How to Determine What Your Company Actually Spends on Vetting

The more security companies we consult, the clearer it becomes that tracking expenditures on vetting can be a complex task. Ensuring that you maximise your investment in compliance management starts with accurately tracking your spending. This blog provides a straightforward method to determine your actual vetting costs and offers practical tips on how to monitor these expenses effectively.

Where to Start When Calculating Vetting Spend

In an industry with extremely slim margins, every penny counts. That's why rethinking your approach to "vetting costs" can help you account for additional expenses and gain a more accurate understanding of the true cost of hiring a new SIA-licensed security guard.

Usually, we see clients simplify vetting spend to the following formula: 

Amount of hires x estimated cost per vetting = Vetting expense

Although this is a good logical base to start from, there are several other factors and expenses to take into consideration, and these vary heavily on whether you currently use an in-house or outsourced solution. 

Additional Expenses To Consider for In-House Vetting 

For in-house teams, several factors need to be considered when calculating the cost of vetting.

• Paid Staff Hours

The primary consideration is how much you pay your staff and the number of hours they spend on tasks such as sending correspondence, chasing candidates for documentation, and organising completed vetting files. 

Calculating this accurately can be challenging, but asking your team for an estimate of the time they spend on each candidate and comparing this to their average hourly rate can give you a rough idea of your investment in your team.

• Paper processing and storage

How much could that innocent little piece of paper be costing you? As we all know, papers turn into stacks, stacks turn into files, files turn into filing cabinets and filing cabinets turn into rooms with row upon row of documentation. It’s estimated that as much as 3% of a company’s revenue is spent on paper, filing, printing and the maintenance of paper files. 

• What you pay for tools you use

If you use any tools to track, document or organise the vetting process, it’s important to include the cost of these in the overall end figure:

• Cost for getting accreditation

• Costs of systems that enable secure data processing

• Onboarding costs and training times for new staff members

• Tech and equipment for the Check ops team

Additional Expenses and Factors to Consider for Outsourced Vetting 

If you outsource your vetting to an external company, tracking the cost of this is a lot more straightforward, but there’s still some factors you should consider adding to your overall end product. 

• Overall return of investment 

If you pay between £75 - £130 for a BS7858 vetting to your current supplier, it could be useful to also consider the overall quality of the service they provide: 

• Reporting abilities and transparency of the service: Do they offer the ability to see candidate updates throughout the process and report to other teams and leadership? 

• Candidate quality: Have you ever had a candidate pass through vetting where you’ve had a sneaking suspicion that they shouldn’t have? If your current provider seems to be more relaxed about BS7858 standards than they should be, consider how this could affect your business. 

A file that doesn't comply with BS7858 standards could lead to an audit failure. This in turn can lead to lost clients, and reputational damage. At Deploi, we prioritise quality over speed. We focus on mitigating risk and providing you with fully compliant files, ensuring you never have to worry about an audit.

• Chasing and managing the candidate: Do they openly and transparently work with the candidate to ensure documents are delivered in a timely manner and to the highest standard, or does this responsibility constantly fall on you or your team?

• Candidate satisfaction: 80% of new hires who receive poor onboarding plan to quit (source). Have candidates mentioned they’ve had a poor experience with the service? If so, it might be time to consider switching your providers. 

At Deploi, we save your company money by delivering fully compliant, high-quality files swiftly and efficiently. Our expedited clearance process outpaces the competition, providing you with compliant workers faster. Additionally, our storage solution is straightforward and efficient, ensuring easy access to necessary documents. Our unique BS7858 passporting system further enhances efficiency by allowing immediate retrieval of files for applicants already in our system. This combination of speed, compliance, and streamlined processes reduces your administrative burden and associated costs.

If you’re considering a switch, get in touch today to hear about how we compare to competitors and traditional vetting services.