Hiring is a gamble. Vetting takes the bet off the table.
A wrong hire is expensive, and résumés have never been easier to fake. So we don’t hand you a stack of CVs and wish you luck — every candidate runs the Zedtreeo 6-Stage Standard — a six-stage gauntlet. Its intake runs in public: watch the funnel live.
Only about one in twelve candidates who enter our process is placed. Eleven are cut before they reach your shortlist.
average cost to replace a single employee
SHRM, 2026
salary — the fully-loaded cost of a bad hire
of employers admit to making a wrong hire
Hiring industry data, 2026
of applicants get an offer — ~200 screened per hire
Gem 2026 Recruiting Benchmarks
of an owner's week is spent fixing poor performers
SMB hiring data, 2026
Independent recruiting research (SHRM, LinkedIn, Gem 2026). This is the downside our vetting exists to eliminate.
Inside the 6-Stage Standard
Every placement passes through all six. Most candidates don’t — here’s what gets someone cut at each stage.
This is the process referred to elsewhere on the site as AI-Ready Screening — stage 04 is the AI-tool fluency check, and it is what makes an AI-Augmented Team different from a conventional remote hire.
Sourcing
Role-specific sourcing from India's deep talent pool — matched to your scope, stack, and seniority.
Cut here: Generic 'available now' profiles that don't match the actual role.
Screening & verification
Background and history checked; claims verified against reality.
Cut here: AI-inflated résumés where the polished CV doesn't survive a real check.
Skills / technical assessment
A practical, role-specific test of the actual work — bookkeeping, code, drafting, RCM, support.
Cut here: Candidates who interview well but can't do the job on a real task.
AI-tool fluency
Can they wield the tools your role runs on? The AI-era screen most agencies still skip.
Cut here: People who can do the manual version but can't operate the modern stack.
Communication & English
Both async (clear writing, documentation) and real-time — the failure mode behind 60% of offshore breakdowns.
Cut here: Strong technical skills undermined by unclear communication.
Final review & fit
A senior review of work quality, reliability signals, and fit before anyone reaches your shortlist.
Cut here: Anyone the senior reviewer wouldn't personally stake their name on.
Result: only ~1 in 12 candidates is placed.
Typical “pre-vetted” vs. ours
| Typical provider | Zedtreeo | |
|---|---|---|
| Résumé verification | Trusts the CV | Verifies against AI-inflation reality |
| Skills test | Interview only | Practical, role-specific work sample |
| AI-tool fluency | Not checked | Dedicated screening stage |
| Communication | Assumed | Async + real-time assessment |
| Pass rate | Most applicants forwarded | ~1 in 12 placed |
| Your safety net | You find out after hiring | 5-day trial + replacement guarantee |
The fake-remote-worker problem
Hiring teams everywhere are seeing the same thing: AI-polished résumés, coached interviews, and people who aren’t who they claim to be. We verify identity against government-issued ID and meet candidates in person — so identity never has to hide behind a screen.
Met in person, not just on camera
Candidates are interviewed in person — not only through a screen. Stages 03 and 05 put a human in front of the actual work and the actual person: practical tests and live communication, not async take-homes someone else can complete.
Government ID, verified
Identity is confirmed against government-issued ID during Stage 02 — alongside background and work-history checks. The claims on the CV have to survive a real check before anyone reaches your inbox.
The funnel runs in public
Our candidate intake and AI pre-screen run in the open at careers.zedtreeo.com — you can watch the top of the funnel yourself, not just take our word for the process.
You meet them before, and work with them after
You interview the actual candidate, then the same named specialist works inside your tools daily under your direction. Continuity is the identity check no impostor survives.
You still don’t have to take our word for it
5-day risk-free trial
Work with the candidate before you commit. Not a fit? You pay nothing.
Replacement guarantee
If it isn't working, we replace — fast. No layoff, no backfill cycle.
Dedicated, not rotating
One vetted person who learns your business — not a shared pool.
Questions
What does '1 in 12' actually mean?+
Roughly eleven of every twelve candidates who enter our process are screened out before they ever reach your shortlist. It's the single honest measure of how selective the vetting is.
How do you handle fake / AI-generated résumés?+
We assume the résumé can't be trusted. Verification and a practical, role-specific skills test on the real work are dedicated stages — a polished CV doesn't get anyone through.
How do I know the person I interview is the person who does the work?+
Identity is verified against government-issued ID, and candidates are interviewed in person — not only through a screen. From there it's the same named specialist throughout: you interview them directly before any commitment, and that same dedicated person works inside your tools every day, managed by you. Any substitution would be visible immediately, and the 5-day risk-free trial plus a replacement guarantee with no time limit back it up.
Do I still get to judge for myself?+
Yes. The vetting earns the shortlist; the 5-day risk-free trial is how you verify the person on your real work before committing a dollar.
Meet the 1 in 12
Tell us the role — we’ll send a vetted shortlist within 48 hours, with a 5-day risk-free trial.