5 Ways to Mitigate Business Risk with On-Demand Court Records

When leading an organization, there is a considerable amount of risk that can be involved. No matter what industry your business operates within, it’s vital to monitor and mitigate business risk across five major risk categories:

1. Strategic risk
2. Compliance risk
3. Operational risk 
4. Financial risk
5. Reputational risk

For companies in the background screening industry, these risks can be heightened due to a variety of different factors, including:

• The highly competitive market for consumer reporting agencies
• The in-flux nature of local, state, and federal regulations 
• The potential impact background screening decisions have on candidates and businesses 

The information provided is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. We advise you to consult your own counsel if you have legal questions related to your specific practices and compliance with applicable laws. 

Mitigating Risk through Innovative Background Screening 

You can start to mitigate business risk by implementing innovative background screening processes.   In fact, this simple change can impact your risk profile across all five types of risk.

Strategic Business Risk

It is important to make assessments on how your business strategy is performing in the current market while planning ahead so that you can adjust your model accordingly. 

The inability to adapt to ever changing customer demands could take you from top dog to underdog. Stay ahead of the competition by evaluating where you stand in the current market.  Are there areas to improve your processes or to embellish your services?  

If you need to optimize your research procedures, then you should consider leveraging on-demand court records. Automated criminal record retrieval has decreased turnaround time by approximately 75% in comparison to traditional retrieval methods for Tessera Data customers.    

Already taking advantage of direct access to courts on-demand? Then look into investing in industry trends, such as continuous monitoring, to extend your available full-scope service offerings. 

Compliance Business Risk 

Now a slightly more complex question, are you in compliance with the most recent regulations and laws?

The hope is that the answer is yes – but as laws and regulations continue to evolve, it is essential that you stay up to date with any new guidelines. 

Failure to comply can result in legal action and penalties, which may impact several areas of your organization. 

In the background screening industry, there is increased pressure for organizations to comply with the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), equal employment and fair housing laws,  and employ best practices to avoid human bias in decision-making, which can lead to adverse impact on underrepresented populations.

Automated data collection retrieves directly from the source, which helps improve accuracy  for straightforward decision making. 

Operational Business Risk 

Any day-to-day business function mishaps can be categorized as operational bottlenecks. These hiccups can range from technical failures, such as a server outage, or manual issues caused by a person’s mistake or inefficient processes. 

These seemingly minuscule problems can sometimes go undetected, as they can be less impactful in comparison to other issues.  However, if these events continue to occur regularly, there can be negative consequences for the organization across departments.  

Leveraging automation can help reduce human error and improve turnaround time and accuracy for a streamlined process to help you operate more efficiently. 

Financial Business Risk

The typical business risks in this category usually stem from unplanned additional costs or major losses in revenue. Managing vendor and search costs can reduce the possibility of running into unbudgeted expenses while maintaining customer satisfaction, loyalty, and retention, which are key elements to avoiding substantial spikes in existing sales. 

When it comes to adding a service or entering a new market, not weighing the foreseeable financial risks when making vital business decisions can have a much larger impact on revenue.

By using automated criminal records, search costs can decrease by 35% for cost efficient vendor management.  This simple implementation of new data sources can help you mitigate business risks more proactively and keep your finances in check. 

Reputational Business Risk

All of the aforementioned risks can ultimately impact your reputation and brand value, which is why it is one of the most important business risks to consider. A marred reputation can cause you to miss out on new prospects or lose existing customers. 

Your company’s reputation can be tarnished by anyone and at any time, for a variety of different reasons. It is important to protect and monitor your business’s reputation, as it is a reflection of how your organization is viewed externally.

Reputational risks are one of the main reasons your customers come to you for trust and safety decisions. This is another reason one-time criminal screenings and continuous criminal record monitoring should be considered as offerings to your audience. The ability to continuously monitor and mitigate business risks is crucial to the long term sustainability of your company. 

Access Courts On-Demand with Tessera Data™

Through innovative retrieval processes, you can perform real-time, instant, and continuous criminal record searches through a united data provider, like Tessera Data. 

By implementing automated insight solutions to your business model, you are creating a more efficient and manageable research experience while mitigating business risks. Reduce your turnaround time with cost effective searches while decreasing the possibility of human error in your results.

For more information about Tessera’s comprehensive data solutions, get in touch with a member of our sales team.