This years New Year’s Resolution: Exercise . . . Due Diligence. CI urges you to consider all
available options to make sure you’re hiring the best candidates. Many managers and CEOs
would agree that one of the primary challenges for their business is hiring the right people. It
is important to review your background investigation policy yearly to make sure you are using
all available resources to hire the best candidates.
Just as you wouldn’t hire someone without seeing their resume, or interviewing them, you
should not hire someone without a sufficient background investigation. Consider that hiring
based on an application, resume and interview alone is hiring based only on applicant supplied
information. It is vital to verify applicant supplied information through a third party.
Sometimes it’s more important what’s not on an applicant’s resume. Candidates are not going
to include their poor credit, suspended drivers license and criminal convictions on their
resume. Anyone can look good on paper, interview well and falsify an application. If your goal
is to not only hire the best people but the right people for your organization, background
screening can help provide the Proactive TruthTM regarding applicants.
The cost of recruiting and hiring, let alone turnover, is significant. Why wait until a new hire
has gone through orientation and training to find out they are not the individual they appeared
to be during the interview process? Or find out in 6 months or a year that they did not have
the experience or education they indicated and seemingly talked knowledgably about. Many
small businesses fail due to some sort of employee impropriety including theft and
embezzlement. The smaller the organization, the more difficult it is to absorb the cost
associated with an incident of theft or violence.
Exercising due diligence means doing more than just criminal background inquiries. Education
and Employment verifications are important to verify the information supplied by an applicant
on a resume and application. They can also lead to additional information which would be
important for other inquiries, such as an alias that should be checked for criminal records. CI
uses an investigative approach and human intervention to assure that each subject’s
background is investigated fully.
Adding a DMV or credit report to a background investigation can help create a more accurate
and complete picture of an applicant. Because criminal records are searched by exact name
and date of birth match, it is important to run a SSN search as well as confirm a subject’s date
of birth through a DMV inquiry. The Department of Motor Vehicles requires drivers to supply a
copy of their birth certificate when first applying for a license in the issuing state. The DMV
then verifies that document directly with the issuing authority. Applicants who are well versed
in background checks, perhaps because they have been denied employment previously, have
often changed their name or falsified their date of birth in an attempt to avoid the discovery of
criminal records during their background check.
Driving records and credit history also can provide a more complete picture of an applicant. If
they are not responsible in paying their bills, how responsible will they be at work? If they do
not pay their creditors, are they more likely to steal from their employer? If they do not pay
their fines or show up in court, will they show up for work? Patterns can emerge that might
contradict the image an applicant portrays in an interview.
When hiring for a position it can be critical to screen your top 2 or 3 candidates. The decision
can become much clearer who is right for the position and your organization. Consider the
possibility that all three final candidates for a position are somewhat equal. Perhaps you are
favoring one of them because they seemed to interview the best. But also consider the
possibility that the candidate you thought was the strongest has poor credit or did not pay
their traffic fines. Would you take a closer look at the next candidate in line?
In addition to reviewing your background policy yearly, some inquiries are important or
required to be run annually. In 2006, Mr. Due Diligence began volunteering at a youth center.
He has been driving several of the kids and using the center’s vans. The youth center does
annual DMV checks for any volunteer who drives their vehicles. Upon review of the DMV
report, the youth center learned that Due did not have a valid drivers license and failed to
answer summons, pay fines and also got a ticket for failure to use a child restraint device. This
illustrates the importance of doing all annual checks prior to employment or granting volunteer
status as well as annually.
Other important annual inquiries include Drug Testing, Office of Inspector General exclusion,
General Services Administration exclusion, Nurse Aid Registries and other professional
licensing boards where there maybe disciplinary actions taken or where licenses must be
renewed.
If your company does not perform pre-employment background investigations, it is possible
that you will employ a disproportionate amount of convicted criminals, registered sex offenders
and previously denied applicants. Consider that the New York State Department of
Corrections releases nearly 30,000 inmates yearly, many of whom will be looking for
employment. According to the DOC, two thirds of released inmates will commit another
serious crime within 3 years. As the number of organizations performing due diligence when
hiring increases, the undesirables who were denied employment elsewhere will eventual
gravitate towards a company that does not screen.
As your trusted advisor and Proactive TruthTM Partner, CI is always reviewing client policies
and looking for ways to utilize any new tools and products available. CI is available to consult
with you on your policy and look for ways to improve value and help you hire only the best
candidates and right people for your organization. Contact a CI representative to discuss
further.
TO BE CONTINUED . . .
