A bad hire can result in a legal and financial nightmare; bad hires can cost an employer wasted time in recruiting, hiring and training, the job not being done, potential litigation if the new employee turns out to be unfit, dishonest, or dangerous, says consultant Lester Rosen.

In an article for Kennedy Information Recruiting Trends, Rosen sorts through the hiring process and examines the various tools employers can use to check potential new hires. He says that the traditional background check is usually performed at the end stage of the hiring process, when the company has narrowed the choice down to a few candidates. New tools such as online automated reference checks and assessments, are done earlier in the time line of the selection process, and used to decide who to focus on out of a pool of candidates. Rosen says a background check seeks to assist an employer in exercising due diligence by examining if there is any reason NOT to hire someone that an employer has potentially targeted for employment.

“The bottom-line is risk management,” Rosen says. “Although these email assessment tools are an excellent means of providing an in-depth assessment about a candidate during the decision-making stage, the traditional background check complement them for the final candidates and provides the demonstrable due diligence that can be used as a legal defense if there is a negligent hire lawsuit.”