Best Candidate Sourcing Tools - 2023
The Best Talent Sourcing Tools, ROI Calculator, Questions to ask vendors, and More
The best candidate sourcing tools allow your talent acquisition team to reach new talent pools, and quickly engage relevant people to close your hardest to fill reqs. To understand what the best sourcing platforms are, we’ve done dozens of demos and talked to some of the most successful recruiting teams out there.
For instance, from Joe Aburdene, a Director at Chicago-based Talent Acquisition Services firm Lucas James Talent Partners, we learned that the best sourcing tools have their own databases, as well as the tech to process thousands of applicants automatically; as opposed to a team doing it manually.
So below is our list of the best candidate sourcing SaaS tools, along with everything else we think you need to know when buying these types of tools from ROI to questions to ask on demos.
It’s important to note that sourcing software is great for teams that need to augment their existing sourcing capabilities, or to fully outsource the process. They also work for companies of any size or industry - the main criteria to get value of out these tools is that you must have a need for hard-to-find talent.
Top Candidate Sourcing Tools
We select the best candidate sourcing tool based on multiple factors, including search capability, database size and quality, AI-powered sourcing, and candidate engagement features. Our evaluation process involves hands-on demos, insights from HR experts, rigorous testing, and feedback from actual users to ensure the tool's real-world performance.
- Search Capability: The listed sourcing tool must offer advanced and targeted search options, enabling recruiters to find the most relevant candidates quickly. We picked those with search filters like location, skills, experience, and keywords to ensure they’re helpful in streamlining the sourcing process.
- Database Size and Quality: We looked for two factors here—the size and accuracy of the database a sourcing tool offers over time. The best sourcing tools have extensive databases and regularly update them for reliable candidate information.
- AI-Powered Sourcing: Modern tools leverage AI-driven features to assist recruiters in analyzing candidate data, identifying patterns, and recommending the best matches for specific roles. We also paid attention to the methodologies behind the AI to ensure all of the AI help is accurate and compliant.
- Candidate Engagement Features: Engaging with candidates is as essential as finding them. We went for tools that include personalized messaging and automated follow-ups for a positive candidate experience.
Want to learn more about our evaluation process? Check out this comprehensive article on How We Evaluate HR Software Vendors.
Fetcher
Fetcher is a powerful candidate-sourcing software that leverages AI-based recruitment automation. They've got a sweet, 3-step method — "source, engage, and track" that brings you a steady stream of top-notch candidates.
PROS
- Clean interface, user-friendly experience, and great customer support.
- Excellent sourcing tool for accessing candidates with specialized skills.
- Automated outreach for personalized messaging and cold email campaigns.
- Fetcher is highly rated by customers for its clean interface, ease of use, and customer support.
- According to most users, Fetcher's sourcing tool is one of the best in the business, providing them access to the best candidates with specialized skills and backgrounds.
- Customers find Fetcher's automated outreach feature extremely useful for sending cold emails and personalized messages to potential candidates.
CONS
- Occasional bugs reported by some users.
- The sourcing algorithm may present over/under-qualified candidates, but the team refines criteria to improve accuracy.
- Some users report experiencing bugs and glitches while using the software.
- In rare cases, Fetcher may source either over-qualified or under-qualified candidates for a particular role. However, according to users, their team is quick to correct and refine the search criteria in such scenarios.
Fetcher is a top-notch candidate sourcing, outreach, and engagement tool with comprehensive recruiting automation. Its clean interface, user-friendly experience, and excellent customer support make it a strong player in the HR tech market.
Leveraging AI, Fetcher delivers curated profiles matching your desired skills. We've heard expert recruiters praise it for unearthing unique candidates other tools miss. The outreach features are also a big win, with automated and customized email sequences and helpful reminders for timely replies.
We love that Fetcher’s always improving. Though some users reported occasional bugs, Fletcher acts quickly to address issues. While the sourcing algorithm may present a few over or under-qualified candidates, they're continuously refining criteria for better accuracy.
