SafestHires — Background Screening Solutions
Ownership

A veteran-owned background check company

SafestHires was founded and is owned by three United States Navy veterans. This page is for buyers and supplier-diversity teams who need to know exactly who stands behind the reports.

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Short answer

SafestHires is a veteran-owned employment background screening company, co-founded and run by three United States Navy veterans.

The founders — Andy Andersen, Jake Taylor, and Mark Lingo — bring decades of combined background screening experience and personally write and review the compliance guidance published on this site. The company is headquartered in Broomfield, Colorado and screens candidates for employers nationwide, with no minimum order volume. Buyers running supplier-diversity or small-business sourcing programs can count SafestHires toward veteran-owned supplier goals.

The founders

Three Navy veterans built SafestHires, and all three are still in the business. They are named, photographed, and attributed on every guide they review — not a stock "leadership team" page.

Andy Andersen, Co-founder, SafestHires

Andy Andersen

Co-founder, SafestHires

Disabled Navy veteran who has co-founded five companies in twenty years, including two background screening firms. Passionate about client success and helping veterans start businesses.

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Jake Taylor, Co-founder, SafestHires

Jake Taylor

Co-founder, SafestHires

Former Navy SEAL and disabled veteran with twenty years of service. Held leadership positions in safety roles supervising background screening and onboarding programs.

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Mark Lingo, Co-founder, SafestHires

Mark Lingo

Co-founder, SafestHires

Disabled Navy veteran and former NCIS undercover agent. With more than twenty years in the background screening industry, he is a trusted advisor to clients and team members.

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What veteran ownership actually changes

Ownership is not a data-quality claim, and we will not pretend otherwise. What it changes is who you reach and how the company is run.

  • Direct access to decision-makers. The people who set policy answer the phone. There is no account-management tier between a buyer and an owner.
  • Supplier-diversity credit. Procurement teams that track veteran-owned supplier spend can count screening spend toward those goals.
  • Named accountability on content. Every guide on this site that cites law carries a founder's name and photograph as the reviewer.
  • Small-employer commercial terms. No minimum volume, no seat licenses, no platform fee — see the pricing calculator.

How to evaluate us anyway

Score us the way you would score anyone else. The vendor assessment scorecard runs 32 weighted criteria across data sourcing, turnaround, adverse action support, security attestations, and integrations, and it produces the same report regardless of which provider you point it at. Our head-to-head comparison pages cover the national providers you are most likely to be weighing us against.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a veteran-owned background check company?

Yes. SafestHires is an employment background screening company co-founded and owned by three United States Navy veterans — Andy Andersen, Jake Taylor, and Mark Lingo — who between them have decades of background screening experience. The company is headquartered in Broomfield, Colorado and serves employers nationwide.

Who owns SafestHires?

SafestHires was co-founded by three Navy veterans who still run the company day to day. They write and review the compliance guidance published on this site, and their profiles are public on the experts page rather than anonymous.

Why does veteran ownership matter when choosing a screening vendor?

For most buyers it matters in two concrete ways. First, supplier-diversity and small-business sourcing programs frequently track veteran-owned spend, and a veteran-owned provider can count toward those goals. Second, owner-operated companies tend to give buyers direct access to decision-makers instead of an account-management tier — which is the practical difference most small and mid-market employers notice.

Does veteran ownership affect data quality or compliance?

No. Ownership does not substitute for controls. Evaluate any provider — veteran-owned or not — on independent attestations, data sourcing depth, turnaround measured over a full year rather than a best month, and how adverse action support actually works. The vendor assessment scorecard scores all of that on 32 weighted criteria.

Can SafestHires support supplier-diversity reporting?

Yes. Talk to us about the documentation your procurement or supplier-diversity team needs for its reporting, and we will provide what applies to our business.

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