When you’re trying to run a successful business, you’re already well aware of what you need to be able to build a solid foundation to help you grow smoothly in an already competitive market. Your employees are the skeleton of your business, and if you don’t pick them wisely and with detail, your business will suffer and possibly fall apart. If you are looking to hire new employees, then you must know how important it is to run background checks on the potential new member of your team. It is essential for you to know what sort of person you are going to be welcoming into your office. You need to make sure that the person you’re hiring would fit well into the work environment and with the other members of your team.
Here are a few tips on how to be sure about any job applicant’s background.
1. Develop a Policy
First, it is extremely important to develop a company policy before running background checks on applicants. If you plan to run ongoing checks on the applicants, you will need to add this to your company policy to avoid any misunderstandings. Running background checks on your potential employee is important, as they help you weed out applicants that have provided misinformation on their resumes or who may not be a good fit for your work environment.
2. Check for Past Legal Issues or Criminal Records
Prior to hiring an applicant, it is important to run a background check on any criminal records or legal issues that your applicants may have been involved in. However, you should know that it is important to go beyond just criminal checks. There are other records including identity verification, sex offenders list, educational history checks, driving records check, etc. that you need to consider. This is essential as it will not only tell you if they will fit into the work environment, but it is also important to ensure the safety of the other team members.
3. Notify the Applicants
Before you run any pre-employment checks on your employees, it is important to notify your applicants to protect yourself from facing any legal issues. This applies to any drug tests or any other types of screening tests as well. Experts suggest that it is important to take permission from the applicant in written form to avoid any misunderstandings. This will not only prepare them for any tests, but it may also save you from the trouble of going through background checks, as some applicants with a criminal record may back out.
4. Hire a Service that Specializes in Pre-employment Checks
If you cannot run background checks on the applicants on your own or if you believe that you won’t be able to run proper background checks, then you may want to hire a service that specializes in pre-employment checks. If you want to explore your options, you can read more here to see what’s available in the market. Such a service will not only save you from going through the trouble of running background checks on your own, but they will have all the legal information laid out for them, which will make the whole process much smoother. The expert service providers have access to hundreds of databases including the sex offenders list, anti-terrorism lists, money-laundering lists, etc. Make sure the service you choose is FCRA-compliant and, if necessary, ask for the documentation to prove it.
5. Review and Follow Up
After reviewing the applicant’s record and running proper background checks, you need to follow up with the applicant and offer them a fair chance to explain their side. If you deem them fit for your company, you may move on with their application. Moreover, it is important to run background checks on all the applicants to avoid any bias or discrimination. Hence, it is important to run background checks on every applicant after offering a contingent employment offer.
Running background checks is healthy for your company, as it helps you keep a positive environment and protects you from any legal issues in the future. However, it is also important to note that there are no perfect employees. If an employee has made a mistake in the past but has certain redeemable qualities and work ethic, then they may be worth giving a chance.
These tips will certainly help you be more sure of your applicant’s background. These background checks will help you hire good employees that would make for a great addition to your team. Background checks can help you identify the character of the applicant and their qualification. Other than that, it would also be good to run background checks on your employees every few years to ensure a safe and healthy work environment for everyone.