Hiring Process & Workflow

180-degree recruiting is a model where the recruiter handles only candidate-facing work: sourcing, screening and…

360-degree recruiting is a model where one consultant owns the full cycle, from winning the client and sourcing…

Acqui-hiring is when a company buys a startup mainly to bring its engineering team in-house rather than for its product…

An approval workflow is a structured sequence of sign-offs required before a recruiting action, such as a requisition…

A background check is a pre-employment screening process that verifies a candidate's identity, employment history,…

A behavioral interview is a structured format asking for real examples from past work, on the premise that past…

Candidate assessment is the structured process of evaluating applicants against defined criteria, measuring skills,…

A cognitive ability test is a pre-employment assessment of general mental capacity, such as verbal and numerical…

Contract staffing is placing workers on fixed-term or project-based engagements through an agency, with the client…

A counter-offer is an improved package a current employer makes to keep an employee who plans to leave, and it often…

DEI in recruitment is the set of practices and systems that help hiring attract, assess and advance candidates from…

Skills-based hiring evaluates candidates on what they can do, using skills requirements and assessments, not degrees or…

Temporary staffing is a model where an agency employs workers and places them with clients for a limited time, billing…

Day one readiness means having equipment, system access, a line manager and a plan ready before a new hire starts, so…

A debrief is the structured conversation after an interview that surfaces what worked, what concerned the panel and…

Employer of choice is an informal reputation, not a certification, earned by organisations whose pay, culture and…

Full-cycle recruiting is a model where one recruiter owns the whole hiring process, from the first job brief through…

Headcount is the number of people an organisation employs at a given point in time, counted as individuals whether…

A hiring manager is the person who owns a vacancy, usually holding budget authority and the final say on an offer,…

A hiring manager brief is a structured document recording a role's requirements, expectations, team context, pay range,…

A hiring panel is an interview format where two or more interviewers assess a candidate together in one session,…

An independent contractor is a self-employed person who provides services to a client under contract, without the…

An intake meeting is where a recruiter learns from the hiring manager what a role truly requires before sourcing…

Internal recruitment fills roles from the existing workforce; external recruitment hires outside candidates. The choice…

Interview scheduling is the coordination process of finding a mutually available time between candidates and…

An interview scorecard is a structured form for rating candidates against set criteria right after an interview, giving…

Job analysis is the structured process of finding out what a role actually requires, including duties and skills,…

A job description is the internal document that defines a role's responsibilities, required skills, qualifications,…

A job description is an internal HR document defining a role, while a job posting is external advertising copy written…

A job offer is the formal proposal of employment terms made to a candidate, and in agency work it involves the…

A job requisition is the formal internal request to hire for a new or backfill position, submitted by a hiring manager…

A managed service provider (MSP) is a third party that runs a client's contingent workforce programme, handling…

Maverick spending is off-programme hiring spend, where managers bypass the agreed vendor list and go straight to a…

A notice period is the length of time an employee is required to continue working after handing in their resignation —…

Offboarding is the structured process of managing a worker's departure from an organisation — covering access…

An offer letter is a formal written document issued to a selected candidate confirming the terms of employment —…

Onboarding is the structured process of integrating a new employee into an organisation — covering paperwork…

Orientation is the structured welcome a new hire gets in their first days, covering workstation setup and clear…

A personality assessment measures stable psychological traits to predict likely behaviour at work, adding a structured…

Pre-employment screening is the set of verification and assessment activities conducted after a candidate receives a…

Preboarding is the work between a candidate signing an offer and day one: paperwork, access setup, introductions and…

A probation period is a defined stretch at the start of employment when performance is assessed and, in many…

A probationary period is a defined initial employment period — typically 3 to 6 months — during which both employer and…

A recruiter finds and presents candidates for open roles, working as an internal recruiter, an agency recruiter or an…

Recruitment to recruitment (rec-to-rec) is a specialist agency model that places recruiters and other staff into…

Recruitment, staffing and headhunting are distinct services: permanent hiring, temporary or contract supply, and…

A reference check is a verification step where the hiring manager or recruiter contacts a candidate's former employers…

The STAR method structures answers to behavioural interview questions by describing the Situation, Task, Action and…

A scorecard is a structured evaluation form that lists the competencies for a role and a rating scale, so each…

A situational interview gives candidates hypothetical job-related scenarios and asks how they would respond, scoring…

A situational judgment test presents realistic workplace scenarios and asks candidates to rate or rank responses,…

A skills assessment is a structured test or exercise that measures a candidate's ability to perform tasks relevant to a…

A skills-based interview is a structured interview where every candidate gets the same behavioural and technical…

A skills-based job description specifies observable, testable capabilities for a role instead of degree requirements…

Spend under management is the percentage of total contingent labour spend that flows through approved, tracked channels…

Split-desk recruiting divides recruitment between two specialists, one who develops client job orders and one who…

A staffing model is how an agency delivers talent, such as permanent or contract, retained or contingency, and it…

A staffing ratio is a numerical relationship between two workforce variables, such as workers to supervisors or…

Talent acquisition is the strategic function that identifies, attracts and hires the people an organisation needs,…

Recruiting fills open roles, while talent acquisition is the broader, longer-horizon function that builds the pipeline,…

Talent scarcity is the condition where demand for a skill set exceeds the supply of qualified candidates, raising…

Temp-to-perm is a hiring arrangement where a worker starts on a temporary contract with the possibility of converting…

A temporary employee is a worker engaged for a defined period or project without expectation of ongoing employment, via…

Transferable skills are abilities built in one role or industry that apply in another, such as analytical reasoning,…

A verbal offer is an oral communication, by phone or in person, in which an employer conveys the terms of employment…

Volume hiring (also called high-volume recruiting) refers to campaigns where an employer or staffing agency needs to…

A work style assessment is a psychometric instrument that measures how a person approaches tasks, collaboration,…

A written offer is a formal letter stating the terms of employment, such as job title, start date and pay, that both…