background check experts

Everyone needs a background check, even seasonal help!

January 14, 2013 by Staff Editor

Pre employment screening is important for many reasons. One of those reasons is to prevent internal theft. Background checks help to weed out the bad eggs that may have otherwise slipped through the cracks.

We see a significant spike in this sort of scenario during the holidays. There are plenty of people out there who are looking for a job in retail for no other reason than to steal from the retailer. These types of people know that companies are desperate to hire seasonal help and may not be taking the time to carry out detailed interviews, conduct criminal background checks and check references on potential employees as much as they do the rest of the year.

I have conducted many internal interviews after identifying employee theft and you wouldn’t believe the number of times I’ve heard them admit that their sole reason of getting a job with us was to steal. It is always their first time getting caught stealing, so they usually tell us everything we want to know in hopes of getting off with a warning.

We conduct employee background checks on all new hires, and nothing comes up on their background checks when we hire them, but next time they won’t be so lucky. Now that we have caught them in the act, criminal background checks conducted by retailers in the future will stop them in their tracks. We know for a fact that pre employment screening has helped prevent us from hiring convicted shoplifters. When we receive the results from the background check company we are able to see when a shoplifter attempts to get a job with us. We always listen to the background check experts and deny employment in order to protect our assets.

When in doubt, use a background check company and look to background check experts to give you solid advice on employee background checks.

To purchase Pre-Employment Screening Services or for more information on background check experts, background checks, criminal background checks, employee background checks or pre-employment screening contact us at the background check company or call 1.770.426.0547

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Caveat Dominus: Employer Beware

January 7, 2013 by Staff Editor

When it comes to examining an applicant’s history, the mantra “the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior” has been the guiding principle behind this practice. For employers to know what performance to expect from a prospective member of their staff, they will want to have a pre-employment screening process in place that will give them this insight. The potential repercussions caused by a bad hire are enough to make any business reluctant to take a chance on a new employee without a rigorous background check. Employee background checks are important and here is why: According to the 2010 National Retail Security Survey, internal theft cost retailers $15.9 billion and accounted for 45% of shrink. In addition, during a new associate’s first ninety days, companies can potentially invest anywhere between $5,000 to $75,000 in their training and development; this is motivation enough to make an employer not want to have to repeat this process too many times.

The potential hire selection process not only has shrink implications to consider, but staff members can also be potential liabilities for their employers. This is a prime example of why pre-employment screening is so important. Legal actions involving negligent hiring practices and employers being held accountable for a staff member’s actions can be avoided if due diligence in hiring practices can be demonstrated. Also, in a society as litigious as ours, prospective hires that could jeopardize a business’ compliance with federal and state safety guidelines should be avoided. Lastly, employee background checks can assist in avoiding a bad hire’s potential damage to a company’s reputation, which can’t be measured in monetary losses.

The need for employers to perform background checks for prospective staff members is palpable and choosing the right background check company is a crucial part of the hiring process. When considering the right business to handle this, accuracy of information and timeliness are important factors. Choosing the wrong background check company for examining applicant backgrounds can nullify the steps an employer takes to avoid the potential hazards the appointment process can pose.

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Small Businesses need Background Checks Too!

December 31, 2012 by Staff Editor

One of the toughest things for a small business owner to do is spend money, especially when there is nothing tangible they can hold in their hands as a result of the expenditure. That is exactly the challenge I had as a LP consultant when broaching the subject of employee background checks. Small business owners very rarely take into account the pre-employment screening process when they start the search for employees.

There are many things to discuss as a consultant with a new business owner regarding loss prevention but the number one concern is ensuring the business secures a reputable background check company that employs background check experts with a wide array of experience. It is not merely enough to conduct criminal background checks you must also conduct employee background checks as well. Trying to pull an owner from the belief that a mere review of a job application and an interview is enough of a pre-employment screening to the full understanding of what background checks can achieve is a monumental task.

A perfect example was the owner of a small clothing retailer with five locations located within a largely populated city. This owner had two speeds fast and stop. Trying to get him to sit down for a consultation was tough enough even though he was the one who contacted me for a LP consultation overview of his business. The main problem he had was shrink and he could not determine the source or sources of the bad inventory results.

