Candidate Experience Overview

What candidates see and do from the moment they receive an invitation through screening completion.

The candidate experience is a linear, guided flow. Candidates receive an email invitation, click a unique link, verify their identity and devices, complete the AI-powered interview, provide brief feedback, and see a confirmation page. Every step is designed to be self-explanatory; candidates do not need prior training or an account.

All candidate-facing pages share a consistent layout: a header with the SageScreen logo and a Help button, the page content, and a footer with privacy and terms links. A contextual help system is available on every page, with content tailored to the current step.

The Candidate Flow

1. Email Invitation: The candidate receives an email containing their invitation link, the role being screened for, the organization name, and the expiration date. The email’s sender name, content, and styling reflect your council’s branding configuration. The invitation link is unique to the candidate, single-use, and time-limited.
2. Welcome Page: After clicking the invitation link, the candidate lands on a welcome page that greets them by name and displays their pre-populated information (first name, last name, email). The candidate enters their phone number, which is required before proceeding. A bot-detection system validates the submission.
3. Agreement and Consent: The candidate is presented with clear information about what to expect, organized into two groups. The candidate must check a single consent box acknowledging all of the below before continuing.
4. Audio and Video Setup: The candidate selects and tests their camera, microphone, and speaker. The page enumerates available devices, shows a live video preview, and displays a real-time audio level meter. A photo is captured during setup for identity verification. Device selection is final once confirmed.
5. The Interview: The interview is a real-time conversation with the Sage, presented through a chat interface. The candidate can type or speak their responses to the Sage’s questions; spoken responses are transcribed in real time. The Sage adapts its follow-up questions based on the candidate’s answers. The candidate can end the interview early at any time; ending early means no results are generated.
6. Feedback: After the interview concludes, the candidate is asked two quick questions: how comfortable they felt (Comfortable, Neutral, Uncomfortable) and how easy the process was (Easy, Moderate, Difficult). An optional text field lets the candidate share additional thoughts. This feedback is stored with the screen record for your team’s review.
7. Completion: The candidate sees a thank-you page confirming their screening is complete. The page explains what happens next: responses are being analyzed, the organization will review results, and the candidate will be contacted regarding next steps.

Consent Details

The consent page presents information in two clearly labeled groups before asking the candidate to confirm.

About the Interview

• The screening is AI-powered
• Humans make the final decision
• The candidate’s name and location are hidden from the evaluation to reduce bias
• Nothing shared is used to train AI models

Camera and Privacy

• Camera and microphone access are required
• Random photos are taken during the interview for identity verification
• Photos are stored securely and deleted within 90 days
• Brief audio snippets verify identity and are then discarded
• Voice is transcribed in real time but never recorded

What the Candidate Sees During the Interview

The interview is presented as a chat interface. The candidate sees three key elements in the header throughout the session:

• The recruiter’s information on the left, including their name, phone number, and a contact link in case the candidate needs human assistance
• A personalized message from the recruiter, centered in the header
• The Sage’s identity on the right, including name, role/position, and avatar

Tip

If a candidate needs to reach a human during the interview, they can use the Contact Recruiter link in the chat header. This sends a message directly to the recruiter and is rate-limited to one message per screen.

Edge Cases

Expired Invitations

If a candidate clicks an expired link, they see a clear expiration notice with instructions to contact the organization for a new invitation. The recruiter can duplicate the screen to issue a fresh invitation at no additional cost.

Interview Ended Early

If a candidate ends the interview before completion, they are offered an optional feedback form asking why they ended early. They can submit a reason or skip. Either way, the screen is recorded with an “Ended” completion state and no results are generated.

Help System

A Help button is available on every candidate-facing page. Clicking it opens a modal with context-specific guidance relevant to the current step. On interview pages, the candidate can also contact the recruiter directly through a built-in contact form.

Candidate Error Pages

The following pages may be shown to candidates when something prevents the screening from proceeding normally.

Page	When Shown	What the Candidate Sees
/screen/invalid	Invite link not found, already used, or screen cancelled	Warning icon with instructions to contact the sender
/screen/expired	Invitation date passed or interview duration exceeded	Clock icon with instructions to request a new invitation
/screen/cancelled	Candidate or system ended the interview early	Cancel icon with optional feedback form
/screen/error	Technical error during the session	Warning icon with troubleshooting steps and a Get Help button
/screen/no-credits	Organization has no remaining credits when candidate accesses the invite	Generic technical issue message; credit balance is not disclosed to the candidate

Device and Browser Support

The screening requires a modern web browser with camera and microphone access. The A/V setup page uses standard browser media APIs for device enumeration and real-time preview, supported by current versions of Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge.

Caution

The screening interface requires a minimum viewport width of 960px. Candidates on phones or tablets in portrait mode will see a blocking overlay and cannot proceed until they switch to a desktop or laptop computer.

Demo Screens

Demo screens follow a shortened path that skips phone verification, consent, and A/V setup. The verification camera is disabled during the interview, post-interview feedback is not collected, and the candidate can view their own results for 10 minutes after completion. No credits are consumed.

Aspect	Regular Screen	Demo Screen
Phone verification	Required	Skipped
Consent page	Required	Skipped
A/V setup and face detection	Required	Skipped
Verification camera during interview	Active	Disabled
Post-interview feedback	Collected	Skipped
Results visible to candidate	No (recruiter only)	Yes (10-minute expiry)
Credits consumed	Yes	No