Screen Candidates via Web Chat

4 min read

The web chat is the screening channel for candidates who aren't on WhatsApp: they open a secure link and answer questions in a conversational chat interface — with the same gated, two-stage journey as every other channel. Candidates who reply by SMS are routed here too — they receive this link by text.

How the Link Works

The candidate receives a unique screening link — by email, or by SMS reply
The link is single-use — a used link can't be replayed
Opening it starts a chat-style form — no login, no account, mobile-friendly

If a link expires before the candidate uses it, they're not stuck: the expired page lets them enter their email, and if there's an active screening request for it, a fresh link is sent within minutes.

Stage 1: The Qualifier

The link opens on the Qualifier only — the universal PlacementFlow basics (location, right to work, notice, work setup, salary expectations, ideal next role) plus your must-knows, asked one at a time in a chat bubble format:

Must-knows are checked, never enforced — a mismatch or a skipped question is flagged for your review; the candidate is never told they failed
Vague answers get one push-back — if a free-text answer lacks substance, the AI asks a single warm follow-up for specifics, then moves on
The candidate's best contact email is collected before finishing, plus an optional phone number (with text-messaging consent)

Then the form stops, with a neutral close: "Thanks — our recruiter will review your answers and be in touch." No score has run, and no outcome has been communicated.

The Gate: You Decide Who Continues

The candidate's Qualifier answers land at Needs Review → Qualifier — the same queue as WhatsApp candidates — and you're notified immediately. You read what they actually said and approve or decline.

Approving sends a personal invitation from your own connected mailbox — your name, your agency, referencing their answers — with the link to the full Screening. The link stays live for 7 days, with at most two gentle link-free reminders (day 2 and day 5), plus a text nudge when a consented phone number is on file.

Stage 2: The Screening

Candidates who open your invitation complete the AI-scored deep-dive in the same chat-style interface — one question at a time, one probe per vague answer, and nothing from the Qualifier re-asked. There's no difference in scoring between channels: a web response and a WhatsApp response go through the same weights, thresholds, and review queue.

Once all questions are answered, candidates see a checkbox before submitting:

"I object to automated processing of my screening responses. A human recruiter will review my answers instead."

If they tick it, the AI does not score their response — it goes straight to you for manual review. Their answers are preserved either way.

What Happens After the Screening

Scoring runs in the background once the Screening is complete — never earlier
The response appears in your queue at Candidates → Screening with a score, recommendation, and any flags
If the AI couldn't produce a valid score, you see an amber scoring unavailable warning instead of a fabricated number — the raw answers stay readable and you can retry scoring or decide manually

What the AI Does Here

Runs the conversational Qualifier and Screening and extracts structured answers
Probes insufficient answers once per question
Scores the completed Screening against your thresholds — and flags must-know mismatches instead of rejecting anyone
Respects the opt-out absolutely — an objection to automated processing always routes to human review, and advancing or declining a candidate is always your decision

Troubleshooting

"Your link has expired" — the candidate can request a fresh link from that same page with their email address.
Link already used — screening links are single-use by design. If a candidate needs to redo a screening, send a new invitation.
Candidate completed the Qualifier but nothing scored — that's the gate working: scoring only runs after you approve them and they complete the Screening. Check Needs Review → Qualifier.
Candidate replied by SMS but never opened the form — SMS candidates get this web link by text; check the Qualifier queue before chasing, then follow up on the same thread.

Back to Candidate Screening