Searching Candidates
Find candidates using text search, AI semantic search, and manual structured filters.
Before You Start
Required permission: manageCandidates
Page Overview
Navigate to Candidates in the sidebar. The page contains a search card with a search bar, filter chips, and a results table.
Searching
Text Search
Type a name or email in the search bar to search. The search term persists in the URL — use your browser back button to return to a previous search.
AI Search
Click the AI button in the search bar and describe what you need in natural language, for example: "Senior engineers in London with Java experience and under 30 days notice."
The AI does two things with your description:
- Extracts structured filters — location, skills, experience level, salary, notice period, and similar criteria are applied as filter chips.
- Activates semantic ranking — results are re-ranked by how closely each candidate's resume matches the overall intent of your search, even when the exact words aren't present. For example, a candidate whose resume says "backend engineer, Django/PostgreSQL" will rank highly for a search for "python developer."
AI-generated filters coexist with manual filters — the AI replaces previous AI filters but preserves any manually added ones.
Semantic Match Chip
When semantic ranking is active, a purple Semantic match chip (with a sparkle icon) appears at the start of the filter chips row. Hover the chip to see the exact phrase used for semantic ranking.
| Behavior | Detail |
|---|---|
| Remove | Click ✕ on the chip to drop semantic ranking. Results revert to pure filter/keyword search. |
| Persists across actions | Semantic ranking stays active when you edit filters, page through results, or change sort order. |
| Replaced on new AI search | Running a new AI search replaces the previous semantic phrase with the new one. |
| Shared via URL | The semantic phrase is stored in the URL (sq parameter). Anyone opening a shared link sees the same semantically ranked results. |
Semantic ranking works best with descriptive phrases. "Senior product manager, B2B SaaS, fintech background" gives better results than a list of keywords.
Manual Filters
Click Add Filter in the filter chips bar to add individual structured filters. Available categories include location, skills, experience level, salary, notice period, and career metrics.
Each filter has two settings:
- Mode — Required (must match) or Preferred (contributes to scoring)
- Enabled/Disabled — toggle without deleting the filter
Match Score Badge
A percentage badge appears next to each candidate name whenever scoring information is available.
| Badge color | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Green | 100% |
| Blue | 50–99% |
| Orange | Below 50% |
How the score is calculated depends on what search is active:
| Search mode | Score shown |
|---|---|
| AI semantic search only (no scoring filters) | Semantic relevance % |
| Scoring filters only (no AI semantic search) | Filter match % |
| Both AI semantic search and scoring filters | Blended score combining both |
| Neither | No badge shown |
Hover the badge to see a breakdown. When both dimensions are active, the tooltip shows Filters: X% · Semantic: Y%. When only filters are active, it shows the matched criteria.
Results Table
The table is paginated (default 10 rows; options: 5, 10, 25, 50). Click any sortable column header to sort. Click a row to open the candidate profile.
Columns
| Column | Sortable | Default Visible | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Yes | Yes | Status dot, bookmark icon, and match score badge (filter, semantic, or blended) |
| Company | Yes | Yes | Current company |
| Location | No | Yes | City, State, Country |
| Notice Period | Yes | Yes | Formatted as days or months ("Immediate" for 0) |
| Current Salary | Yes | Yes | |
| Expected Salary | Yes | Yes | |
| Yes | No | ||
| Phone | Yes | No | Includes WhatsApp quick-link |
| Applications | Yes | No | Total application count |
| Source | No | No | Badge showing candidate source |
| Created | Yes | No | Date the candidate was added |
| Custom Fields | No | No | One column per custom field definition |
| Career Metrics | No | No | Appear dynamically when career metric filters are active |
Candidate Status Indicator
A color dot next to each name indicates status:
- Green — Active
- Gray — Archived
- Red — Do Not Contact
A yellow bookmark icon indicates the candidate is bookmarked.
Bulk Actions
Check the selection checkbox on any row to select it. You can select up to 50 candidates at once. A bulk actions panel appears at the bottom of the page when candidates are selected.
| Action | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Add to Pipeline | 1+ selected; requires manageCandidates |
| Send Email | 1+ selected; requires SMTP configured |
| Compare | 2–4 selected |
Add to Pipeline
Opens a dialog to choose a job and stage. All selected candidates are added to that job's pipeline.
Send Email
Opens a full-screen email composer to send a message to all selected candidates.
Compare
Navigates to the Candidate Comparison page with the selected 2–4 candidates pre-loaded.
URL State
Search term, active filters, semantic search phrase, sort column, sort direction, page number, and page size are all stored in the URL. Bookmark or share a URL to restore the same view — including any active semantic ranking.