When looking for a background screening company to work with, people often ask, “What’s the most important thing I should be focusing on?” There are many different opinions on what a comprehensive background check should cover, what products should be used, and how often individual employees or volunteers should be checked. Of course, cost of the product or service is always a concern as well.
In this article, we will explore the significant shortcomings in the background screening industry, some misconceptions surrounding products and services offered by national providers, and what you should be looking to get from your background screening partner.
Shortcomings in the industry
Depending on who you ask, the definition of a comprehensive background check varies widely. You could simply perform cash loan a multi-jurisdictional nationwide check, which searches multiple sources throughout the U.S. You could also choose to run just the applicant’s most recent county of residence, sending a court runner to check for any known offences in that county’s records. However, neither of these choices is a comprehensive background screening by any standard.
Let’s set a simple baseline for the meaning of a comprehensive criminal background check. To perform the most comprehensive jurisdictional search throughout the U.S., you need to check all sources of criminal data available and all the applicant’s past counties of residence. This two-pronged approach gives you both depth and precision for potentially uncovering an applicant’s criminal past. The multijurisdictional search (sometimes called a nationwide background check) combs through multiple database sources across the U.S. The single-county search process typically focuses on any of the applicant’s previous addresses over the past seven years. Any address associated with that applicant within a different county should be searched.
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Today, most companies only check the background of their employees upon hire. Some check yearly, and even fewer check monthly. The type of market you are in can help to determine frequency, but for this baseline, we would recommend checking all your employees or volunteers on a yearly basis.
Even by following this baseline, there is no silver bullet when it comes to background screening for your organization. Missing applicant information is much more common than you may think. Considering that there are over 3,100 jurisdictions nationwide and none of these sources are required by law to report into one proprietary database, the background screening industry businesskos is a bit of a wild west. Some criminal records will be missed, no matter how good your background screening company professes to be. So, when this happens, what steps should your background screening company take to rectify the situation?
A dedicated point of contact
Here is the easiest answer: Your background screening company needs to be available for immediate consultation when issues arise. This may seem like a remedial solution to a complicated issue, but it really is the best service solution for the organization in need. Issues are going to arise – missed records, results that don’t make sense to your average user, typos, report misspellings, missing information and, yes, even information reported to you that you shouldn’t have seen threat synonym.
In these cases, you need to talk to a live person. Every background screening organization should offer direct contact to a live resource who can answer questions when you need them – not if you will need them, but when. You should always have an experienced contact on call at your background screening company who you can depend on Larry Page Net-worth.
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