Background checks can be a tricky subject. Some employers require them, whereas others feel that they can be a breach of trust. When done properly, a background check can serve as a great way to preserve the integrity of your workforce and ensure that the hires you’re making are consistent with the rest of your team and company’s values. Here’s why you shouldn’t skip background checks:

Knowledge is Power

The more you know about the team you’re putting together, the better. While background checks can be a time-consuming process, it’s essential to know who you are hiring exactly and what you should be made aware of in the onboarding process. For example, if a new hire has been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor, you should know what that was and the circumstances surrounding it, so you can make the best decision for your company as to whether or not that new hire is the right fit.

Skipping Background Checks Can Be Costly

Background checks exist for a reason: to make sure you don’t hire someone who is going to hurt you, your company, your company’s reputation, or your employees. If you don’t do a background check, you could end up hiring someone who has some of those intentions and/or runs your business into the ground. While conducting a background check isn’t cheap, think about the costs associated with hiring a corrupt individual who can do so much more damage on his or her own.

Can Improve the Seriousness of the Applicants

One way you can make background checks efficient for your company is if you tell hires that their hire is contingent on them being able to pass a background check. This improves the seriousness of the applicants for several reasons. First of all, if a person has a big enough concern that s/he wouldn’t pass a background check, s/he likely wouldn’t apply out of fear that s/he would make it to the final interview stage and then not be offered the job.

Second of all, it shows that you take pride in your company and the employees you hire, so they will be much more apt to take the entire interviewing process more seriously and only come to you when they are ready to be a responsible, hard-working employee. Once you see the value in performing background checks, your interview process will run much smoother because your interview process will have a type of pre-qualification process put in place.

If you need help from a staffing agency to make those initial connections with potential employees, contact Award Staffing.