In this age of technology, a business can’t be too careful when screening potential job candidates before hiring them. Take for example a Redondo Beach Arco convenience store owner, who hired an employee who, after spuriously interjecting himself into the unwitting owners trust through a series of sophisticated larcenous machinations, installed a credit card skimmer on a gas pump. The once deemed "model employee," worked for several months to attain a position in which he could carry out his devious acts. Before he disappeared, he had stolen over $7,500 in merchandise, equipment, and scanned over 1,000 names with the skimmer. Eventually several of those cardholders became victims of identity theft, thus proving that not only does a bad hire cost you time and money to onboard and train them, but there are tangential items to consider:

• How can I keep employees from stealing from me?
• What are the ramifications of identity theft for my customers?
• Will there be a lawsuit as a result of the information security breach?
• What will I do about the bad press I am getting over identity theft resulting from a data breach event?
• Will I be able to retain existing customers after a breach?

Looking forward, how could this situation have been avoided? A Cornell University study suggests an integrity test (also known as a behavioral assessment) is beneficial for screening employees with high-risk behaviors. When implemented at the beginning of the hiring process (e.g. pre-interview / post-application), an integrity test can alert an employer of individuals who self-admittedly steal, abuse drugs, lie, or have violent high-risk behaviors. In most cases, for a nominal fee, this is a great way to eliminate the headaches mentioned above.

According to The Association for Convenience & Petroleum Retailing in the convenience store industry, the turnover rate for a full-time employee is 123% on average, with the average cost to hire an employee at $2,500. With that said if you can reduce those high-risk individuals before hiring them, studies have shown that employee turnover is greatly reduced as well. Even a small decrease in employee turnover in this industry makes a big impact on the bottom line. Combine a decrease in turnover and new hire costs with reductions in employee theft and you have an easy way to improve the bottom line.

This is just one example of an industry facing the risk in hiring the wrong person. Many companies are looking for ways to improve their hiring practices the first time around. Whether the risk is theft of stolen merchandise, identity theft, or low productivity resulting from a wrong hire, screening employees behavior before hiring them is a great way to avoid unforeseen costs.

We all need a little help reducing costs and bolstering revenue in this weak economy, so why take the chance of a bad hire when there are tools in the market to avoid it?