Fetcher is used by over 500 businesses worldwide, including Andela, Frame.io, Magnite, Foursquare and CarGurus.
The pricing of Fetcher's plans is based on the number of seats your team needs and the number of vetted candidate leads sourced. You can contact their sales team for a custom quote based on your specific hiring requirements.
Best For
Fetcher is best for companies seeking to enhance their sourcing and candidate outreach processes through a well-balanced combination of automation and human support.
Manatal
Manatal’s sourcing capabilities are superior to most. Besides budget-friendly ATS features, the platform offers a LinkedIn extension and AI-powered sourcing for advanced candidate recommendations and filtering—at an unbeatable price.
PROS
- Manatal is a budget-friendly ATS option with AI-powered sourcing tools.
- 14-day free trial for exploration.
- User-friendly interface with drag-and-drop pipelines.
- AI-based recommendations save time in candidate screening.
- Web-based platform for seamless access.
- Free data migration from existing hiring software.
- Transparent and flexible pricing options.
- Manatal is quite affordable and offers a 15-day free trial for users to test it out before making commitments.
- Manatal is fairly easy to use. It features drag-and-drop enabled pipelines for candidate organization.
- Manatal’s AI-based recommendations feature can save hiring managers quite a bit of time. It’s able to scan job descriptions then search a users talent pool and bring up candidates most suited for the job.
CONS
- Core products are available in English and Spanish only.
- No free plan is available.
- API integrations can be technologically complex and are only available on top-tier plans.
- Boolean search and advanced search cannot be used simultaneously.
- The AI recommendations feature works best with resumes that are in English, and doesn’t work as accurately with other languages according to several users’ feedback. Several users have also complained about Manatal’s interface only being available in English and that career pages cannot be published in languages other than English and Spanish.
- Manatal doesn’t offer a free plan. We mention this as a con as several SMB-geared ATSs do offer a free-forever verison, and that puts Manatal slightly behind competition.
- Manatal doesn’t offer prebuilt integration modules. They do have an open API that allows users to plug in third-party products and custom tools, but that required a bit more time and technical knowledge to accomplish. It’s also worth mentioning that only Custom plan customers can access Manatal’s API and Zapier integration. Customers on the Professional and Enterprise plan cannot.
- Users can search for candidates via Boolean Search or Advanced Search, but cannot combine the two search methods together. E.g users cannot use the Boolean search operators (AND, OR and NOT) within Manatal’s Advanced Search tab.
Manatal offers a range of useful features for sourcing candidates. It passed our criteria of allowing users to customize their branded career page, post jobs on multiple job boards, and receive employee and contact referrals. The tool's capability to automatically enrich candidate profiles with data from social media accounts is also impressive.
We love Manatal's AI-powered recommendation engine. It scans job descriptions, identifies key skills, and matches them with candidates in your talent pool. This streamlines the candidate search process and saves valuable time. We find the LinkedIn Chrome extension also brings convenience for the candidate search.
Affordability is a major advantage of Manatal, with pricing plans starting at just $15 per month. The solution also has a 14-day free trial as a quick tour for businesses to try it before buying. The simple interface, featuring drag-and-drop-enabled pipelines, enhances the overall experience.
However, there are a few limitations to consider. While the AI recommendations work well with English resumes, their accuracy is not as good with other languages. There is no free plan available. The selection of prebuilt integrations is also limited, with API and Zapier integrations reserved for Custom plan users only. Additionally, while having both Boolean and advanced search, it’s a shame that we can’t use them simultaneously.
Unilever, Coca-Cola, Panasonic, Ogilvy, Toyota.
Manatal has three plans. Here is their pricing when billed annually:
- Professional plan: $15/user/month for up to 15 jobs and 10,000 candidates, with unlimited guests.
- Enterprise plan: $35/user/month for unlimited jobs, candidates, and guests.
