Have you considered adding background checks – also known as pre-employment screenings – to your organization or business’s hiring process?
While some might see it as an unnecessary business expense, it’s actually a vital step to take to ensure you choose the right candidates. After all, your company is only as good as the people that work there.
A background check can help you determine that the candidate’s education and certifications are as they appear on a resume. Background checks can also help ensure that your team is consistently safe and productive.
Here is a list of five smart reasons that employers should never a pre-employment background check.
1. Protect Your Brand
We’ll say this again so that it sinks in – your company will only be as good as the people that represent it. If you make a hiring mistake and ultimately have to let the employee go, will that person turn around and flame your brand?
In today’s age, it’s almost too easy for a disgruntled former employee to unfairly smear a business or brand on social media and the internet. A background check that keeps you from hiring the wrong person can help prevent this from becoming a costly PR nightmare.
2. Save Money
Although there will be an upfront cost in order to perform pre-employment screening, consider the ways it’s a worthwhile investment.
The hiring process itself requires substantial money, energy, and time. The less often you need to go through the process of advertising an opening, interviewing, onboarding, and training a new hire the better.
By doing a background check before you make hiring decisions, you help avoid the costly mistake of hiring the wrong person for the job and then needing to turn around and start the rehire process over.
3. Protect Your Customers’ Info
A complete background check will look at a candidate’s criminal history. This helps catch past issues (including fraud, forgery, or theft) that might raise a red flag as to how a person will behave on the job.
This type of criminal screening is especially important if the employee will be handling sensitive personal or financial information provided to you by your customers or clients. Don’t risk the damage it could do to your company’s reputation if that information were to fall into the wrong hands.
4. Consider Workplace Safety
Background checks can also catch previous problems that may present a safety hazard to you or your other employees – think drug or violence charges.
Past problems with substance abuse aren’t necessarily an immediate dealbreaker; however, if the position for which you are hiring entails using heavy equipment or tools, it might warrant some additional testing or discussion.
A past that includes violent behavior is a red flag. It’s your duty to protect the safety of your other employees by avoiding bringing a violent member onto your team.
5. Get a Feel for the Integrity of the Candidate
A resume and an interview can tell you quite a bit about a person, their skills, and how they will fit in with your company. But, to be safe, don’t take all you’re seeing and hearing at face value.
A background check will most likely prove that your instincts are right and the candidate is great. But, in the event that they have fabricated or embellished any of their past experience, it’s much better to find that out before you welcome them to your team.
There’s a reason that teacher, doctor, and government background checks are always performed – the hiring teams need to know with 100% certainty that everything stated on a resume was factual.
The Bottom Line on Pre-Employment Screening
The relatively small upfront cost of investing in thorough pre-employment screening will pay for itself faster than you think. Protect your brand, image, employees, and bottom line by pre-screening candidates before you hire!
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