Article
Why Small Businesses Need Background Screening
Small businesses are the backbone of the Australian economy, accounting for well over 95% of all businesses and providing employment for around 4.7 million people. However, according to the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), small to medium businesses are the most common victims of fraud, losing almost twice as much per scheme than large corporations.
The high costs of fraud
Research by the ACFE found that internal control weaknesses were responsible for nearly half of all frauds, a median loss of around $130,000 per case. Not only do many small businesses lack the resources to implement these controls, they struggle to recover from fraud when it does occur.
The consequences of fraud on small businesses go beyond the financial loss associated with the fraudulent activity. The time and costs of terminating and hiring replacement employees can be draining on small teams and prevent them from focusing on high-value tasks such as business growth.
Can you trust your staff?
Small businesses tend to place more trust in their employees, as a natural result of working in smaller teams with broader responsibilities. Employees are also more likely to have access to accounts and other confidential business information on a daily basis.
This perfect storm of increased risk and reduced resources means small businesses need to think carefully about their recruitment practices and policies. While media reports tend to focus on fraud cases involving large corporations, it can be a mistake to think that as a small business owner, it won’t happen to you.
Reduce your fraud risk
Many business owners believe that background screening is expensive, complicated and time consuming. In reality, using an online platform like fit2work can help streamline your recruitment processes, so you can make better recruitment decisions and grow your business.
We suggest that you start by working out what checks your business will be doing and how they will be managed. You can then create a background screening package that’s tailored to your industry.
Designed for small business
We’ve designed fit2work so it’s affordable for small businesses. We charge you for the checks you conduct on potential and existing employees, as set out in our Fee Schedule. You can also choose to pass this cost onto the employee as part of the recruitment process.
Our fit2work platform can be tailored for SMB needs, with more than 70 checks that cover a range of sectors. Contact us for more information, or visit fit2work.