- Custom plan: Includes all Enterprise features plus custom features, integrations, and support.
Best For
Manatal is the ideal choice for budget-conscious organizations in need of an intuitive ATS with powerful AI sourcing capabilities.
hireEZ
hireEZ is built for enterprise-scale teams looking to increase efficiency in candidate sourcing. The platform also stands out for engagement, analytics, and collaboration features.
PROS
- Simple and easy-to-navigate UI.
- Daily emails delivered to TA teams offer AI-backed candidate recommendations.
- Automated email sequences to candidates.
- Candidate filtering by gender, race, and ethnicity.
- Great customer support.
- Has a browser extension.
- Intuitive, modern, and continuously evolving UX.
- Quick and unique sourcing capabilities. Many users indicate they get compelling candidates they hadn’t seen with other sourcing methods, some of which lead to good hires. Often, this happens in less time than the methods they were trying before.
- Unlimited follow-ups with each contact you pay for. This demonstrates how self-assured hireEZ is with the quality of their sourcing. They are confident about people not abusing this feature and stop contact when it’s clear a candidate is not interested— or simply because they found the right ones and stopped their search.
CONS
- Some candidate contact info is incorrect or out of date.
- Integration with LinkedIn could be more seamless.
- Undisclosed pricing. Doesn’t have a free trial.
- Since it’s always changing, parts of the platform may be buggy at times, which tends to be a minor nuisance we hear often from the mouths of recruiters. However, these bugs tend to get fixed quickly.
- Some recruiters have also pointed out a small whole issue performing searches: the tags for job titles are often too narrow, and sometimes the search function won’t include specific titles that they consider essential in their practice.
- While it has a growing list of integrations, it does not integrate with popular job sites like Wellfound. Furthermore, the LinkedIn integration could be expanded, and it only connects with ATS/CRM, calendars, and video interview software.
Our assessment revealed that hireEZ is a robust candidate sourcing tool ideal for medium to large organizations. It not only streamlines talent acquisition for HR and recruitment but also provides valuable support for sales teams.
hireEZ's large scope of features stands out as a major advantage. The platform covers sourcing, engagement, and analytics while maintaining a clean and easy-to-navigate dashboard. A Chrome browser extension simplifies candidate sourcing directly from websites.
The AI-driven candidate recommendations feature is also impressive. It provides a daily installment of potential candidates via email. We’re also excited to see the platform's upcoming GPT-powered feature, which is set to enhance auto-generated email outreach.
Another plus is the platform's ability to automate candidate outreach and follow-ups through email sequencing. However, we noticed some limitations of the tool during our research.
While hireEZ can integrate with 30+ HR tools, we heard some complaints from users regarding the poor connection between the platform and LinkedIn, a primary talent source for many recruiters.
Lastly, while undisclosed pricing is common in this space, we would love more information regarding hireEZ plans. For now, the only way to do so is via a demo.
Nike, Continental, Wayfair, Intel, Ceridian, Novo Nordisk.
hireEZ doesn’t disclose its pricing. You need to contact them for an exact quote.
Best For
Companies of all sizes looking for an AI-powered talent-sourcing solution that is easy to use and scalable.
I would use HireEZ every single day in my role as an executive recruiter. We use it to source candidates, as well as send bulk emails to candidates for outreach.
- It provides email addresses for candidates.
- It includes a hyperlink to the candidates linkedin profile.
- It allows for bulk email messages for candidate outreach.
- Exporting sourcing lists to excel is much easier than with Linkedin.
Linkedin Recruiter accounts were becoming way too expensive so we were looking for an alternative sourcing tool. The benefits of HireEz is that they provide an email address of contacts which is helpful. They also provide a search function with categories that are similar to Linkedin Recruiter.
The platform should add an integration with Crelate. You also need to have access to all of the search categories by paying for them to make it a useful tool. Email addresses are not always 100% in the software.
