Match Candidates Step

The Match Candidates step automatically matches candidates from Bullhorn ATS to job openings. Add this step to a job-based automation to surface the most relevant candidates using Bullhorn’s AI-powered matching capabilities.

Before You Add the Match Candidates Step

The Match Candidates step only appears in the automation builder after Bullhorn Support enables AI Auto Match Uses AI to match Candidates to Jobs for your account. If you do not see the Match Candidates step, contact Bullhorn Support to request enablement. Tell Bullhorn Support which matching option you want to use.

After Bullhorn Support enables AI Auto Match, the Match Candidates step is available in all job-based automation workflows.

The following matching options are available:

• Classic Matching: Bullhorn Automation's default matching algorithm, also referred to as "AI Auto Match".

• Bullhorn Matching Engine: Bullhorn's powerful AI matching agent that uses Search & Match technology.

  Bullhorn Matching Engine is available to Amplify customers only.

• Third Party Matching: In addition to our built-in solutions, you have the option to use a third-party algorithm that better fits your needs.

Matching Options at a Glance

The table below summarizes how each matching option determines relevance and which fields influence the score.

	Classic Matching	Bullhorn Matching Engine (Amplify)	Third Party Matching
Core Fields for Relevance Score	Job Title (title) Candidate Title (occupation)	Job Title (title) Candidate Title (occupation) Job Description (description) Candidate Resume (description)	Determined by third-party model capabilities. Consult your provider to confirm how relevance is calculated.
Purpose	Matching Candidates to Jobs Matching Jobs to a Candidate	Automate Candidate Matching Improve Match Quality	Dependent on provider.
Optional Relevance Fields Inclusion of these additional fields strengthens the relevance score.	Skills Category Location Specialties Industries	N/A	Dependent on provider.

Adding the Match Candidates Step

To get started, you’ll need to create a job-based automation. Once the automation is added, follow these steps:

1. Select Add New Step > Match Candidates.
   

2. A settings drawer will appear, where you can configure how candidates are matched to the job that passes through this automation.
   
   

Configure Match Settings in the Match Candidates Step

The Match Settings section allows you to determine how candidates are matched based on key criteria:

Match the Top Candidates

You can specify how many of the top candidates should be matched to each job. The default is 10, and the maximum is 275 candidates per job. If you enter a number over 275, the Save button will be disabled.

Only Match Candidates with a Score Over __%

Define a match score threshold to ensure only highly qualified candidates are considered. The default is 90%, but you can set any value between 1% and 100%. Anything over 100% or under 1% is not allowed, and will disable the Save button. Candidate match scores are defined as:

• > 85%: Excellent
• > 70%: Good
• > 60%: Decent
• < 60%: Poor

The match score definitions are hard-coded and cannot be configured on a per-client or per-automation basis. Typically, an "Excellent" match means that the Candidate's position title, combined with the job title and other synced data points, are more successfully matched.

Filter on Distance

Check the Filter on Distance checkbox if you'd like location to be taken into account when matching candidates to a job. If you leave this box unchecked, the location will not be included in the criteria. This is ideal for remote jobs where the candidate location doesn't matter.

If you check Filter on Distance, the following options will appear:

• Unit: Select your preferred unit for measuring distance; Miles or Kilometers (KM).

• Only match candidates within ___ Miles/Kilometers of the job: Choose the maximum candidate distance from a job's location.

• Only match candidates outside of ___ Miles/Kilometers of the job: Choose the minimum candidate distance from a job's location.

The maximum/minimum distance radius will be determined by taking the job's location as defined on the job record, and comparing this with the candidates' location data. Distance will be measured based on the ZIP / Postal Code by default. If this field is empty, the distance will pull from the City and State values instead.

Bullhorn Automation will try to match candidates only with jobs that are within the maximum/minimum distance radius. If no jobs that meet these parameters are available, Bullhorn Automation will prioritize the newest open jobs.

Only Match Candidates that are Part of the Following List

The Only Match Candidates that are Part of the Following List setting limits Bullhorn Automation to matching only candidates that fit your business preferences.

The Only Match Candidates that are Part of the Following List setting is optional. Use the setting to refine your candidate pool with custom lists so that only candidates who meet your criteria are matched. You can select an existing candidate-based list, or create a new list for this purpose.

Add a list criteria for candidates that have a Status of "Active", and a Placement Status that is not "Approved", "Submitted", or "Terminated". Or candidates with a Position Termination Reason, or with a Date Available after a certain date, etc. Bullhorn Automation will only look at this list of candidates to determine a match.

Match Against All Candidates (Third Party Only)

If you use Third Party Matching, you'll have an additional option: Match against all candidates. Match against all candidates is the default option and matches jobs against all candidates in the system. The Match against all candidates option is ideal for roles where a wide search is preferred or no list is available.

Configure Automation Settings in the Match Candidates Step

The Configure Automation Settings section is separate from the main automation settings and can only be found in the Match Candidates step in a job-based automation. The settings in this section determine what happens with your candidate matches if a job record re-enters this automation.

The Configure Automation Settings section includes the following settings:

If a Job Re-enters This Automation, What Should Happen?

There are two options for this section:

• Only match additional candidates if there are fewer than __ Candidates:
  If a job re-enters an automation (as defined in the main automation settings), Bullhorn Automation continues to look for new matches if there are currently fewer than the selected number of matches on the job record.
• Match the next best __ Candidates:
  If a job re-enters an automation (as defined in the main automation settings), Bullhorn Automation finds the next best set of candidate matches, using the number entered in this setting.

