There is no such thing as
the perfect employee.
But there are ways to find out, through pre-employment screening, if a candidate
will be right for your company
or if that person could potentially cause problems once hired.
“Statistically, companies end
up with fewer turnovers when
they screen employees because
they hire the right candidate to
begin with,” says Ted L. Moss,
founder, president and CEO of
Crimcheck.com, a Berea-based
background check company.
Moss, a certified protection
professional, says the two main
types of screening are instant
checks that check criminal history and comprehensive checks,
which cover a criminal record
check and verification of employment, education, credit and driving history.
“We know it’s important to
make sure we’re not hiring a
criminal, but why?” Moss says.
“It’s to protect customers, provide a safe work environment
and ensure that the company
runs smoothly and is profitable.”
Moss says that first you should
decide which type of check is
most appropriate for your
organization, and then find a
company that suits your needs.
“It isn’t just looking on the
Internet but finding organizations
that have outlined what the best
practices are,” he says. “Also, ask
people you know from business
and find out what they’re doing
and who they’re using.”
You also need to determine the
scope of the check, how far into
the person’s background you
want to go, how much information you want and how you are
going to apply it to the hiring
process.
You can either do pre-employment screenings on your own,
or you can use an established
company, which can educate
you about the different types of
screenings and how you can
use the information obtained.
“It’s like, you can hire a plumber
to fix your pipes, or you can get
a book and figure out how to do
it yourself,” Moss says. “You can
do these things yourself, but it
takes some expertise to make
sure you’re doing it correctly.”
When using pre-employment
screening, many employers want
the information immediately,
and while instant checks are
possible, they might not be the
best choice for your company.
“Think about it — instant
check or hire this company that
says, ‘It’s going to take 24 to 48
hours to get this check,’” Moss
says. “It indicates that someone’s doing a little more work.”
But even with the extra time,
something in the candidate’s
background may get overlooked
because a pre-employment
screening isn’t as in-depth as a
full-blown background check.
And remember, no one is perfect. Even if your candidate
doesn’t have a spotless record,
there may be some things you
are willing to overlook.
Moss says pre-employment
screenings are worth the cost of
between $75 and $100 because
the alternative is much more
expensive.
“Considering it can cost between $7,000 and $15,000 to hire
and train a new employee, the
investment of $75 to $100 up-front is probably smart money,”
Moss says.
Moss says the benefits of pre-employment screenings are
immense.
“The Society of Human
Resource Management says
that 45 percent of all resumes
contain at least one major fabrication, and the U.S. Chamber of
Commerce says that 33 percent
of U.S. business bankruptcies
are due to employee theft and
embezzlement,” he says. “It’s risk
mitigation. It’s a necessity; it’s
like buying insurance. Providing
a safe work environment for
your employees and customers
is the goal. You increase productivity and profits and reduce
turnover.”
“It’s just a smart business decision. Having the information up-front allows you to make a better hiring decision and run your
company more efficiently.”
Successful pre-employment screenings
Ted L. Moss, founder, president
and CEO of Crimcheck.com,
offers these tips for successfully
using pre-employment screenings.
- Evaluate.Ask yourself why
you’re doing it, what your risks
are, how it would benefit your
company, what your budget is
and what return you expect on
investment. - Determine the scope and
define the categories and types
of jobs you have in your business. If you have a lot of sales-people, you’re going to want to
run the driving records of potential candidates. If you have people dealing with money or confidential information, you might
want to run a credit report. - Decide if you want to do it
yourself or outsource it. - Do your research. Find
screening partners who are truly
concerned about your needs. Do
they take the time to understand
your business? Do they offer
education and training? Will
they come on-site and train your
employees? Can they offer technology to suit your needs? Are
they flexible? Are they recognized in the industry? Lastly,
check their references and the
Better Business Bureau to make
sure they are a viable candidate. - Centralize your screening
process. It’s much easier if you
pick one person to be the main
point of contact and filter information through that person
because he or she can be your
in-house expert and work with
your provider. The provider is
then constantly educating that
person and updating him or her
about any industry changes or
new legislation.
HOW TO REACH: Crimcheck.com, (440) 816-9920 or www.crimcheck.com
