Free FCRA & Background Check Training for HR — 4 SHRM PDCs
Build a defensible, FCRA-compliant program in one afternoon.
A free SHRM-certified background check certification for HR, talent, and operations leaders. Learn FCRA compliance, the SOARR screening framework, how to vet a background screening vendor, and how to run an adverse action process that holds up to audit — in one self-paced afternoon. Built by the Bchex team, who has run more than 40 million background checks since 1995.
- 5-stage SOARR framework — taught in Module 14 and used by the Bchex team
- Earn 4 PDCs toward SHRM-CP® or SHRM-SCP® recertification
- Take it self-paced — finish in a single afternoon
- Two free 30-minute 1:1 coaching sessions with the Bchex team — included with Open Access
- Hands-on group coaching with Bchex CEO Ken Monroe — included with Pro
2,000+ School Districts, Non-Profits, and Businesses Trust the Bchex Brand
Why this exists
Tired of screening blind spots, compliance gray areas, and inconsistent decisions? You deserve better answers.
Most HR teams inherit a screening process they never designed. Our research on the hidden risk in American workplaces shows the gap between what programs catch and what they miss is wider than most leaders think. The Masterclass gives you a defensible framework, the legal context, and the templates to fix the three places programs quietly fail.
You don't know what you're missing.
County criminal alone misses federal cases. SSN trace alone misses identity fraud. Most teams have no clear rationale for why a package contains what it contains — until something slips through.
FCRA & EEOC rules quietly drift.
Ban-the-box, marijuana laws, adverse action timing — the rules change every year, and most disclosure forms haven't been updated since they were copied from a vendor. Auditors notice.
Every recruiter adjudicates differently.
Without a job-relevant decision matrix, two recruiters reading the same report make two different calls. That's not just risk — it's the exact pattern that turns into a discrimination claim.
The Curriculum
14 modules + a final assessment. Every part of a defensible program.
From the basics of screening data to compliance, vendor technology, and the SOARR implementation framework — the masterclass walks you through every part of a modern background-check program. Self-paced, knowledge-checked, SHRM-certified.
What You Need to Know
Complexity of Screening Data
Criminal Data & Where We Access It
Other Screening Processes You Need to Know
Dealing with Arrest & Possible Records
Identity Matters & Fraud
Building Quality Screens
Decision Making
Technology Integration Insights
Compliance
Understanding Screening Provider Technology
Service from a Background Screening Company
Monitoring & Rescreening
Implementing SOARR — Survey, Optimize, Align, Reinforce, Refine
Final Assessment — Screening, Data Integrity & Compliance
Course Outcomes
What you'll learn in the Screening Hero Masterclass
A background check certification gives HR and operations leaders a defensible, repeatable framework for hiring decisions — not just a vendor login. Across 14 modules and a final assessment, the Screening Hero Masterclass covers the four areas where most screening programs break down: program design under FCRA, the SOARR screening framework, vendor evaluation, and the adverse action process. Below is a plain-language summary of each.
How to build a defensible, FCRA-compliant background check program
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is the federal law that governs how employers request, use, and act on consumer reports — including criminal records, employment verifications, and motor vehicle reports. A defensible background check program follows three FCRA-required steps: a clear, stand-alone disclosure to the candidate; written consent before pulling any report; and a two-step adverse action process if the report is going to influence a negative hiring decision. The masterclass walks through the disclosure language regulators expect to see, the documentation you need to retain, and how to align FCRA compliance with state-level rules like ban-the-box and marijuana-conviction restrictions.
The SOARR framework — the five-stage screening method Bchex uses internally
SOARR is a five-stage background screening framework developed by Bchex: Survey, Optimize, Align, Reinforce, Refine. Survey uses the Survey Tool with your purchase documents to grade your current screens against what each role actually requires — no guessing. Optimize audits your screening data with the Data Analysis Tool, fixes errors, and plans improvements. Align builds a job-relevant decision matrix and uses context screening to make fair, consistent, and insightful hiring choices. Reinforce runs the Compliance Audit Tool, sets rescreening reminders, and keeps your program legally bulletproof. Refine turns those audit findings into leverage — demanding better from your current vendor or vetting a new one. SOARR is the operating model the Bchex team uses to design programs for school districts, nonprofits, and mid-market employers, and Module 14 of the masterclass is the implementation walkthrough.
How to evaluate any background screening vendor
Most HR teams inherit a screening provider; few have ever evaluated one against a written rubric. The masterclass introduces the 20-Point Vendor Vetting Blueprint, a checklist for assessing any consumer reporting agency (CRA) on the criteria that actually predict program quality: PBSA accreditation, the breadth and recency of criminal data sources, average turnaround time on county-level searches, the dispute and re-investigation process, integration with your ATS, and the human review escalation path for borderline records. The same blueprint applies whether you're evaluating background check services for a 50-person nonprofit or comparing enterprise CRAs.
How to handle adverse action without legal exposure
Adverse action is the FCRA term for any negative hiring decision based wholly or partly on information in a consumer report. The federal adverse action process is two-stage: a pre-adverse action notice sent before the decision is final, including a copy of the report and the FCRA Summary of Rights, then a final adverse action notice after a reasonable waiting period — the FTC has historically pointed to about five business days as a workable benchmark, though several states require longer windows or additional disclosures. The masterclass covers the letter library, timing rules state-by-state, individualized assessment under EEOC guidance, and how to document the file so the decision is defensible if challenged. Programs that include post-hire continuous monitoring or volunteer screening use the same adverse action framework with workflow adjustments covered in Module 13.
What's Included
The full toolkit — included free in Open Access.
You don't just get a course. You get the complete operating system Bchex uses internally — video lessons, playbooks, frameworks, and a vendor-vetting blueprint you can hand to your team on Monday.
