Most organizations include a criminal record check, as well as education and employment verifications. Other services, such as credential verifications, references, MVR searches, drug screening, and financial accountability checks may be required for safety-sensitive or regulated positions. Click here to read more about what shows up on a background check.
Background Checks|
7 min. read |
10/21/2026
Big or Little — Background Check Differentiators Based on Your Size
Ken Schnee
Head of Sales, First Advantage
Key Takeaways
- For 42% of hiring managers, risk mitigation is the most crucial component of background screening for organizations, ahead of speed and cost.1
- Enterprise companies can leverage industry benchmarking and data-driven insights to build tailored screening programs that meet their unique needs.
- Small and medium businesses benefit from screening solutions that balance speed, cost, and agility while delivering continuous improvement over time.
For many organizations, background screening is often viewed as a mere commodity, a transactional process driven by price and speed. And while these factors are undeniably important, they only scratch the surface of what background screening can truly offer for employers investing in hiring efficiencies to attract desirable talent. Whether you are hiring for a small business, a mid-market company, or a large enterprise organization, implementing the right background check program can help you mitigate risk and build trust with your employees and your customers without delaying your new recruits’ start date.
At its core, background screening is about knowing your people and swiftly onboarding the most suitable individuals based on your size and needs. Let’s look at a few scenarios that drive efficiencies based on organization size.
Scenario 1: You’re a large enterprise organization with unique needs
On an annual basis, you’re typically filling more positions, engaging with more applicants, and experiencing a higher employee turnover rate compared to companies half your size. You may be hiring for multiple locations across a region, the country, or around the world. Due to your size, you may be leveraging various background screening vendors managed by different teams to cover each location or requirement. Industry best practices and a patchwork of compliance regulations likely dictate the scope of your background screening program.
Everything, from your hiring volume to your compliance requirements, is fluid — constantly changing in response to subtle (and sometimes abrupt) market shifts, evolving legislation, and more. In short, it’s complicated.
Based on the findings of our 2026 Global Trends Report, mitigating risk is the most important component of the screening and identity verification process for 42% of hiring managers, ranking ahead of speed and cost. The gap is even more significant for large employers, for whom reputational stakes are the highest. To manage risk over time, companies are increasingly moving away from viewing background screening as a one-and-done. In fact, 82% of CHROs have implemented ongoing monitoring or periodic rescreening programs to help build workforce trust throughout the entire employee lifecycle.1
In a complex and risk-filled hiring landscape, you need more than just a background screening provider. You need a trusted partner with a proven track record and deep industry expertise; a partner who can help you navigate the uncertainties of today’s hiring market with confidence. Ideally, your partner should allow you to consolidate the wide range of robust screening solutions you use within a single, centralized platform, enabling you to reduce costs and gain greater visibility into your entire pre-employment program.
For First Advantage, that means intentionally structuring our technology, solutions, and service model so you’re able to enhance your hiring, screening, and onboarding, and monitoring processes and find the candidates you need more quickly.
Benchmark
Use data-backed ideas and answers with strategic consulting. Maybe you want to know how others in your industry are screening their executives and C-suite leadership. Or you’re getting pushback from applicants who expect on-demand updates and visibility into the hiring and screening processes. Or maybe there’s a glitch in your onboarding process, but you can’t pinpoint where it’s happening.
Our strategic consulting team — founded on Lean Six Sigma methodologies, analytics, deep data knowledge, and our experience with hundreds of enterprise employers worldwide — is your greatest advantage here. Based on your unique process and program concerns, we empower you with data-driven insights gleaned from your hiring, onboarding, and program performance data.
This is no guessing game. You get hard data to help you identify opportunities for improvement, make proactive program adjustments, and formulate your next best step forward. We then skillfully pair these insights with the right technology and solutions — with everything aligned to your current HR priorities and roadmap — to get the job done for your organization.
Put Your Buying Power to Work
Background screening is like other scenarios: the more you buy, the lower your costs. However, a “bulk buying” concept only works if you can find a provider that has everything you need.
Inclusive solutions should span dozens of different global background screening options for criminal checks, contractor screening, volunteer screening, monitoring, verifications, reference checks, and compliance services.
Your provider should offer options for compliance support, individualized assessments, and more, as well as industry-focused support in healthcare, retail, transportation, education, and other industries.
Availability of technology integrations is another key requirement and one of First Advantage’s strengths. We offer standard and tailored integrations with over 100 ATS and HCM integrated partners,4 working with top HR tech providers and up-and-coming tech firms primed to transform the market.