HireEz is the only competitor to LinkedIn and I find it to be much better, faster loading and just an easier user experience overall.
Do you need an alternative to Linkedin Recruiter or Recruiter lite? Pricing is better than Linkedin. Would you like access to candidate emails? If yes, HireEZ is worth checking out.
Upgraded features are constantly being added. You can also send feedback to their developers.
Recruiters and agencies
Anyone who is not a recruiter.
Underdog.io
Underdog.io is a job market place that connects candidates with hiring managers in top startups in NYC and San Francisco. A notable thing is that most applications take only 60 seconds.
PROS
CONS
Underdog.io allows technology companies to source from their continuously-refreshed pool of vetted talent. Most of their candidates are experienced tech (eng/data science) talent, but they also have product, sales, etc. Recruiters can use booleans to search for the right talent in the right geography (including looking specifically for under represented groups), and then message either in the platform or via email.
Candidates can only stay on the platform for 30 days, which means they are looking for what's next and are responsive to recruiter outreach. They've also done a good job of integrating with the ATS ecosystem to track your activity.
Lattice, Airtable, Aircall, Teachers pay teachers, Foursquare
The pricing of Underdog.io’s plans and services isn’t disclosed on their website. Contact their sales team for a price quote.
Best For
Companies looking for a curated marketplace for tech talent.
Seekout
SeekOut harnesses artificial intelligence to excel in candidate sourcing. Showcasing more than 800M profiles, the platform represents a massive and ever-expanding talent pool.
PROS
- SeekOut’s AI provides 800M public profiles with advanced filters to help recruiters source suitable candidates.
- Has dedicated talent pools for tech and healthcare candidate profiles.
- Built-in tools for candidate engagement, internal sourcing, and diverse hiring.
- Customer support includes live chat (Monday through Friday), email support, and dedicated CMS for some plan users.
- The AI assistant sources the most qualified candidates and then crafts personalized messages to send.
- Sources from tons of external databases; over 780M candidate profiles and growing
- Can find talent also among your existing team.
- Truly tech-powered and search engine-like platform.
- Presents very complete candidate profiles, sometimes going through their code contributions, participation in conferences, academic papers, and more, in order to present top experts for certain skills or topics.
CONS
- Fewer candidate options outside the United States.
- Doesn’t disclose pricing.
- No access to the real resumes of applicants. Instead, SeekOut produces candidates' profiles based on data assembled by the AI.
- Some users noted some phone numbers and emails were outdated.
- While they're always expanding their candidate list, they have been mainly oriented towards the US and Canada for years. Hence, companies outside those geographies might find that their searches are still somewhat limited when it comes to local talent. Such is the case of some users writing from Europe, for instance.
- Several users have complained about lags or glitches between the candidate’s info from the source and how/when it appears within the platform.
SeekOut stood out to us for its powerful filtering features, enabling precise candidate searches based on job history, keywords, location, education, and skills. The platform also includes options like state or national filters and the ability to save custom filters for future searches.
SeekOut prioritizes fair and diverse hiring by using blind hiring features that conceal candidates' personal information.
Additionally, it provides dedicated talent pools for in-demand industries like technology and healthcare. With a sizable pool of 31 million healthcare applicants, SeekOut is well-suited for the U.S. healthcare market.
We appreciate their attention to internal sourcing through the SeekOut Grow module, which provides HR leaders with a comprehensive overview of their workforce and enables them to identify suitable internal candidates for open positions.
Users are not able to access the original resumes of the candidates they are vetting, which is a drawback.
Users have noted a shortage of local candidate data in Europe, Latin America, and the Caribbean, and inaccurate or outdated contact information for candidates is also reported occasionally across the platform. SeekOut has taken steps to mitigate this through real-time database updates.
SeekOut offers integrations with popular ATSs and CRMs, users report smooth connectivity with Greenhouse. However, integration experiences with Phenom or Gem have received mixed reviews.