- 14 video modules + 55 lessons — self-paced, mobile-friendly, with knowledge checks throughout
- SOARR implementation playbook — the 5-stage framework Bchex teams use to survey, optimize, align, reinforce, and refine
- 20-Point Vendor Vetting Blueprint — the exact rubric to evaluate any background screening provider
- FCRA & Adverse Action Compliance Checklist — stay defensible at every step of the hiring funnel
- SHRM® certificate worth 4 PDCs toward SHRM-CP® or SHRM-SCP® recertification
Coaching, included
You're never left to implement alone.
Every enrollment comes with live coaching — not just videos. The difference between Open Access and Pro is who you learn from and how deep you go.
Two 30-minute 1:1 sessions with the Bchex team
Sit down one-to-one with a Bchex coach who walks you through the assessment tools, checklists, and templates that come with the course — so you know exactly how to put them to work on your own screening program. Booked on your schedule by calendar link, and included at no cost.
- A guided walkthrough of the 3 Assessment Tools: Screening Assessment, Compliance Assessment, and Data Integrity Assessment
- How to apply the FCRA & adverse-action checklist to your own program
- Answers to your specific screening questions
- Booked anytime via calendar link
Two live group sessions with Ken Monroe
Learn directly from the CEO of Bchex. Across two live group sessions, Ken teaches the expert judgment behind building and defending a screening program — and reviews members' real programs against the SOARR framework, so you leave knowing exactly where yours is exposed and how to rebuild it to hold up under FCRA scrutiny.
- Everything in the Open Access coaching
- Two live group coaching sessions with Ken Monroe
- A personalized review of your screening program, worked through the SOARR framework
- Priority access to the Bchex implementation team
Enrollment
Choose how you want to learn.
Start free with Open Access, or go Pro for live group coaching and hands-on implementation support. Both tiers include the full masterclass, the SHRM certificate, and lifetime access.
Open Access
No credit card required.
Get the full course. On us.
- Full 14-module Screening Hero Masterclass
- SHRM® certificate — 4 PDCs
- Two 30-minute 1:1 coaching sessions with the Bchex team
- SOARR framework playbook + 20-Point Vendor Vetting Blueprint
- FCRA & Adverse Action Compliance Checklist
- Data Analysis Tool
- Compliance Tool
- Screening Assessment Tool
- Fraud Detection eBook
- 20-Point Vendor Vetting eBook
- Rapid Compliance eBook
- Sample Adverse Action Letters
- Sample English Disclosure & Authorization Form
- Quality Hiring Decision Framework
- Wage Restriction States & Sites List
- SOARR Summary Blueprint
- Fair Chance Hiring Guide
- Context-Based Screening Handout
- Key Metrics to Ask Your Provider
- Sample Letterhead
- Lifetime access to materials
Pro
Everything in Open, plus live group coaching with Bchex CEO Ken Monroe.
- Everything in Open Access
- Two live group coaching sessions with Ken Monroe
- A personalized review of your screening program (SOARR framework)
- Priority access to the Bchex implementation team
Have a Bchex access code? Apply it at checkout.
Open Access · Free
Register free — start learning today.
No credit card required. Instant access to all 14 modules.
Your Instructor
Built by the people who run thousands of checks every day.
Ken Monroe is the founder of Screening Hero and the CEO of Bchex, a national background screening company that has run more than 40 million checks since 1995.
The SHRM-certified Screening Hero Masterclass exists because Ken watched more than $100 million in preventable fraud move through organizations with weak background check programs and poor vendor vetting. The pattern was always the same: good HR teams using the wrong process. So he built SOARR — Survey, Optimize, Align, Reinforce, Refine — the five-stage framework Bchex uses internally to design programs for school districts, nonprofits, and mid-market employers.
This course is that framework, taught directly. By the end of it, you'll be able to build, audit, or rebuild a screening program that holds up to FCRA scrutiny and actually catches what it's supposed to catch.
Want Ken in your corner? Pro members join live group coaching sessions with Ken Monroe.
Go Pro — $499Testimonials
You're trusted to bring in the right people.
We're here to make it easier.
In the world of education, we need to hire fast, and knowing that Bchex can generate a report in 24 hours or less makes us feel confident that we can hire the right talent quickly.
Jakob Tisdale
Talent & HR Coordinator · Carmen Schools of Science & Technology
I highly recommend Bchex services to any professional looking to do background checks. It's convenient, it's fast, it's reliable, and it's a great asset to any company.
Kristin Kidwell
Owner · First Choice Sitters
We would highly recommend Bchex for several reasons. The first, of course, is customer service. That's always the most important. The next, of course, is timeliness in terms of how quickly you need your results. The portal is very easy to navigate. You can reach a live person on the phone.
Ava Greene
VP of Legal & HR · AdvisorHR
FAQ
Got Questions? We Have Answers.
Common questions about the Screening Hero Masterclass — including the difference between the free Open Access and paid Pro tiers, how SHRM PDC certification works, who the course is for, and how it relates to the SOARR background screening framework taught by Bchex.
Is the Screening Hero Masterclass really free?
What's the difference between Open Access and Pro?
Can I upgrade from Open Access to Pro later?
Will I really earn SHRM® PDCs?
Do I need to be a Bchex client to take it?
How long does the course take?
What do I get when I finish?
- A SHRM-certified completion certificate (4 PDCs)
- A certificate of completion for your resume and LinkedIn certifications
- Lifetime access to module updates as FCRA and state laws evolve
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Become a Screening Hero. In one afternoon.
Three hours from now you'll have a defensible screening program, the SHRM credential to prove it, and the templates to hand off to your team. Start free with Open Access — or go Pro for live group coaching and hands-on implementation support.