In a battle of wits, agility, and teamwork, the red Veni-Vidi-Verified faced off against the black/gray Usual Suspects in a series of thrilling games that pushed their limits and brought out their competitive spirits. Due to the air quality, our teams embraced the added challenge of competing in each event indoors.

Guardian knew this team was about to fall into the same trap so many other employers do. “I need to get over there and help before it’s too late!” Guardian said as he swooped down. On his way down, he could see what floor the HR team was on, but the window was sealed shut.

Standing alongside other extraordinary individuals and companies in our community, CI was honored to have received the Platinum Award in the Private Investigator category. We appreciate each and every person who took the time to vote for us and are equally appreciative of our staff who make it all happen.

“Oh it would indeed, Sue, and maybe even in multiple different inquiries. New York State has many different levels of criminal data. In the case of Coco’s charges, the two felonies will likely only be found in county court, and the misdemeanor will likely only be found in a lower court - such as town or city court, because county courts do not hear misdemeanor cases in New York,” Duey said.

There is a misconception between employers and their Human Resource professionals that a National or Nationwide criminal inquiry yields all criminal history information on a subject. Therefore, it’s imperative for employers to peel back the four layers of criminal information available for each subject. Each provides different information about an individual’s criminal history.

It's hard to believe that March 8th, 2023 marked 19 years since Commercial Investigations was founded. It seems too good to be true that this achievement also happens to fall on International Women’s Day, but the stars aligned for CI.

The people have spoken, and Commercial Investigations LLC has won the Platinum Award in the Private Investigator category.

We can't see exactly who voted, but we appreciate everyone that did take the time out of their day.

“We don’t need to pay someone to do a Sex Offender Registry search for us,” a Human Resource professional said, “we can do that on our own”.

Miles away, Guardian heard the distress call and sprang into action. “I have to let them know they won’t be getting all the information possible!” Guardian exclaimed.

The PBSA hosts annual and mid-year conferences each year giving those in the industry the opportunity to network and gain further education in order to better serve their clients.

The PBSA offered a wide variety of seminars to attend, including but not limited to: How to Grow Relationships between Consumer Reporting Agencies and Their Provider Partners, Improving Compliance Functions, Benefits of Fair Chance Hiring Practices, and Exploring End User Agreements.

“Oh nothing, sorry for my overreaction,” Duey said. “I just remembered that Fancy Valley called me while we were waiting at the airport. I had to let it go to voicemail because they were calling our section to board the plane!”

Duey ran over to grab his phone off the charger and dialed the number to Fancy Valley and The Four Seasons. Justin picked up the phone immediately.

Hiring and retaining employees this year has been challenging to say the least. Employers are facing one of the most historically tight labor markets ever. It was already hard enough to hire people, now add on a tightening economy and spending has become more difficult.

In response, employers are looking for places to cut costs while streamlining their applicant onboarding process. Unfortunately, one of the methods they are looking to accomplish this is by scaling back their background investigations.

Click, click, click. Guardian’s ears perked up. “I know that sound anywhere. That’s the sound of a Human Resources professional typing a potential new employee’s name into Google. They shouldn’t be doing that!” Guardian exclaimed.

“There’s no time to waste, I have to inform them of the correct compliance standards!” Guardian said. And with a gust of wind, our hero was gone.

What brings a workplace together more than some friendly competition? Thanks to our Social Committee, the CI staff enjoyed a half-day off from work to blow off some steam in the CI Olympics.

Before the games began, we gathered around for our Guardian Globes. During this light-hearted ceremony, members of our team received unique awards, voted on by their peers, for not only their hard work but for their standout personalities.

After 2 weeks of their exquisite honeymoon to Michigan, it was time for Duey and Prue to pack up their things and resume normalcy (or close to it).

“You feeling alright, Duey? That phone call with Coco left you a bit bewildered,” said Prue looking at wedding photos she posted. “What did she want anyway?”

What your applicant posts online affects your business. That’s why cyber investigations have become an essential part of the preemployment background check in today’s age. An ever-increasing amount of information becomes available as your applicants share parts of their lives online.

There’s nothing wrong with using social media, but a business owner and HR team need to be aware of a potentially offensive or criminal online post made by an employee that could impact the business.

The journey to retail cannabis in New York is leaving many companies with questions on changing laws and rules surrounding cannabis use in the workplace. Michelle Pyan, President of Commercial Investigations LLC, works with companies to do background and drug tests on employees, and she said the issue is complicated for employers who are trying to follow the constantly changing rules. That’s why she designed a virtual panel for companies aimed at answering some of those questions.

“But I’m so excited, Michelle. I can’t help myself. Ooh, wait. My down feathers are tingling. Someone is talking about background investigations.”

From the seats behind Michelle and Guardian. “I don’t like this whole Ban The Box rule. We cannot be put in the position of hiring someone with a criminal background. I mean, what if we hire someone with a history of embezzlement, and they end up stealing from us?”

Have you ever wanted to live life like a movie star? Even for just a day? Not everyone can be so lucky, but our staff here at CI are one of the exceptions! For one brief but memorable day this past October, our staff had the opportunity to feel like movie stars when the national television series World’s Greatest visited our Latham, NY headquarters.

“They want to hire a new employee but Michigan’s court redactions are holding them back. She yelled at us for being in the same state.” They both laughed together.

“Okay Duey, if you could be any animal in the world… GO!” Prue asked excitedly.

“Ban The Box” laws are criminal background check laws that prohibit employers from requesting a potential employee’s criminal history on a job application. Depending on the jurisdiction, they may regulate when an employer can ask about criminal history, provide disclosure and authorization forms, and conduct a background check. These laws are meant to protect applicants convicted of a crime from automatic disqualification during the selection process.