Customer support includes live chat on weekdays, email support, and access to a dedicated Customer Success Manager (CSM) for select plan users.
VMware, Salesforce, Merck, UiPath, Anaplan.
SeekOut has three plans which have undisclosed pricing:
- Premium: This package gives you access to 441 million+ applicants, diverse sourcing and recruiting tools, people analytics, 500 candidate contact details each month, and the ability to export 5,000 profiles each month.
- Premium Tech: This plan includes all of the benefits of the Premium plan, in addition to tools designed specifically for finding tech talent. These tools include rankings based on Coder Score, a GitHub search engine, direct access to applicants' code, and customized insights.
- SeekOut Expert: This plan is intended for hiring in the life sciences and engineering.
Best For
Good choice for companies sourcing and healthcare professionals based in the United States.
- I don’t use Seekout very often (monthly).
- When I’m looking for very senior profiles who will be working on some innovative segment of the business, I would find a few more than on Linkedin.
- Another sourcing workflow when I need an additional sourcing tool, like Seekout, is when I’m looking for Engineer profiles.
- I would also use it when creating a sourcing strategy, since it can generate useful reports about diversity.
- I also like to experiment with the AI matching feature SeekOut offers, which approximately works in 30% cases.
- SeekOut can potentially improve DEI in a few ways. It has a feature Bias reducer, that hides some unnecessary details that could imply ethnicity or gender. There are also Diversity Filters when the goal is to find more underrepresented candidates
- What is quite a rare benefit to find elsewhere, is that SeekOut shows information of somebody’s scientific work: Publications and Patents, which is amazing when we look for experts in the field.
- These specifics of SeekOut also can be used to present the candidate in an even better light.
- SeekOut also enables us to see the email address and telephone number of some profiles.
I’ve been using SeekOut for less than 1 year. My organization bought SeekOut to try an additional sourcing platform besides Linkedin Recruiter.
For our big organization, it was important to try to find as many profiles who are not necessarily present or active on Linkedin, or leave their profile quite empty. It was also necessary for us to have the talent pool be filtered with US specific filters. Moreover, SeekOut has been especially used for sourcing technical profiles, as well as for international recruiting.
- At the first glimpse the search results provide too many details about the education and less about the work experience.
- I am mostly sourcing for the Europe talent market so actually it doesn't provide a significantly higher number of profiles than Linkedin.
- The filter about Location is in miles only, not kilometers.
It seems especially good for the US talent market, because it also generates results with work authorization, or clearance.
Key buying criteria could be:
- would you source talent in US
- how difficult to find are the profiles you are looking for
- I think that Seekout improved its user-friendly interface.
- There are so many details and options but not overwhelmingly visible at the first glance.
It could be very good for big organizations which have many recruiters and niche positions to recruit for.
I assume that it wouldn’t be a fit for start-ups who don’t have many open positions.
AmazingHiring
AmazingHiring's platform is focused on technical hires and so they have advanced screening technology and a large database of engineering talent.
PROS
CONS
AmazingHiring aggregates professional backgrounds of technical candidates from data they collect across over 70 different sources. The AI will sort candidates by a consolidated rating across their Github, Stack, etc profiles and align this list with your candidate criteria. There is also the ability to do manual sourcing as well with boolean searches.
You can then filter candidates by years experience, gender, past job titles/companies, seniority levels, etc. You can also exclude different sources (like LinkedIn) to give you a better opportunity to find hidden talent that are talent acquisition teams may not know about.
Sourcers and recruiters organize candidates by folder, and then can execute multi stage email sequences that go out via your email client (gmail, outlook, etc).
Lastly, they have a data enrichment feature where you can add relevant information to email lists (name, title, geography, etc), and keep your candidate datasets up to date.
EPAM, Akamai Technologies, Alexander Mann Solutions,Dell, ABBYY
Pricing is based on the number of licenses that you buy, with volume discounts for larger companies. All contracts are annual and start at $4,800 per seat. There are also charges for enriching contacts if you want to take advantage of that feature.
