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Set up recruiting stages and categories (Implementation)

 

 

This is step 6 of 9 of the implementation module Recruiting.

This article explains how to configure recruiting stages and categories to map your company’s specific recruiting processes in Personio. First, think about which steps your candidates usually go through, and then combine these as you wish for each category. 

 

What are the benefits?

Configuring stages and categories in Personio has the following benefits:

  • Map your application process in Personio: Configure different stages that match your application process, such as Screening, Phone interview, Assessment Center, and so on. 
  • Speed up the application process: Ensure that each application is always in the right stage of the application process, and see a notification if an application stays too long in a specific stage.
  • Create a customized process for each category: This way, a working student can for example be hired faster than a full-time employee, who you may want to interview several times.
  • See at a glance how many candidates are currently in each recruiting stage: Go to Recruiting > Positions and get a clear overview of all the vacant positions in your company.

What are predefined stages?

Under Settings > Recruiting > Recruiting > Stages, the stages Unassigned, Rejected, Withdrawn, Offer, and Hired are predefined by default. These recruiting stages cannot be edited because they trigger further processes in Personio.

Predefined Recruiting Stage Note
Unassigned All candidates who have not been assigned to another stage will automatically be assigned to this one. Deleting a stage that contains candidates could, for example, trigger this categorization.
Rejected All candidates you have rejected, for example, those who were not suitable for the advertised position, will be assigned to this stage.
Withdrawn All candidates who have withdrawn their application, for example, those who are no longer interested in the advertised position, are assigned to this stage.
Offer All candidates for whom you create (and send) an offer straight from Personio are assigned to this stage. Learn more about Creating an offer in Personio.
Accepted All candidates who have accepted your offer are assigned to this stage and are automatically added to Personio as new hires. All the information specified in the Offer tab, as well as all documents, will automatically be transferred to the new employee profile. The employee profile continues to be linked to the candidate profile.

Note
Due to GDPR, you are legally required to remove personal data once the purpose for which the data was collected has been fulfilled. Go to Settings > Recruiting > Recruiting > General to automatically anonymize candidate data for all candidates assigned to the Rejected or Withdrawn stage. As a best practice, we recommend adding this information to your Data privacy statement via Settings > Recruiting > Career page. Learn more about Anonymizing and deleting candidate data.

 

Step 1: Create custom stages

In addition to the predefined stages, you can create any number of further stages that candidates will need to complete during the application process.

To create custom recruiting stages, follow these steps:

  1. Go to Settings > Recruiting > Recruiting > Stages.
  2. Click on Add new recruiting stage. Insert the name of the stage in the text field, stage name, and click Save.
  3. Define the duration of the stage.
    ▶︎ Unlimited: There is no limit on the number of days candidates can remain in this stage.
    ▶︎ Limited: Specify the maximum number of days candidates should be permitted to remain in this stage. If a candidate exceeds this number, you will see their name flagged in the Applications list. You can also filter this list for candidates who have already been in a particular stage for too long. Learn more about Application list functions.
  4. For easier differentiation and a clearer structure, select the color of the stage and click Apply changes.

Tip
You can drag and drop the stage within the list of stages.

Learn how to transfer candidates between stages.

 

Step 2: Create recruiting categories

You can use recruiting categories to map different application processes and organize and display your open positions clearly. You can for example create categories by employment type (such as full-time, part-time), seniority (such as Junior, Senior), or department (such as Marketing, IT).

To create a category, follow these steps:

  1. Go to Settings > Recruiting > Recruiting > Categories.
  2. Click on Add new recruiting category. Insert the name of the category in the text field, Category name, and click Save.
  3. From the drop-down menu, select the Recruiting stages that you want to add to this category. You can adjust their order via drag-and-drop.

    Note
    If you do not assign any stages to a category, all stages will be applied by default.

  4. Under Autoresponder, define whether candidates should receive an automatic receipt confirmation when applying via the application module and/or when applying by email.
  5. Select any email template you have previously created as the Autoresponder template, and choose the email signature of an employee as the Signature for autoresponder. Find more information on sending autoresponders in How do I create an automated email confirmation of receipt of applications?.
  6. Click on Apply changes to complete the process.

Tip
You can create an additional category called Talent pool. Transfer any candidates into this category who you wish to consider for future positions. Learn how to create a talent pool.

 

Congratulations 🎉
You are ready to move on and Set up interview types and invitations.