Creating a Screener Engagement

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The Screener engagement type is only available with Bullhorn Amplify Edition.

The Screener engagement in Bullhorn Automation allows you to automatically evaluate candidates using voice-based or text-based AI interviews. This guide walks you through how to create, configure, and customize a Screener Engagement.

Screener Engagement Types

The Screener engagement can be used for both Candidate-based and Submission-based workflows.

Candidate-Based Engagement

In this model, all candidates are screened against a single job record.

Once a candidate completes their screening, they are submitted to that job as a New Submission. This approach is ideal for general or high-volume screenings.

You can use an “evergreen” job record to house general screening questions, allowing you to screen candidates even when the questions are not tied to a specific open job.

Submission-Based Engagement

In this model, candidates are screened based on the job associated with their existing submission.

This setup enables dynamic, job-specific screenings without requiring you to pre-configure a job ID. It’s best for in-depth evaluations when candidates are already submitted to a specific job.

Creating a New Screener Engagement

In Bullhorn Automation, go to Engagements.
Click Add Engagement.
Under Start from Scratch, select Blank Engagement.
Choose your Entity Type:
- Candidate-Based: Screen multiple candidates against one job.
- Submission-Based: Screen candidates already submitted to specific jobs.
Enter a name for your engagement.
Use a clear, descriptive name so it’s easy to identify when building automations.
Under Choose the type of engagement, select Screener.
Click Save to continue.

Configuring the Screener Question

Hover over the Screener question and click Edit Question to open the Question Settings panel.

Question Settings

Setting	Description	Notes
Statement	Introductory text shown to the candidate.	You can include merge tags and basic formatting (bold, italic, underline, links).
Select a Job for Screening	Used for candidate-based screeners. Enter a job title or ATS job ID to tie the screening to a specific job.
Agent Name	The name your AI screener introduces itself as. Default: Alice
Optimized for Multilingual	When enabled, the screener detects the candidate’s browser language and provides translation support.	For full details, see “Optimized for Multilingual” Amplify Screener Setting.
Always Generate Summary in English	When Optimized for Multilingual is enabled, this option ensures transcripts and summaries are always provided in English.
Screening Type	Select whether the screening should be Voice-based, Text-based, or if you want the candidate to choose. Voice(default): The AI Screener asks each question aloud, and candidates respond verbally using their microphone. Text: Candidates type their responses in a chat-style interface instead of speaking. User Chooses: Candidates select their preferred experience (Voice or Text) after accepting the terms of service.	Voice-based screening is recommended for most scenarios. Timed audio responses simulate a real interview environment, helping you efficiently evaluate communication skills, presentation style, and role fit. This is especially valuable for client-facing positions, sales roles, or any job where verbal communication is a key requirement. Text-based screening works well for straightforward qualification questions and compliance screenings, particularly in high-volume hiring scenarios. This format is effective for evaluating basic requirements in light industrial, warehouse, or operational roles. Example questions include: “Are you able to stand for over four hours continuously?” or “Do you have a valid forklift certification?” User Chooses is not recommended for most scenarios. This option is best for customers who want to enhance the candidate experience by offering flexibility in how responses are submitted. It’s most effective for use cases similar to Text screening, such as basic requirement checks, certifications, or other straightforward qualification questions where convenience is the priority.
Voice	If you select Voice or User Chooses as the Screening Type, you can choose from a list of AI voices (e.g., en-US-LunaNeural). Click the Play button to preview.	This setting is hidden when Text is selected as the Screening Type.
Page Header	This text displays at the top of the screening window.
Instructions	Intro guidance for candidates. Default: "Please plan for about 7 - 10 minutes to answer a few questions about your background and qualifications for the role. When your call has ended, a transcript of this screening will be sent to your recruiter."	Supports formatting (bold, italic, lists).
Display Pay Rate	When checked this will display what is in the payRate field.	This setting will only pull from payRate; it cannot pull from a custom field.
Display Location	When checked the City & State from the job record will be displayed.

Advanced Settings

Click Advanced Settings to fine-tune the voice screener experience.

