Cutting Corners – Is it Worth the Risk?
Ron Hartman
When we cut corners, we are taking short cuts. Why do we do it? Most of the time it is to save effort or to find a cheaper or easier way to do something or get something done quicker. The problem is that when we cut corners, we often harm the quality of our work or put others or ourselves at risk of unforeseen issues or deficiencies.
We all know that the housing market in Canada is hot right now. If you are looking for a home, especially a resale, you have to be quick to get the home that you want. You are competing with many other buyers who are interested in the property as well, so making your offer as attractive as possible is important. So to make that offer attractive means having to accommodate a shorter closing date, or waive certain items on your home buyer’s checklist. Often the corner that gets cut is the home inspection. I recently watched a documentary on this trend and found it fascinating that four years ago, nearly 70% of purchases were subject to a home inspection. In contrast, that percentage in today’s market has dropped to an alarming 25%! You might think, ‘what’s the risk?’ Without a home inspection, buyers can be burdened with the responsibility of dealing with major issues such as structural problems, foundation cracks or leaks, and quite often mould. I suppose, these are all items that don’t necessarily affect the public and can be dealt with in time.
If you are involved in the trucking or the logistics/distribution industry, you know that there is a driver shortage and it is projected to last well into 2020. Recruiters for these sectors, face the same challenges as homebuyers do. If they do not act quickly to hire a driver, they run the risk of losing them to another company. So, recruiters cut corners. They take short cuts. They forego necessary items on their checklists. If a driver has a photocopy of their criminal records search letter with them, they will accept it. If they have a photocopy of their driver’s abstract and Commercial Driver Vehicle Report (CVDR) with them, they will take those documents as well. They do so because they know that the alternative is to have the driver supply an original document, which can take time. Sometimes it could take days or weeks to have the driver obtain a criminal records search letter, or a driver’s abstract and a CVDR. Time is something they cannot afford in the fast paced business of finding drivers. Accepting photocopies gets that driver hired faster.
So, again, what is the risk? Quite simply put, accepting photocopies of documents puts the company at risk of fraud and tampering which could potentially put a driver with a criminal record in your employ, or a driver with a less than desirable driving record behind the wheel of one of your trucks. Cutting corners during the recruiting process can create major issues and potentially burden your company with enormous liabilities. One accident, or one theft of cargo, puts the public, as well as your people, property, brand, information and reputation at risk.
There is an alternative, and that is to obtain the required documents to qualify a driver directly from the source. The Making Eligibility Easy (MEE) Driver Qualification platform significantly reduces the time to attain the necessary documentation. It is available to all fleets, regardless of size. MEE orders and retrieves documents within minutes or hours. With MEE, recruiters can complete the qualification process while the driver is still on the premise, often before they complete their road test.
If there is a solution that speeds up the driver qualification process and eliminates the risk of fraud, is cutting corners worth the risk to the public and your company?