For large organizations, an inclusive offering means everything. With our support, you can:
- Significantly reduce your screening costs with bundled options and maximum buying power.
- Simplify administrative workflows by centralizing all background screening under a single provider.
- Improve operational efficiencies by plugging background screening services into your existing HR system for a true “one-stop” interface.
- Drive seamless program visibility across all screening components (background, drug, and international) and actionable performance insights that inform future program adjustments.
To help further position your large business as a leading employer, we continuously innovate and expand our solution offering on a local, national, and global scale to deliver key advantages that help you build workforce trust throughout the employee lifecycle.
Key Takeaway
As an enterprise employer, your business and your employees are your top concerns. Knowing this, look for a screening provider that can offer solutions tailored to your company’s unique needs, screening volume, and future trajectory of your hiring program.
Explore our enterprise solutions.
Scenario 2: You’re a small or mid-sized business focused on cost and speed
To compete with larger employers for top talent, you need a hiring process for your small or medium-size business that runs smoothly, whisking applicants through the background screening process with minimal hang-ups. After all, speed and agility are widely considered to be hallmarks of smaller companies.
Inflation is listed as a top hiring challenge by 57% of HR professionals2, driving pay increases, cramping budgets, and demanding a greater emphasis on hiring speed and costs. Small and medium companies need a screening provider that can help them make faster, more informed decisions while improving overall cost efficiencies. Standardized background check packages tailored for each role can save time for recruiters while improving consistency across the organization.
Here are a few of the needs First Advantage can help your small or medium business address in order to source qualified candidates quickly.
| Requirement | Solution | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Fast criminal record check turnaround times | We formed partnerships with government criminal record reporting sources and automated some of our criminal record processes. | Approximately 90% of criminal searches performed in the U.S. are completed the same day they are submitted.3 |
| Flexible integrations | We teamed up with over 100 industry-leading HRIS and ATS providers. | Our improved user experience and streamlined screening processes integrate seamlessly with other hiring and onboarding workflows. |
| Faster and more affordable verifications | We built an innovative solution, Verified!, which provides a repository of previously verified employment information. | Verifications can be completed up to 72% faster than other third-party sources4 while avoiding the costs of performing a manual verification and the expensive third-party fees associated with other verification databases. |
Takeaway
If speed, agility, and costs are integral to your hiring and screening strategy, take a close look at whether providers can deliver the level of efficiency you need and want. Also, consider their commitment to building and implementing new technology and partnerships that foster continuous improvement over time.
Explore our integration partnerships.
There’s a lot more to background checks than meets the eye. While speed and costs are crucial factors, you should take the time to ask questions and explore your potential screening provider’s knowledge and deeper motivations to get at the heart of what matters the most: mitigating risk and building workforce trust.
First Advantage is here for your business, no matter the size. Contact us to learn how we can support you and your candidates throughout the entire employee lifecycle.
Know your people™
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s included in a background check?
Why do some organizations partner with a third-party provider to complete background checks?
Many organizations work with background screening providers to help streamline hiring, improve efficiency, access specialized expertise, and support compliance requirements. End-to-end screening can also play an important role in broader workforce risk management strategies.
Why should my organization verify candidates’ identity before background screening?
Identity verification helps employers confirm their candidates are who they say they are. By pre-populating verified data into subsequent background checks, identity verification can also speed up the screening process.
Table of Contents
About First Advantage
Along the candidate journey HR teams choose First Advantage for consistent screening, fast verifications, and support of compliance regulations.
- 200M screens annually
- 1B+ records in proprietary databases
- 200+ countries and territories
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1 First Advantage, 2026 Global Trends Report
2 SHRM 2026 Recruiting Executives: Priorities and Perspectives Report
3 First Advantage internal data as of 12/31/2024
4 First Advantage internal data as of 12/31/2025
This content is offered for informational purposes only. First Advantage is not a law firm, and this content does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice. Information in this may not constitute the most up-to-date legal or other information.
Readers of this content should contact their own legal advisors concerning for their particular circumstance. No reader, or user of this content, should act or refrain from acting on the basis of information in this content. Only your individual attorney or legal advisor can provide assurances that the information contained herein – and your interpretation of it – is applicable or appropriate to your particular situation. Use of, and access to, this content does not create an attorney-client relationship between the reader, or user of this presentation and First Advantage.