Lastly, they do offer custom pricing for individual freelancers who want to use the platform.
Best For
Technical recruiters at growing technology companies, smaller companies that need to hire technical talent, and third party recruiters and staffing agencies who have a high volume of tech hiring.
I use AmazingHiring daily. AmazingHiring allows me to source candidates. It also helps the team find relevant information from multiple profiles. Its primary purpose has been to cut down research time for my team. I am particularly impressed with its search capabilities.
I like its search capabilities. I enjoy being able to find candidate contact information using their AI tools. It helps cut down research time tremendously.
We purchased AmazingHiring to parse through online profiles more effectively. The hiring team uses the service to streamline research on candidates. AmazingHiring combines multiple profiles to give a clear perspective on a candidate's career and trajectory if hired. It is a useful tool in employee sourcing. I have used AmazingHiring for approximately 2 years.
It is an expensive service at an approximate $5k price point. Occasionally there are issues with the auto-tag feature. I have run into a few issues with its mailing list features but none that were a major problem.
Can you afford the software? Do you have a team to verify that contact information for candidates is not outdated? Do you need access to a candidate's social media to determine hiring?
It has been a consistent product and I do not have major complaints. Customer service is responsive and they integrate well with any ATS I have used.
I would suggest this product for teams with a heavy tech influence.
This is not the best for independent contractors due to the price.
Arya by Leoforce
Arya is developed by Leoforce, an AI recruiting company with a focus on talent sourcing. There are several editions of Arya, making it a good fit for all company sizes.
PROS
CONS
The Arya AI recruiting platform from Leoforce builds shortlists of quality candidates based on your job description. These shortlists come from the open web, as well as your own ATS/CRM. The platform also includes a multi-channel candidate engagement suite that allows you to quickly and easily reach out to these candidates, ask them screening questions, and schedule the relevant candidates with your recruiters. Needless to say, this decreases cost per hire and time to fill.
Lenovo, American Century Investments, PeopleScout, Ecotalent, Polaris Alpha
Arya's pricing starts with Arya Pulse, which is for low volume or infrequent hiring needs. You get to pay per job, with options ranging from $200 to $600. For larger recruitment needs, they offer subscription-based pricing that's customized.
Best For
Arya is available in several editions (see Pricing), so it can easily meet the needs and budgets of enterprises and SMBs.
We use it to source candidates and to send emails to shortlisted candidates. We use it almost daily.
The market research tool is a plus. The user experience is very good and it is very easy to navigate. The ability to email candidates from within the tool is great.
We were looking for a new AI sourcing tool. We like that it works to continually source possible candidates for us to review. The onboarding training is very good. You have an assigned Customer Success Rep to ensure that the users are comfortable with navigating the tool. It's been about six months that we've been using it.
I don't like that it asks for information about competitor/target companies but doesn't seem to use it to source candidates. The boolean search function doesn't work that well. Unfortunately, using only the AI search functionality based on a job description brings back a lot of irrelevant results.
We've only used one other tool that was similar but all it did was pull LinkedIn results. Arya goes beyond LinkedIn.
People should think about all the functionalities they get for the price. It's an annual subscription, not monthly, so if you don't like it that much you're stuck for a year.
We've only been using it for a few months so it hasn't changed in that time.
Any - corporate or agency
Can't think of one.
Entelo
Combining source-to-hire automation, AI, and managed services, Entelo is a platform used to accelerate recruiting at enterprises like Goldman Sachs, PayPal, and Target.
PROS
CONS
With Entelo, you can search for candidates that meet your criteria, and then automate your outreach all from one platform. Their new Envoy platform even promises to deliver qualified candidates directly to your inbox.
Aside from the ones mentioned above, Big name Entelo customers include Wayfair, Sony, Lyft, Asana, and Comerica Bank.