I took about a month to review all aspects of the five locations including interviewing all of the employees and management. What I found was staggering. Essentially there were five locations running five different businesses doing whatever each store manager felt was right for their own store. This included the pre-employment screening process. The hiring ranged from a job application and a five minute interview to a store manager who at least conducted two interviews and called for reference checks. There were no criminal background checks, no education checks and no employee background checks. In fact no one including the owner of the business ever entertained the idea of hiring a background check company to conduct background checks for the company.

I reported my results to the owner which included my thoughts on how the losses where occurring as well as the potential solutions to the shrink problem. I told him that his losses were mostly internal and that an in depth investigation would be required to pinpoint the problem employees. There were some minor administrative issues that were easily rectified but the staffing problem was not going to be so easily put to rest.

I explained to the owner that before he went and started replacing employees he needed to retain a company that employed true background check experts that would help him choose the right staff. I explained to the owner the cost of hiring and training an employee and that seemed to get his attention since he would now be losing several employees, the cost of hiring and training them and now have to hire additional employees and invest that training cost once again. We narrowed the choices down to one reputable background check company. This company offered criminal background checks from local to federal levels, educational background checks as well as employee background checks with very reasonable pricing. I was also impressed with the transparency of the company to reveal the backgrounds of their background check experts. This openness put the owner at ease to take the necessary step to put a proper pre employment screening process in place.

It took the owner about six months to sort out his employee theft issues as well as at the same time successfully implementing the new hiring process. He called it a labor of love that in the end kept him from losing his business. He is now one of the biggest proponents for small business owners to implement good hiring processes that screen potential employees before they are allowed to take position of employment.

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Employee theft can be a sticky situation…

December 24, 2012 by Staff Editor

Small businesses number one killer is employee theft. Most cases of internal schemes can reach 100k in loss. The problem is their larger counterparts invest money for loss prevention services. The small business owners many times are unwilling to invest in such things as background checks. Having a pre-employment screening process is quite honestly the best investment a small business owner could make. Merely perusing a resume and calling a few previous employers who will only verify the fact that they worked at that place of business is better than nothing at all. As a loss prevention consultant I have seen the ravages internal theft can cause. Usually when trying to sort out the “who what, where and why” the first thing I can point to is the fact that no employee background checks or criminal background checks were conducted.

One particular case which stands out from the past is a female small business owner who ran a flower shop. She never gave loss prevention a thought let alone contacting a background check company to inquire about pre-employment screening. Her thoughts regarding loss prevention never made it past having a lock on the door and keeping the register drawer shut. She had contacted me due to the fact that each month she was coming up short on both money and stock and that after checking for clerical errors she could not find the problem.

When I sat down with her I asked her about her employees and how she felt about employee theft. She was very adamant that her employees were very trustworthy and her friends and that thought process was out of the question. I knew this was going to be a long a painful road for both of us. I decided to contact a couple of background check experts to bring them in to discuss their past cases to give very detailed examples of how employee theft can utterly destroy a small business.

It was a truly enlightening experience for the business owner to see how a lack of background checks could impact a business in such a negative way. It did not take long for her to retain the background check company and discuss with the background check experts the most feasible criminal background checks as well as employee background checks.

The implementation of the pre-employment screening process was tedious however the business owner was very happy with the results. She runs a very successful business to which she attributes the achievements to her very strong and now vetted staff.

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Background Checks: Good Intentions Or Good Strategy?

December 17, 2012 by Staff Editor

Ensuring your company is conducting background checks is a good first step, however, it is important that your company conducts the correct level of criminal background checks and employee background checks. This is all a part of having a successful pre employment screening process. The background check experts all agree that one of the best ways to deter a potential thief from working with a company is a rigorous pre employment screening process that includes multiple interviews and pointed questions regarding employment and education history.

Unfortunately even companies with good intentions about having a successful pre employment screening strategy fall short due to not hiring a qualified background check company. They muddle about and conduct random criminal background checks which when not guided by background check experts usually does not encompass the correct areas where crimes may have been committed. Ultimately this leads to a false sense of security that can have devastating results. Another thing companies overlook is the employee background check, they figure a couple phone calls to companies written on a job application will suffice. This again will be a potentially costly mistake. Background check experts know exactly how to conduct an in depth employee background check which requires a significant amount of research. A good background check company will also be able to verify an employee’s education history as well as job and personal references.

