(Newswire.net — December 18, 2019) — As your business grows, you’ll probably start thinking about hiring on new employees. This is only natural; as you develop more business, make important links with critical industry connections, and find vital toeholds in emerging markets, you need the best talent available to help you succeed.
However, many employers find it difficult to make the best hiring decisions when they’re first building out their internal expansion model. One thing that you should consider when you start making moves toward building your team is using a background check for potential hires. In this article, we’ll cover the primary reasons why.
1. Online profiles don’t tell the whole story
When most managers and small business owners get started looking for new talent, they often take to Google to find out more. Plugging an applicant’s name in can bring up all sorts of important information about them: their Facebook and LinkedIn profiles, a few photos, and even profiles from previous employers. This information is useful as a first go-around, but without diving a little deeper, there could be important details that you miss.
For instance, do you know where to get a criminal background check? Most employers don’t at first. That’s okay – there are reputable sites online that can help with this. By providing you crucial intelligence on an applicant’s criminal record, history of fraud, or any other unsightly details from their past, you’ll have a much clearer picture of what to expect from a new hire.
2. First-impressions may be misleading
There are some business owners who are strong believers in the “go with your gut” school of thought. While this may work for some, it’s not always the safest way of assessing risk. Just because someone you shake hands with during an interview gives every sign of being a reliable and trustworthy employee doesn’t mean they will be. First impressions can be affected by everything from your mood on the day of the interview to how close to lunchtime it was.
There are more reliable ways of making sure someone is going to be a reliable addition to your work community. Many businesses use background checks to ensure that their would-be hires don’t have problematic relationships with previous employers, and don’t have stains on their record that could damage your business if they brought the same behavior into their new role.
3. Your assets are valuable
Making a bad or costly hire is no small mistake. By bringing on an employee who steals from your company, harasses other coworkers, or who has lied about their abilities and cannot perform their job as expected may be a serious blow to your company.
And it’s not just your bottom line that could take a beating. Clients who have come to expect quality service from you could be dissuaded from doing business with your company again. Employees might lose morale or grow frustrated with management if you make hiring mistakes that cost everyone else in time and happiness.
All of these assets – from capital and facilities to clients and reputation – are critical to the success of your business, and you should do your best to protect them. Remember that by bringing someone onto your team, you give them access to all of those assets in come way. This is why it’s always critical that a background check is performed prior to bringing on a new hire.
4. Company culture matters
If your employees are energized and excited to come to work every day, they will produce better work. One way to build that kind of enthusiasm is by having a fun, inviting, and relaxed company culture where people feel they are free to be creative and productive. However, hiring on a sinister character can seriously damage your company’s work culture.
Once again, by using a professional background check, you’ll be able to tell whether an applicant has been expelled from a workplace for such undesirable past actions as workplace harassment, anger problems, or issues with authority.
It’s always helpful to get a sense of an applicant from an interview and from their own application materials, like a resume and cover letter along with personal references. However, the fact of the matter is that nothing will give you the clear insight you need as well as a professional background check. Keep yourself, your workplace, and your employees safe by making use of a professional check today.