The pricing of Entelo’s plans and services isn’t disclosed on their website. Contact their sales team for a quote.
Best For
Recruiting teams and agencies looking for a recruitment automation platform.
Gem
Best-suited for large organizations and staffing agencies, Gem excels in helping sourcers and recruiters engage candidates with curated content, nurture passive talent using automated multi-stage sequences, and build a strong candidate relationship management (CRM) hub.
PROS
- Gem’s “Likely to Move” filter analyzes signals on candidates’ profiles to pinpoint those that are more likely to switch jobs.
- Analytics is easy to use and provides great insights into recruitment pipelines.
- Suggests similar profiles to the ones recruiters are looking for.
- Auto adds potential candidates who meet users’ saved search.
- Option to automate sequences to engage newly added prospects.
- Customizable drip campaigns and A/B testing for active and passive candidates.
- Customer support is available via live chat, a help center, and email. Also provides a dedicated customer success manager.
- Provides a free trial.
- Gem helps you discover qualified candidates across multiple channels, send personalized messages, visualize your recruitment pipeline, and stay on top of crucial hiring metrics
- Gem's integration with LinkedIn and various ATS means that all candidate data is stored in a centralized location. Users find this feature extremely useful.
- According to users, one of Gem's finest features is the ability to create automated drip campaigns to engage with both active and passive candidates
CONS
- Some users have experienced slow load times and lag while using the application.
- While Gem integrates with LinkedIn, it does not allow automating messages via LinkedIn InMail.
- Gem plans are paid annually. No option to pay monthly.
- No features for internal recruitment.
- No mobile app.
- Lacks pricing transparency.
- Some users have experienced slow load times and lags while using the application
- In rare cases, the contact information, such as the email address or phone number of a sourced candidate, might be wrong
- While Gem currently integrates with LinkedIn, it does not provide the option to automate messages via LinkedIn InMail
Gem is a talent engagement platform that focuses primarily on external candidates. The platform contains features that support talent sourcing, candidate outreach, and recruitment pipeline management.
It enables users to source talent using over 20 popular platforms, including LinkedIn, Indeed, Behance, and GitHub, then stores candidate databases so users can build their own talent hub.
Though it was somewhat difficult to find, their Chrome extension helps users locate prospects, get their emails, save them to the system, and send automated sequences.
Gem lacks impressive integration capabilities. For example, the tool's automation feature does not support sending InMails to candidates through LinkedIn integration. It’s worth noting, however, that they offer ample support for the integrations they do support.
The Sequence feature supports talent engagement and nurturing, enabling customization of emails with multiple stages, scheduling, and tracking. One drawback is the need for pre-built email templates.
Gem excels in reporting capabilities, automatically gathering data and providing visualized reports that are accessible to multiple stakeholders. Along with valuable insights, users appreciate the user-friendly interface.
Unfortunately, Gem lacks internal sourcing features like built-in referral functionality, and the requirement for annual payments (rather than monthly) makes it less favorable for smaller businesses.
Coinbase, Slack, Asana, Dropbox, Lyft, Indeed, Pinterest, and Doordash.
Gem pricing is undisclosed. You need to reach out to their sales team for a quote.
Best For
Gem is a great sourcing tool for recruitment teams in large orgs and staffing agencies looking to source and nurture external talent. Businesses in industries like financial services, life sciences, and manufacturing are especially well-served by this tool.
As a recruiter, I use Gem on a daily basis to manage all aspects of the candidate lifecycle. One of the key workflows that I use it for is candidate sourcing, where I can easily import and organize candidate data from various sources, such as job boards, LinkedIn, and our website. I can also use the platform's advanced search and filtering features to quickly find relevant candidates that match specific job requirements.
Once I have identified potential candidates, I use Gem to manage the screening and interviewing process. This involves tracking each candidate's progress through various stages of the hiring process, scheduling interviews, and collaborating with hiring managers and team members. I also use the platform's integrations with other tools, such as Zoom and Google Calendar, to streamline the interview process and ensure a smooth candidate experience.
