The Background Screening Industry is Ready for a Change
How Did We Get Here?
The background screening industry was once a pillar of trust and diligence, ensuring that companies could make informed hiring decisions with confidence. But over time, standards have eroded. The industry has devolved as companies prioritized speed and cost-cutting over accuracy and integrity.
Many screening providers now rely on outdated databases, incomplete records, and automated systems with minimal oversight. Instead of delivering comprehensive and accurate reports, they focus on rapid turnaround times and cheap solutions. As a result, companies are often left with incomplete or even incorrect information, putting them at risk of compliance violations, negligent hiring lawsuits, and damaged reputations.
What caused this decline? This degradation was a downward spiral in which organizations – the clients – were intertwined. They naturally sought less expensive services and compared prices. They were not the experts in background screening, so they did not realize that the background screening companies were meeting the demand for lower prices by cutting corners on their service – hiring cheaper, less-experienced staff to run background screens; using automation with no human oversight; leveraging lower quality information sources; overburdening account staff, leading to terrible client and candidate care; and the list goes on and on. And so began a race to the bottom. Companies did not realize they were receiving inaccurate screening and verification reports, and they became accustomed to poor client and candidate care.
This downward spiral is particularly dangerous for businesses. Hiring an employee based on faulty or incomplete screening results can lead to compliance issues with local, state, federal, and international laws. Worse, an organization could unknowingly onboard someone with a history of fraud, violence, or other serious concerns. Poor screening practices don’t just impact companies—they also affect candidates who may be unfairly overlooked due to erroneous reports. As you can see, the failure of many companies to maintain high standards has had serious repercussions on organizations and individuals. Even a single job can mean the world to a person and to an organization. Change is long overdue.
Where Do We Go from Here?
Fixing the background screening industry requires a return to integrity, accuracy, and client-focused service. Companies seeking background checks must demand better, and providers must rise to the occasion. This means adopting rigorous compliance standards, leveraging advanced yet reliable technology, and fostering a culture of transparency and client care.
AB Global is leading this transformation. As the Gold Standard in background screening, we are redefining what companies should expect from their screening providers.
- Our people and our processes are rooted in integrity and we never cut corners.
- AB Global uses the industry’s most advanced technology to search the highest quality information sources to conduct our screens and verifications.
- Our team of FCRA-certified industry veterans oversees all screens and verifications to ensure compliance and accuracy.
- AB Global’s Compliance team has decades of experience and ensures compliance with local, state, federal, and international regulations, as well as industry-specific rules and laws.
- Every AB Global client is assigned their own dedicated Client Concierge who communicates proactively and ensures that everything runs smoothly for the client and their candidates.
- Our leadership team and staff are always available to share their knowledge and provide strategic and operational guidance.
- We are fully transparent with our clients as well as their candidates.
- Our advanced technology is fully customizable and built for efficiency, ease-of-use, transparency, and seamless integrations with existing HR systems.
- We are dedicated to sharing our knowledge about the screening industry with our clients and HR professionals because we want people to know as much as possible about how the industry is supposed to operate.
- AB Global’s Screening UniversityTM provides free online courses that provide training in background screening, helping HR professionals and others better understand a complicated and risk-filled industry.
- Our clients have the confidence to focus on hiring and onboarding the very best into their organizations.
The future of background screening must be built on integrity, transparency, and excellence. Organizations can no longer afford to accept subpar screening services that expose them to risk. By demanding better and partnering with providers who uphold the highest standards, businesses can ensure they are making informed, confident hiring decisions.
The background screening industry is at a crossroads. It can continue down the path of cutting corners and compromising results, or it can rise to meet the expectations of a world that demands integrity. At AB Global, we choose the latter—and we invite companies everywhere to join us in setting a new, higher standard – a Gold Standard – for background screening.