The Match the next best __ Candidates option is not available when using Third Party Matching with Textkernel. Textkernel always returns the top-matched candidates, even if the candidates were previously matched, and does not exclude them from the results.

It is not currently possible to exclude already-matched candidates at the individual job level, including when using the Bullhorn Matching Engine. Candidate exclusions only apply at the matching list level, which affects all jobs globally. If you need per-job exclusion of previously matched candidates, log a feature request.

These candidates will be added to a Bullhorn Automation list (Optional)

Use this setting if you want to add the matched candidates to their own specific candidate-based list within Bullhorn Automation.

You can choose from an existing list or create a new one. You can then use this list against other automations, export the list, or search for records on the list via the Advanced Search. Adding matched candidates to a list is useful if you want to take automated actions for the matched candidates inside Bullhorn Automation.

Also Create a Submission in Bullhorn?

The Also Create a Submission in Bullhorn? setting automatically creates a submission against the job record in Bullhorn ATS.

By default, a candidate ‘matching’ to a job in Bullhorn Automation creates an Auto Match Submission that lives inside of Bullhorn Automation only. Your company may not want to automatically add submissions in Bullhorn ATS. The Also Create a Submission in Bullhorn? option gives you the flexibility to also add the matched candidates as a submission to the job record in Bullhorn ATS.

If you select this option, submissions will be created in Bullhorn ATS with a Source of "Automation".

What Submission Status Should They be Created With?

If Also create a Submission in Bullhorn? is checked, the status you select here will be applied to the submission added in Bullhorn ATS. The list of statuses is pulled from Bullhorn ATS.

Test Auto Match Settings Against an Existing Job

The Test Auto Match Settings panel in the Match Candidates step returns the candidates that your current match settings would match to an existing job. Use the panel to check your match settings before you turn on the automation.

1. In the Match Candidates step settings drawer, select Test Auto Match Settings.
   

2. In the Select a Job to Test Auto Match Settings field, enter a job title or ATS ID.
   

3. Select the job from the search results. Each result shows the job title and the ATS ID.

If several jobs share the same title, search by ATS ID to find the exact job you want to test against.

Result: Bullhorn Automation runs the criteria search using your current match settings and returns a maximum of ten matched candidates, even if more candidates match. Bullhorn Automation does not create a match record during a test. The returned candidates would be matched in the live automation if the selected job met the list enrollment criteria.

This table lists the information that the Test Auto Match Settings panel returns for each matched candidate.

Field	Description
Name	The candidate's name. Select the name to open the candidate record in Bullhorn Automation.
Position	The candidate's occupation title.
Location	The candidate's city and state.
Match Rating	The candidate's relevance score, based on the configured match settings.

Pre-Configured Notification Step

After you save the Match Candidates step with your chosen criteria, Bullhorn Automation adds a pre-configured Send Notification step. The Send Notification step lets you include the most recent successfully matched candidates in your email notifications from a Job automation.

The notification sent from the Send Notification step contains details on the jobs that have entered the automation and the candidates that have been matched to those jobs. Immediate Notification is the only available option for the Send Notification step.

The merge tag %MOSTRECENTAUTOMATCHES% populates the notification with the results from the Match Candidates step. If you want to view the most recent matches for a specific role only, send a test email using the Send Test button while in this notification step.

The %MOSTRECENTAUTOMATCHES% merge tag will only work in the pre-configured notification step following a Match Candidates step, and cannot be used in other notification templates.

View Matched Candidates

How you view matched candidates depends on your access to Bullhorn Automation.

View Matched Candidates as an Admin

Admins can view matched candidates directly in Bullhorn Automation. To access a job record, navigate to the Contacts tab and select Advanced Search, then set the record type to Jobs and search for the job. Alternatively, go to the Lists A collection of ATS records that meets specified criteria, such as a scheduled end date or a low NPS response. tab, open a job-based list, and select View Jobs to browse job records.

Once you’ve opened a job record, you can view matched candidates in the following ways:

• Matched Candidates card: Shows all candidates matched to the job through a Match Candidates step. Jobs that have not been sent through a Match Candidates step display a Suggested Candidate Matches card instead, which shows the ten best candidates based on generic match rules.

• Full History card: Shows when the job processed through a Match Candidates step and which automation the step is associated with. Select Additional Details in the bottom left corner of the job record to access this card.

• Advanced Search: Use search criteria to find matched candidates across jobs. See Accessing Matched Candidate Data for a full walkthrough.

View Matched Candidates as a Non-Admin User

Non-admin users do not have access to the Bullhorn Automation platform. They can view matched candidates through the following methods:

• Notification step: The pre-configured notification included with the Match Candidates step sends matched candidate details by email. See Pre-Configured Notification Step for more information.

• Submissions in Bullhorn ATS: If Also Create a Submission in Bullhorn? is enabled in the Match Candidates step settings, matched candidates appear as submissions on the job record in the ATS.

Message Candidates Matched by the Match Candidates Step

You can automate outreach to matched candidates by creating a submission-based automation, which sends messages based on the Match Candidates results. Follow these steps:

1. Create a submission-based automation.

2. Choose a message format. Bullhorn Automation supports HTML emails, plain text emails, and text messages.

3. Target candidates using candidate-based criteria. For example, you can limit messaging to active candidates who have been matched to jobs through the Match Candidates step.

4. Customize the message flow by adding extra steps, such as updating candidate records, adding notes, or sending surveys to pre-qualify candidates for specific roles.

5. (Optional) If Bullhorn Automation matches a candidate to multiple jobs, limit messaging to one email or text message per day to avoid sending multiple communications to the same candidate.