Knockout questions are designed to automatically disqualify candidates who do not meet critical job requirements. These questions are typically non-debatable, such as "Do you have a valid driver's license?" or "Do you hold the required visa?"
You can set up these questions in the apply form using the Yes/No question type. If the candidate answers “No” to any of those questions, they are automatically disqualified. A disqualification email is automatically scheduled to be sent the next working day to notify the candidate about their disqualification.
When a candidate is disqualified by a knockout question
When a candidate answers "No" to any knockout question, they are automatically disqualified from the application process, the following happens:
Confirmation email:
Candidates still get a confirmation email after they apply.
Automatic disqualification:
The candidate will be automatically disqualified and moved to Disqualified in the Candidate View (CV).
Notifications:
You will receive a notification that a candidate has been disqualified due to their response to a knockout question.
This notification confirms that the candidate has been moved to the disqualified stage.
Disqualification reason:
By default there is no disqualification reason set when automatically disqualifying.
After the disqualification, you can manually add a disqualification reason if desired, to provide more context for the decision.
Viewing automatically disqualified candidates:
Disqualified candidates will appear, as per usual, in Disqualified in the candidate table view.
You can check what knockout questions disqualified the candidate in the Questions section of their profile.
Adding knockout questions to the job application form
Go to the job posting you wish to edit.
Click on the apply form to begin editing.
Navigate to the Questions section
Click + Add question.
Select the Yes/No question type.
Activate the toggle for the option Knockout question
A knockout question is automatically marked as required, so the system will ensure that candidates must answer it.
Click on Apply changes
Note: You can add multiple knockout questions to your application form, allowing for better filtering of candidates based on key requirements.
Make sure to also save the changes made in the Apply form
Click on Save changes on the top right of the Apply form section
Note: that there is no need to re-publish the job posting for the changes to take effect.
Disqualification email template:
If a candidate is disqualified by a knockout question, a disqualification email is automatically scheduled to be sent the next working day at 12:00 CET.
Note: The delay schedule for the disqualification email is not customizable.
The content of this disqualification email template can be customized in Settings > Disqualification > Disqualification template.
The email can be set up for different languages. For example, if the candidate applied via the German version of the job, the German version of the disqualification email will be sent.
Note: If you are using multi-language in your apply form, make sure that that all the languages have the correct translation. You can review all the versions by using the dropdown on the top right.
Note: The disqualification email is sent automatically and cannot currently be customized on a per-job basis.
Managing the scheduled disqualification email:
You can view and manage the disqualification email by going to the Activity Bar of the respective candidate’s profile.
If you need to make changes to a scheduled disqualification email:
Click on the scheduled email in the Activity Bar.
Click Cancel above the text box.
Options will appear to either Delete or Edit the message.
If you choose to Edit, the message will no longer be scheduled. After editing, make sure to reschedule the email:
Click the clock icon in the bottom left corner of the pop-up.
Choose the date and time for the email to be sent.
Click Save and then Schedule.
Re-qualifying candidates
Re-qualify a candidate:
You can re-qualify a candidate by moving them to another stage, as you normally would.
Note: If you re-qualify a candidate before the scheduled disqualification email is sent, make sure to also cancel the email as this is not done automatically.
Delete the scheduled disqualification email:
In the Activity Bar, click on scheduled email.
Click Cancel above the text box to reveal options to Delete or Edit the message.
If you select Delete, the disqualification email will be removed.
Automatic disqualification and data retention
When a candidate is automatically disqualified, they are not automatically deleted from the system.