Qamer Javed
As companies grow, so does hiring. And so does risk.
You’re adding people who are new to your company and culture. It can be challenging to find the right mix, especially if you’re scaling fast.
Without doing employee background checks, you’re adding to that risk, potentially hiring people who aren’t quite who (or what) they say they are. For example, when checking references or credentials, nearly half of employers (46%) find a discrepancy between the information applicants provided and what’s uncovered in screening.
The Real Cost of a Bad Hire
Making a bad hire hurts you in a lot of ways. It can impact the morale of your other employees, your relationships with customers, and the cost of fixing a mistake. Beyond the soft costs of lost productivity and morale, a bad hire can translate into tens of thousands of dollars in direct expenses.
While it might look different for your organization, here’s a common scenario when you make hiring mistakes.
| TRUE Cost of a Bad Hire | Estimated Cost |
| Recruiting and HR | $10,000 |
| Training and Onboarding | $5,000 |
| Salary and Benefits | $50,000 |
| Replacement Costs | $10,000 |
| TOTAL | $75,000 |
When you consider potential losses like these, partnering with a background check business seems like a bargain to minimize your risk. So, let’s look at five specific strategies to protect your business and improve your hiring.
1. Criminal Records: Protecting Your Brand and Culture
Criminal background screening is a first step, making sure you’re not bringing a potential problem on board. Keep in mind that you need to follow legal requirements, including Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) standards, and ban-the-box laws.
The goal here isn’t to disqualify potential hires, though; it’s to make better hiring decisions.
2. Employment Verification: Confirming Experience and Stability
Employment verification makes sure applicants actually held the positions they claim. It’s not uncommon for people to inflate titles or roles, and that can make a big difference in the skills they actually have.
Consider this: 44% of those surveyed admitted they had lied at some point in the hiring process, whether it’s on their resume, application, or during the interview process. And those are just the ones who admitted to it.
You need to make sure job applicants are being honest with you and representing their work history accurately.
3. Educational Verification: Ensuring Credentials Match Capability
Credential fraud is growing in many industries. If someone claims they have a degree or expertise in some area, and it turns out they don’t, it’s going to be an issue. An employee background check is especially critical in sectors like finance, healthcare, or technology, where specialized knowledge is essential for performance and compliance.
Validating education and credentials helps ensure you hire people with the skills you need and also helps you avoid liability and compliance issues.
4. Driver Records and Monitoring: Managing Liability in Operations
For companies where employees operate vehicles, checking and monitoring driving records is essential. Unless you’re self-insured, your insurance carrier likely requires checks if your employees drive on behalf of your business.
Driving incidents affect your insurance costs and impact your reputation and reliability. Onboarding reviews and periodic monitoring can help mitigate these risks.
5. Drug and Alcohol Verification: Reinforcing Safety and Accountability
While not right for every company or situation, drug and alcohol screening has become more common, particularly for roles that handle machinery, to keep everyone safe. Incorporating fair and compliant drug and alcohol verification into the hiring process can uncover potential issues before they become your problems.
This is especially critical to align with federal regulations such as Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rules.
Integrating Background Checks into a Scalable Hiring Framework
As your business grows, the number of candidates and vendors you screen will grow. Manual processes won’t scale, and it’s too easy to take shortcuts or fail to comply with employment laws.
You need comprehensive background screening, working with a background check business to make sure you comply with all legal requirements, one that provides you with the information you need to make the right hiring decisions.
Command Credit offers compliant and thorough background check services, including:
- Criminal record search
- Employment verification
- Educational verification
- Driver records and monitoring
- Drug and alcohol verification
To learn more about how comprehensive background screening can help you scale hiring and remain compliant, explore Command Credit’s background investigation services.
