Candidate sourcing

A candidate sourcing AI agent assists recruiters by researching external talent pools and internal applicant tracking records against an approved role specification. It extracts verified job-related qualifications, checks previous application history and opt-outs, and prepares structured evidence dossiers showing how each prospect meets core requirements. Recruiters review and approve every candidate profile and custom outreach draft before contact begins. When candidates express interest or ask substantive questions, the agent hands the conversation directly to the recruiting team without making autonomous hiring or advancement decisions.

Set up with Claude

Set up with ChatGPT

Or copy into your agent

Customize this Pump Up template for me: pumpup.com/templates/candidate-sourcing/template.md

When to use it

In-house recruiters, talent acquisition leads, and recruiting coordinators at growing companies managing recurring role searches.

Example scenario

A recruiter opens a search for an experienced reliability engineer. The sourcing agent searches internal talent archives and discovers a candidate who reached the final interview stage eight months earlier before the requisition was paused. Rather than generating a cold outreach message, the agent compiles the previous interview notes and flags the candidate's existing relationship. It drafts a personalized message acknowledging the earlier conversation and referencing the reopened headcount. The recruiter reviews the past evaluation, approves the outreach draft, and authorizes sending the message.

Getting started

Connect or export role briefs containing essential versus preferred qualification criteria
Provide read access or exports for ATS candidate history, prior applications, and opt-out lists
Designate the responsible recruiter who reviews candidate evidence and approves outreach drafts
Configure delivery channels such as email or Slack for handoff summaries when candidates respond

Common questions

Does the candidate sourcing agent make automated hiring or rejection decisions?

No. The agent only identifies potential prospects, checks historical records, and drafts personalized messages. All decisions regarding candidate selection, outreach approval, evaluation, and hiring remain under the full control of human recruiters and hiring managers.

How does the agent prevent contacting people already engaged with the company?

Before proposing any candidate for outreach, the agent verifies their email and identity against the ATS to detect active applications, recent rejections, opt-out requests, or prior recruiter correspondence.

Can the agent operate if live ATS integrations are not yet configured?

Yes. Sourcing workflows can proceed using exported CSV rosters or structured candidate sheets for previous applicants, with outbound drafts queued for recruiter review and manual sending.

At a glance

Inputs: Approved role brief with required competencies, level, location, and approved compensation range
Applicant tracking system records covering past candidates, notes, and previous application outcomes
Approved professional directories and sourcing channels authorized for talent discovery
Team contact frequency policies, opt-out lists, and data retention rules
Outputs: Sourced candidate dossier mapping relevant work experience to role requirements
Candidate relationship history check verifying past interactions and active status
Personalized outreach message drafts citing specific job-related background
Handoff summaries for interested candidates delivered directly to the recruiting owner
Human decisions: Recruiter decides whether to approve individual candidate outreach and custom messaging
Recruiter determines whether to adjust sourcing criteria if search pools are constrained
Recruiter resolves conflicting candidate records, duplicate profiles, or active status ambiguities
Hiring manager and recruiter decide all candidate advancement, screening, and hiring outcomes

Platform documentation

How the candidate sourcing agent works

You run a sourcing search for one approved role. Build a reviewed contact list, work the agreed outreach, and keep each candidate’s history available to the recruiter. Use supplied records until the required app connections are available; ask the owner to carry out and confirm any external action you cannot perform.

Start with the role brief, required skills, level, working arrangements, approved compensation information, and sourcing criteria. Separate requirements from preferences; do not turn an illustrative background into a mandatory employer or school.
Search approved professional sources and the ATS. Check past applications and conversations before approaching someone as a new candidate. Exclude opt-outs and people already in an active process, and follow the team’s contact and record-retention rules.
For each proposed contact, cite the work experience relevant to the role and mark what needs confirmation. Use job-related evidence only; do not infer protected characteristics or suitability from names, photos, age, or family circumstances.
Information request. If the search cannot meet the brief, show the recruiter which requirement is limiting it and a small set of examples. Ask which criteria can change rather than silently widening the search.
Approval. The recruiter approves whom to contact and the outreach. Include the evidence, previous relationship, and message. Keep candidate selection and changes to role requirements with the hiring team.
Explain the relevant work and why this role might be worth discussing. Use approved compensation and working-arrangement details. Stop the sequence on a reply and pass substantive questions or interest to the recruiter.
Exception. Flag a conflicting candidate record, withdrawn contact permission, or uncertainty about an existing application. Pause contact until the recruiter resolves it; do not create a second record to bypass the conflict.
Example (fictional): A maintenance planner reached the final round last year before the role was cancelled. The new search brings back that history and a recruiter-approved message about the reopened role, rather than a cold introduction.
Finish when interested candidates and their conversation history are accepted into recruiter review, or the approved search and outreach batch is closed with outcomes recorded. Sourcing does not advance or reject an application on its own.

Where your team decides

Recruiter decides whether to approve individual candidate outreach and custom messaging
Recruiter determines whether to adjust sourcing criteria if search pools are constrained
Recruiter resolves conflicting candidate records, duplicate profiles, or active status ambiguities
Hiring manager and recruiter decide all candidate advancement, screening, and hiring outcomes

Example systems

Configure connections and permitted actions during setup.

Greenhouse
Gmail
Google Drive

Checks to adapt

Suggested checks for the process, to implement and test with your systems.

Role criteria
Separate essential skills and working arrangements from optional preferences.
Candidate history
Check prior applications, active processes, previous contact, and opt-outs.
Evidence summary
Link relevant professional experience to the approved role requirements.
Outreach status
Track approved contact, replies, recruiter handoffs, and closed sequences.