28-year-old Sujeet Buddiga and 33-year-old Saurabh Tiwari, the DIPP-recognised startup’s platform helps connect businesses and individuals with companies that conduct verifications. A team of five, the company has clients from across the country registered on its platform.
Working the marketplace model
There are several companies that offer background verification like OnGrid, a 2016 Tech30 company, InstaVeritas and SecUR credentials, and Authblue essentially works as a marketplace for these companies.
Sujeet explains that while companies use the best available technology and resources to verify workers, the end consumer is clueless on which one to use based on their equirements. The idea of Authblue came to Sujeet and Saurabh when they were working at Hyderabad’s Salesforce office.
“We started operations in Hyderabad as we launched our online platform in July 2018. In a short span of five months, we have served more than 20 businesses, partnered with more than 10 gated communities and have close to 1,000 B2C signups. We have processed more than 3,000 different checks so far,” says Sujeet.
How does it work?
A user has to feed in their requirements on the platform, based on which they get a choice of different verification firms. The user can then compare and choose from the offerings.
The platform hosts companies offering over 10 different types of verification, which cater to the needs of most businesses and individuals. Based on the needs, one can create a profile, and also invite clients or verification firms to share their profiles.
“As the list loads up, we show every detail of the company and client and the profiles - like ratings, pricing, refunds, compliances, profiles and reviews. So everything is available online,” explains Saurabh. The individual or business can verify all the order activity and get notified on the same.
Numbers and future
Authblue says it has currently tied up with JantaKhoj, Info Quest, Dcode and Icrest.
“We make money from commission on such verifications. The prices depend on the type of checks opted. We have checks starting from as low as Rs 5 for instant verifications to a few hundreds for address, education and court records,” says Sujeet.
Depending on the profile and the service provider, Authblue charges Rs 8 to Rs 15 per profile.
For example, for drivers, the cost of verification is around Rs 600 (including identity, address, court record and driving licence verifications). For security guards, it is Rs 150 for identity and criminal verification (court record check). For white-collar professionals, the prices range from Rs 1,000 to Rs 10,000 as it involves verifying multiple educational certificates from universities and previous work experience.
Authblue’s charges are determined based on these profiles. The company says it has raised an undisclosed seed funding led by a group of undisclosed investors.
While working on the marketplace, Authblue is also looking to build on the supply, they are planning to get into training and hiring of the blue-collar workforce as well.
“We aim to build streamlined processes and facilitate more organised jobs in the blue collar sector so that people can make an informed choice,” says Sujeet.