Companies that do utilize a reputable background check company have access to background check experts that have worked in and around every type of business under the sun. The right background check expert is matched to a company and a pre employment screening strategy is custom made to fit the business like a glove. This process usually involves the human resource, loss prevention and legal departments. Once the company’s policy and procedures have been reviewed in detail then the strategy can be implemented. A potential employee will fill out a very detailed job application, a release form for background checks and provide a complete resume. The potential employee will then go through a multi level interview process conducted by different executives at each level. Then the employee will answer any and all questions that have arisen as a result of the completed background checks. Any hits at this point from a criminal background check that had not been addressed in the initial job application will effectively disqualify the applicant from procuring a position at the company in question.

It takes an investment of time to find the right background check company and formulate an all encompassing hiring process that protects your company, however but in the end it will guard your company from losses caused by bad employees. A company has the right to protect its employees and its profits and it starts with screening potential employees.

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Why should you perform background checks?

December 10, 2012 by Staff Editor

Hiring new talent is a time consuming and trying process that takes it’s toll on the resources of any company. While it is a frustrating fact of doing business, it is an unfortunate requirement to ensure you obtain quality talent to add to your company. The problem is you still cannot allow your company’s staffing needs to be figuratively blinded by glowing recommendations and ten-page resumes chocked full of exemplary qualifications.

In these dire economic times people have become desperate to find work and the unsavory practice of lying about qualifications or work history has become more commonplace than ever. If you or your human resources department doesn’t require any sort of pre-employment screening or employee background you may find your company hiring a virtual lemon of an employee. Without performing an employee background check on your new receiving hire you might never know that they have never actually operated a forklift before which could lead to a potentially deadly accident and a huge liability. If you don’t perform a pre-employment screening on that supposed cash room veteran you won’t find out that they were fired from their last job for stealing to pay for a gambling problem.

Background checks and Pre-Employment Screening can protect your company from potential problems before they start (literally). The reason background checks were created in the first place was to ensure people are who they say they are. As loss prevention professionals (or managers looking to protect company assets) we can use this resource to our advantage and reveal who is worth hiring and who is simply padding their resume.

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Sometimes standard backgrounds just aren’t enough…

December 3, 2012 by Staff Editor

While performing backgrounds checks and pre-employment are essential to weeding out undesirables from the truly sought-after talent, it isn’t the most sure-fire method to spotting troublemakers before you hire them.

Sometimes, in spite of all your precautions and preparations someone comes along and fools your rigorous application process and gains access to your company’s assets. That is why on top of going through with the battery of pre-employment screenings and background checks you have to keep a closer eye on your team.

As an example, my store hired someone to fill a low-level supervisor position just before Thanksgiving. This girl had all the right references, a solid work history, and passed the company’s employee background check without a hitch. For quite some time she was the perfect example of a young, hard-working, punctual individual. She was well liked by the cashier staff and admired by her superiors. But there were signs that something was off about her two months ago.

It was common knowledge among the staff that she was the primary supporter of her family; her mother, her newborn siblings, and her grandmother. She never really complained about her lot but it was understandably a hard position to be put in for someone of such a young age. It didn’t raise suspicion about her, per say, but rather created more admiration and sympathy for her.

Then about two weeks ago she was caught buying dozens of items ranging from clothing to house wares that she had marked down to practically nothing using another associate’s login information. It was a terminable offense, and one that could have been spotted much earlier had we taken the time to dig deeper and find out her mother’s disability payments had been reduced causing a greater financial burden on her.

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Customer service should be part of your hiring process through Background Checks

November 26, 2012 by Staff Editor

Customer service has become the most important factor in the business decisions that we make today. From our policies and procedures to how we staff our buildings, the customer comes first. In a tough economy, this becomes even more important.

When a customer walks into the building they expect that we have hired the right people and completed thorough pre-employment screening of our employees. They expect that they are coming to a place where they can trust our employees and believe what we tell them because we are a business of integrity. If we do not complete criminal background checks of all our employees, we are opening up the door for this image to be tarnished. Most of all we want our customers to feel safe. Hiring a background check company gives us the confidence to know that our employees have never been convicted of a violent crime.

Background checks ensure we have the right people in place to serve our customers. Employee background checks make me comfortable that my employees are going to be honest with the customer and do their best to get the customer what they need. When I hire background check experts to conduct pre-employment screening it reassures me that I have made the right hiring decision, and that my employees are going to act with integrity.

