Would you go up to a random stranger and hand over the keys to your house, telling him that you are going to be out of town for a while and would he please keep an eye on things? Probably not, but if you hire new employees without an adequate employment screening program in place, that is essentially what you are doing with your business.
You want to have some degree of trust in the person you hire to perform any function in your business from the lowest to the highest. Think about the assets you have in your business: Merchandise, supplies, cash, electronics, vehicles, customer lists and proprietary information, for a start. There’s also your reputation and the good will of your customers. Each time you bring in a new employee, you potentially put some portion of your business at risk.
The thought of that is frightening enough, but to bring in a new person without checking on his past performance or character is really scary. A background check as part of your employment screening program is designed to mitigate your risk. A background check will not prevent a person from becoming a thief or an opportunist; but it will help prevent you from hiring one. Most employers feel that it’s better to know all they can about their future employees than to blindly turn over their assets to an unknown entity.
Trust is developed over time, but starting out with an employee who is honest and trustworthy certainly will take some of the uncertainty out of the road to trust.
As a manager or business owner, you have enough on your mind without worrying if your own employees are going to undermine your business through theft or carelessness. Just as you wouldn’t turn over the keys to your house to just anyone, always start with the best possible employee you can hire by checking the past through employment screening.
We are ready to help with your employment screening questions. Call 770-426-0547 or click here.
