Glossary · Updated 18 September 2026
Recruitment and AI hiring glossary
22 terms recruitment agencies use every day, defined in plain English.
How to use this glossary
Each definition is written to stand on its own, so you can share a link to a single term. Where a term relates to how Beatview works, the definition links to the relevant page.
- AI recruiting agent
- An AI recruiting agent is software that carries out a sequence of recruiting steps on its own — reading applications, scoring resumes against role criteria, inviting candidates to structured interviews and preparing a ranked shortlist — while a human recruiter sets the rules and makes the final hiring decision. Unlike an applicant tracking system, which stores and organises applications, an agent acts on them.
- Read the full guide
- Applicant tracking system (ATS)
- Software that stores job applications and organises candidates through hiring stages. For most recruitment teams the ATS is the system of record for candidates, jobs and placements.
- How Beatview works with your ATS
- Asynchronous interview
- Another name for a one-way video interview: candidates record answers to pre-set questions on their own schedule, and recruiters review the recordings later.
- One-way video interview guide
- Candidate experience
- How candidates perceive each step of the hiring process, from finding the role and applying to hearing the outcome. Clear instructions, reasonable effort and timely updates are the main drivers.
- Candidate shortlist
- The small set of candidates a recruiter presents to a client or hiring manager for a role, usually with the evidence for why each one fits.
- Career page
- A web page where an employer or agency lists open roles and accepts applications. Many agencies also post the application link from their career page on job boards.
- Contingency recruitment
- An agency model in which the recruiter is paid only when a candidate they introduced is hired. It is common for permanent roles and rewards speed to a quality shortlist.
- AI screening for permanent recruitment
- Explainable scoring
- Scoring that shows the evidence and reasoning behind each result — for example, which resume lines support or weaken a criterion — so a reviewer can check the score or disagree with it.
- Explainable resume screening
- Human-in-the-loop
- A process in which people review and decide on AI output rather than the system acting alone. In recruitment it means a recruiter makes every progression and hiring decision.
- Job board
- A website where employers and agencies advertise roles, such as LinkedIn or Indeed. Candidates apply on the board itself or follow a link to the employer’s or agency’s application page.
- Knockout question
- A screening question with a required answer — for example, the right to work in a country — used to identify applications that cannot progress. It should only test genuine, job-related requirements.
- One-way video interview
- A screening interview in which candidates record answers to pre-set questions without an interviewer present. Every candidate answers the same questions under the same conditions, and recruiters review the recordings later.
- One-way video interview guide
- Recruitment process outsourcing (RPO)
- An arrangement in which a company outsources all or part of its recruitment to an external provider, often with the provider’s recruiters embedded in the client’s team.
- Screening for RPO teams
- Resume screening (CV screening)
- Reviewing applications against a role’s requirements to decide who progresses to the next stage. AI resume screening scores each application against configured criteria for a recruiter to review.
- AI resume screening
- Retained search
- A search model, common in executive recruitment, in which the agency is engaged exclusively and paid in stages to fill a role.
- Candidate evidence for executive search
- Scorecard
- A structured form for rating every candidate against the same criteria, with space for evidence and a recommendation. Scorecards make interview outcomes comparable across interviewers.
- Free interview scorecard template
- Stage rule
- An automation that performs an action — such as moving a candidate or sending an interview invitation — when a candidate meets a configured condition.
- Recruitment automation
- Structured interview
- An interview in which every candidate is asked the same job-related questions in the same way and rated against the same criteria. Structure makes answers comparable and reduces reliance on impressions.
- Structured AI video interviews
- Talent pool
- A database of candidates an agency or employer can match against future roles, rather than starting every search from scratch.
- Time to hire
- The time between a candidate entering the process — or a role opening — and the candidate accepting an offer. Definitions vary, so measure it the same way every time.
- Free time-to-hire baseline worksheet
- Time to shortlist
- The time from a client brief being accepted to the shortlist being delivered in the agreed format. It is one of the clearest measures of an agency’s delivery speed.
- Free time-to-shortlist worksheet
- Work style assessment
- A structured questionnaire describing how a candidate prefers to communicate, collaborate and approach work. It informs conversations about fit and is not a pass-or-fail test.
- Beatview Work Style assessment
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