CYBER SUPPLIED INFORMATION
MYSPACE REVEALS BAD DILIGENCE
available options to make sure you’re hiring the best candidates. Many managers and CEOs
would agree that one of the primary challenges for their business is hiring the right people. It
is important to review your background investigation policy yearly to make sure you are using
all available resources to hire the best candidates.
Just as you wouldn’t hire someone without seeing their resume, or interviewing them, you
should not hire someone without a sufficient background investigation. Consider that hiring
based on an application, resume and interview alone is hiring based only on applicant supplied
information. It is vital to verify applicant supplied information through a third party.
Sometimes it’s more important what’s not on an applicant’s resume. Candidates are not going
to include their poor credit, suspended drivers license and criminal convictions on their
resume. Anyone can look good on paper, interview well and falsify an application. If your goal
is to not only hire the best people but the right people for your organization, background
screening can help provide the Proactive TruthTM regarding applicants.
The cost of recruiting and hiring, let alone turnover, is significant. Why wait until a new hire
has gone through orientation and training to find out they are not the individual they appeared
to be during the interview process? Or find out in 6 months or a year that they did not have
the experience or education they indicated and seemingly talked knowledgably about. Many
small businesses fail due to some sort of employee impropriety including theft and
embezzlement. The smaller the organization, the more difficult it is to absorb the cost
associated with an incident of theft or violence.
Exercising due diligence means doing more than just criminal background inquiries. Education
and Employment verifications are important to verify the information supplied by an applicant
on a resume and application. They can also lead to additional information which would be
important for other inquiries, such as an alias that should be checked for criminal records. CI
uses an investigative approach and human intervention to assure that each subject’s
background is investigated fully.
Adding a DMV or credit report to a background investigation can help create a more accurate
and complete picture of an applicant. Because criminal records are searched by exact name
and date of birth match, it is important to run a SSN search as well as confirm a subject’s date
of birth through a DMV inquiry. The Department of Motor Vehicles requires drivers to supply a
copy of their birth certificate when first applying for a license in the issuing state. The DMV
then verifies that document directly with the issuing authority. Applicants who are well versed
in background checks, perhaps because they have been denied employment previously, have
often changed their name or falsified their date of birth in an attempt to avoid the discovery of
criminal records during their background check.
Driving records and credit history also can provide a more complete picture of an applicant. If
they are not responsible in paying their bills, how responsible will they be at work? If they do
not pay their creditors, are they more likely to steal from their employer? If they do not pay
their fines or show up in court, will they show up for work? Patterns can emerge that might
contradict the image an applicant portrays in an interview.
When hiring for a position it can be critical to screen your top 2 or 3 candidates. The decision
can become much clearer who is right for the position and your organization. Consider the
possibility that all three final candidates for a position are somewhat equal. Perhaps you are
favoring one of them because they seemed to interview the best. But also consider the
possibility that the candidate you thought was the strongest has poor credit or did not pay
their traffic fines. Would you take a closer look at the next candidate in line?
In addition to reviewing your background policy yearly, some inquiries are important or
required to be run annually. In 2006, Mr. Due Diligence began volunteering at a youth center.
He has been driving several of the kids and using the center’s vans. The youth center does
annual DMV checks for any volunteer who drives their vehicles. Upon review of the DMV
report, the youth center learned that Due did not have a valid drivers license and failed to
answer summons, pay fines and also got a ticket for failure to use a child restraint device. This
illustrates the importance of doing all annual checks prior to employment or granting volunteer
status as well as annually.
Other important annual inquiries include Drug Testing, Office of Inspector General exclusion,
General Services Administration exclusion, Nurse Aid Registries and other professional
licensing boards where there maybe disciplinary actions taken or where licenses must be
renewed.
If your company does not perform pre-employment background investigations, it is possible
that you will employ a disproportionate amount of convicted criminals, registered sex offenders
and previously denied applicants. Consider that the New York State Department of
Corrections releases nearly 30,000 inmates yearly, many of whom will be looking for
employment. According to the DOC, two thirds of released inmates will commit another
serious crime within 3 years. As the number of organizations performing due diligence when
hiring increases, the undesirables who were denied employment elsewhere will eventual
gravitate towards a company that does not screen.
As your trusted advisor and Proactive TruthTM Partner, CI is always reviewing client policies
and looking for ways to utilize any new tools and products available. CI is available to consult
with you on your policy and look for ways to improve value and help you hire only the best
candidates and right people for your organization. Contact a CI representative to discuss
further.
TO BE CONTINUED . . .
CYBER SUPPLIED INFORMATION
MYSPACE REVEALS BAD DILIGENCE
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| EXERCISE DUE DILIGENCE: DO THE DUE |
DATE: JANUARY 2007
COMMERCIAL INVESTIGATIONS LLC
