Before bringing in any employee into your firm, it is very important that you conduct a background check for them. There are sheep in human clothing and once you fall for these wolves by being careless with the person you employ, the effect would be very devastating. It is also very crucial for prospective employees to understand what employers in the banking sector are looking for so that they can work towards meeting those prerequisite. With this, things will move on smoothly in the sector.
Employing workers who are trustworthy is important every industry, but nowhere is it more important than in the banking industry, where financial institutions depend upon a reputation for safe, responsible practices in order to succeed. Not surprisingly, banks rely heavily on background checks, both for practical and regulatory reasons, to screen potential employees. But don’t give up hope, if your record isn’t spotless and you want to work in finance – the restrictions may not be as restrictive as you fear them to be (Cornett, 2019).
In order to stand a chance of working in the banking industry, you must build a bankable trust. The opportunities for fraud and theft abound in the banking industry, where even low-level employees handle large sums of cash and have access to customers’ sensitive personal and financial information. Banks seek to hire dependable, trustworthy employees to prevent criminal behavior on the job that can be costly both in the financial sense and in the public relations department. It’s not just a wise policy – it’s one based in banking regulations (Cornett, 2019). If there are records pointing to the fact that you cannot be trusted with money and vital pieces of information, you are not a good catch for the industry. Criminal behaviors are better prevented than watched or supervised. So, the employers will prefer not to bring in a person with a questionable character at all.
Now that we’ve spoken on what a prospective employee must do to increase their chances of being employed by a financial firm, let’s consider why background check is critical for the industry. May I note that background check should not only be done to prospective workers; it must be done on periodic basis so as to discover those who have derailed and can cause harm to the organization.
Protection of customer information: The reputation of your company is built upon the security of your customer’s information. In a world of frequent data breaches and hacks, it’s imperative that your business do all it can to keep information secure. Performing an Employment Verification and Reference Check helps to ensure that potential hires have a clean work history, have been compliant with industry regulations, and that they’ve done the work they say they have. Without this assurance, your facility is open to all sorts of litigation if the worst happens and an employee isn’t honest about their past. Interviews with past employers can help to verify that an applicant has the ethical backbone you need to maintain your company’s reputation. Other services, such as a credit check, can help to verify the reliability of an individual, as well as their stability over time. In the financial industries, this sort of assurance is of the utmost importance (Alliance Investigative, 2017).
Protection of the company’s assets: Your financial facility safeguards access to cash, accounts, and sensitive documents of all kinds. It’s important to verify that new hires have no criminal background, history of theft, or other problematic behaviors before onboarding them. Even things like theft of company time may come up in professional reference checks, so be sure that your background investigation includes them. If your employees will be traveling for meetings or to transport assets (as in the case of secured deposits by banks), a DMV search should also be conducted to verify that there are no questionable traffic violations on their record (Alliance Investigative, 2017).
To ensure the best quality customer experience. You’ve built your company’s reputation on excellent customer service. Expert knowledge, integrity, and high-quality service are critical aspects of why your customers rely on you for their banking or financial needs. A thorough pre-employment screening can help to verify that new team members will meet company expectations and help to further your mission to provide unparalleled customer care. It would be a very grievous error to employ a person who will destroy what you’ve labored for for years. Remember that it takes a process and years to build reputation and win the trust of people while havoc can be wreaked on everything within a twinkle of an eye. So, the preventive dose lies in not allowing them to creep into the organization. Background check curbs this error.
Meeting up with regulation and best practices for banking and money transfer approval.In any developed nation of the world, it is very difficult to obtain the licensure necessary to become a money transmitter. If your bank or financial institution has already gone through the process of approval for money transfer licenses (essentially the ability to sell or issue payment instruments) it is imperative that your employees have undergone the background checks required by your license. Failure to do so puts your company at risk for significant legal trouble as well as loss of your ability to transfer funds (Alliance Investigative, 2017). This is applicable to other similar licenses too. The message here is simple: don’t bring in someone who will end up putting you in an unimaginable problem.
In conclusion, depending on the country, there are some given areas of focus while carrying out the background check that you must shed light on. The first area of concern to most financial institutions is whether or not a person has a criminal record. In addition to the criminal records, the next area of concern is whether or not a person is truthful and honest and accurate about their employment. Almost a half of the applications are filled with fictions and that is why you need to check properly (Field, 2008).
References
Alliance Investigative (2017). 5 Reasons Banking And Finance Companies Need Background Checks. Retrieved from https://www.allianceinvestigative.com/5-reasons-banking-and-finance-companies-need-background-checks/
Cornett, J.E (2019). Background Checks For Banking. Retrieved from https://work.chron.com/background-checks-banking-26474.html
Field, T (2008). Background Checks: Best-Practices For Financial Institutions. Retrieved from https://www.bankinfosecurity.com/interviews/background-checks-best-practices-for-financial-institutions-i-89