Setting	Description	Notes
Allow Retakes	Allow candidates to retake a screening. If selected, you can choose the number of retakes from the dropdown ((1, 2, 3, or Unlimited).	If a candidate retakes a screening, screening fields like Status and Score will always reflect the most recent attempt. If you have note creation enabled, all notes from each attempt will remain on the record, giving you full visibility into every take.
Job Description to Display	Select the job field that contains the candidate-facing description. Default: publicDescription
Agent Tone	Instruct the screener on how to speak to candidates. Default: Your language should be supportive, friendly, and patient to make the candidate feel comfortable and at ease during the interview.
Welcome Message	Introduces the screener to the candidate. Default: Hello, this is {agent name}, an AI agent for {customer name}. I am going to interview you for the {position title} position. Are you ready to begin the interview?	Use merge tags for {agent name}, {customer name}, {position title}. These are the only available merge tags and this is the proper format.
Question Asking Prompt	Transition statement inviting candidates to ask questions. Default: "Thank you for answering all our questions. Now, do you have any questions for me about the job or the company? You can ask up to three questions."
Additional Q&A Context	Enter any useful job info or FAQs to help the screener answer candidate questions.	We recommend using the following format for FAQs: Q1: [Question] A1: [Answer] Q2: [Question] A2: [Answer]
Additional Q&A Context Fields	Reference job fields (e.g., benefits, hoursPerWeek) to supply additional dynamic content for Q&A answers.
Closing Message	Displayed after the screening concludes. Default: Thank you for your time today. Your responses will be shared with our team.
Additional Scoring Instructions	Enter any additional scoring criteria that should be considered alongside Automation’s standard scoring logic.	See Amplify Screening Additional Scoring Instructions for more information on how this setting works.
Which submission status should they be created with?	Choose which status to assign when creating submissions in Bullhorn ATS after the candidate completes a candidate-based screening.

Adding Knockout Questions

If your jobs have minimum eligibility requirements, you can add knockout questions to confirm those details before a candidate begins the voice screening.

Knockout questions are text-based chat questions that appear before the voice portion. If a candidate gives an ineligible response, the screening ends immediately.

Are you over the age of 18?
Are you authorized to work in the United States?

These questions help avoid wasting a candidate’s time by ensuring they meet minimum requirements before proceeding.

Using Branching with Knockout Questions

You can choose how knockout questions behave in your Screener Engagement:

With branching:
- Eligible answers move the candidate forward to the voice screening.
- Ineligible answers display a polite message and end the screening.
Without branching:
- Candidates continue the screening even if they are disqualified for the current position.
- This allows you to capture their screening summary and score, which may be useful for future opportunities where they could be a better fit.

You can automate follow-up actions, such as updating the submission status (for example, to Rejected) when a candidate answers a knockout question disqualifying them. See Update Submission Status Based on Screener Knockout Questions for step-by-step guidance.

Configuring Screener Settings

In the top-right corner of the engagement, click Screener Settings.

Available Settings

Setting	Description	Notes
Screener Name	Internal reference
What webpage will people take this screener?	This is the page candidates land on when clicking the link (email/SMS). Default: your home page URL.
Add screener responses as a single note	If checked, this adds a summarized AI analysis to the submission record.
Send notifications after each screener complete	If checked, this sends a summary email to configured recipients (BCC). The secondary recipient will only be sent a notification if the primary's email is invalid.	A notification is only sent once the screening has been fully completed. No notifications or notes will be created when the automation is run in test mode. The Recipient fields also support specific email addresses (for example, screenings@acmestaffing.com) and candidate-based smart tokens. Submission-based smart tokens are not supported at this time.
Include Candidate Resume as attachment	If checked, this attaches the candidate’s resume to the summary report. This allows recruiters to review the screening results, transcript, and resume together directly from their inbox.	This setting is not available for Bullhorn Recruitment Cloud.
Notify Candidates of Closed Jobs	If checked, candidates will be notified if a job is no longer accepting screenings (based on its status in the ATS). Candidates will not be able to continue the screening process for that job.
Closed Job Statuses	If Notify Candidates of Closed Jobs is enabled, these are the job statuses that will mark a job as "Closed." Candidates will be prevented from completing a screening if the job is in any of these statuses.	You must enter at least one job status in this field. If Notify Candidates of Closed Jobs is enabled and there are no Closed Job Statuses set, the candidate will receive an error message when trying to access the screener.
Closed Job Message	If Notify Candidates of Closed Jobs is enabled, this is the message displayed to candidates when they attempt to screen for a job that is closed and no longer accepting screenings.

Finalizing the Engagement

Once all settings are configured, click Save. Your Screener Engagement is now ready to be added to an automation! See Adding the Screener Engagement to an Automation for next steps.