For the security of my business and the safety of my customers and employees, I owe it to them and myself to conduct employee background checks on all of my new hires.

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Never assume, always do a Background Check

November 19, 2012 by Staff Editor

Most people never see what goes on behind the closed doors of prominent hotel chains. It is assumed that all business matters especially the business of employee background checks have been addressed in the most professional ways possible and that any issues one might see is a minor glitch which is handled expeditiously. Even with my background in Loss Prevention this was my mindset until I had a very good friend of mine open my eyes to the challenges his job at a very large hotel located in the center of a huge city. My friend had worked as an operations manager for a few prominent businesses in the city and was valued as a manager who could assess talent and manage a large amount of people to complete numerous tasks which led to the business running smoothly in an urban busy setting.

We were just enjoying some conversation after a delicious holiday dinner with our families when he decided to run his latest job by me along with an alarming employee issue that had been dropped in his lap. Robert, my friend, had been hired by a prominent hotel to be the Director of restaurant operations. Robert immediately went to work assessing his team’s talent and what he found was a human resource nightmare. Even though this hotel was a very large and successful it was a family owned business which placed family members in key positions without the experience or credentials to fulfill those positions. One position in particular was the VP of Human Resources. Robert could not understand why many key positions in his team were filled with people who lacked the experience to fulfill their jobs until he started reviewing the hotel’s pre-employment screening process.

The review of the pre-employment screening was the beginning of the proverbial rabbit hole. You merely filled out a basic job application and submitted a resume, one interview later you knew whether you were hired or not. There were no employee background checks of any type conducted for any position. Nobody checked references, criminal history or even Social Security validity. At this point the horrified look on my face had Robert a bit concerned, I almost passed out when he told me they did not have a background check company on retainer.I was simply astounded that they did not conduct any type of employee background check. At this point Robert clued me into the fact that the VP of Human Resources was a member of the hotel owner’s family and did not possess the necessary skills to develop a proper human resource program, including background checks.

At this point I had to stop Robert and start educating him on the basics of employing a pre-employment screening strategy. I explained to him that if he did the homework and put together a solution that included a variety of background check experts to choose from that the VP of human resources would embrace the idea as her own. The VP wanted to do the right thing, she just did not have the experience nor the understanding to realize what needed to be done.

In the end Robert was able to sit down with several members of the owners family including the VP of Human Resources and communicate the importance of retaining a reputable background check company. The good thing was Robert came out of the meeting with his job still intact and a budget to obtain the help of background check experts. Now Robert’s welcomed challenge is to choose the best suited background check company for the hotel. As a follow up I also explained the importance of conducting criminal background checks that encompass all of the potential employees former addresses and that as a suggestion to run state wide criminal background checks to ensure all counties are covered within a state. It was one heck of a roller coaster ride for Robert but in the end he was able to bring the pre-employment screening problem to the forefront before anymore serious problems occurred.

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Covering all your pre-employment screening bases…

November 12, 2012 by Staff Editor

If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a million times already; there is no singular perfect way to catch criminals. If someone is truly set upon finding a way of stealing or defrauding your company, they will likely find a way and get away with it for some time before you actually catch on and stop them. That is why you always need to employ multiple systems, some that simply overlap in function and others that provide redundancy for what you may already have in order to catch such criminals before they do too much damage.

Case in point: Employee background checks. Any sort of pre-employment screening is done as a form of preventative measure to make sure you aren’t hiring a known ‘bad seed’. But sometimes just requiring a basic employee background check isn’t enough to catch everything. If you want to be sure you have covered all your bases you need to take the time to enforce a full suite of background checks and pre-employment screening. Many years ago I worked for a certain company that dealt with a lot of sensitive information on a regular basis (as in every second of the day). Their pre-employment screening process was intense, including a preliminary drug screening, fingerprinting, standard background check, criminal background check, credit checks, and even a medical history. It took them two weeks just to get the results from everything before they hired me. But even with all of those safeguards in place before they even take anyone on as an employee, it didn’t prevent those who got hired from conducting illicit activities.

During my two year tenure, there were no less than seven known instances of employees being fired for committing fraud or embezzling customer assets. So while background checks are certainly helpful, without maintaining constant vigilance over your workforce they can still harm your business.

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