In addition to these core workflows, I also use Gem for candidate relationship management and communication. This includes keeping candidates engaged throughout the hiring process, providing personalized feedback, and answering any questions they may have. I also use Gem to analyze and track recruitment metrics, such as time-to-hire and source of hire, which helps me to optimize and improve our recruitment processes over time.
Overall, Gem has become an essential tool in my daily workflow as a recruiter, allowing me to streamline and automate many aspects of the recruitment process and provide a better candidate experience.
have found Gem to be an incredibly useful tool for managing candidates throughout the recruitment process. Here are three key reasons why I like Gem:
User-friendly interface: The platform's interface is easy to use and intuitive, which makes it simple to navigate through the candidate management process.
Advanced search capabilities: Gem's advanced search capabilities are a huge asset, allowing me to quickly and easily find candidates that meet specific job requirements.
Collaborative capabilities: Gem's collaborative features are another standout feature. The platform allows me to easily communicate and collaborate with other members of my team, streamlining the hiring process and ensuring that everyone is on the same page.
Our organization purchased Gem ATS as a solution to some of the challenges we were facing in managing our recruitment processes. Before using Gem, we had been relying on manual processes and spreadsheets, which made it difficult to efficiently track and manage candidates throughout the hiring process. We also found it challenging to collaborate effectively as a team and communicate with candidates in a timely and personalized way.
Since implementing Gem, we have experienced a number of benefits. One of the key benefits has been the ability to automate many of our recruiting processes, such as resume screening and interview scheduling, which has saved us a significant amount of time and resources. Additionally, the platform has enabled us to collaborate more effectively as a team, with features such as centralized candidate profiles, real-time communication, and shared feedback.
Personally, I have been using Gem for over a year and have found it to be an essential tool for my work as a recruiter. It has enabled me to streamline my workflow, track candidates more effectively, and provide a more personalized experience for both candidates and my team. Overall, Gem has been an incredibly valuable addition to our recruitment toolkit, and we plan to continue using it to support our hiring efforts going forward.
While I find Gem to be a highly effective tool for candidate management, there are a few areas where I think it could be improved. Here are three potential drawbacks to using Gem:
Limited customization: While Gem offers a range of useful features, the platform doesn't allow for a great deal of customization. I wish that there were more options for tailoring the tool to my specific needs.
Slow loading times: At times, I have found that Gem can be slow to load, which can be frustrating when trying to quickly access candidate information.
Price point: While I believe that Gem is a valuable tool, it is on the pricier side compared to some other ATS options. For smaller organizations or those with tighter budgets, this could be a potential drawback.
I can say that Gem stands out from its competitors in a few ways. First, its user interface is clean and intuitive, making it easy to navigate and use. Second, Gem's AI-powered features, such as automated sourcing and candidate engagement, help save time and increase efficiency. Third, Gem integrates seamlessly with other tools in the recruiting tech stack, such as LinkedIn and Slack, which streamlines the recruitment process.
Compared to other similar tools I've used, I prefer Gem because of its user-friendly interface and AI-powered features. The automated sourcing and candidate engagement have helped me save a lot of time and increased the number of qualified candidates in my pipeline. Additionally, the ability to integrate with other tools has made my workflow much more streamlined. Overall, I highly recommend Gem ATS for any recruiter looking to increase their efficiency and productivity.
I would recommend that when considering a candidate management tool like this, there are a few key criteria to keep in mind.
First, it's important to evaluate the user interface and ease of use. A tool with a clean, intuitive interface will save time and reduce frustration. Consider the integrations offered by the tool, as seamless integration with other recruitment tech tools can streamline the hiring process. Also, the level of automation and AI features should be assessed, as these can greatly improve productivity and increase efficiency.
In addition, it's important to look at the pricing structure and understand any additional costs associated with add-ons or upgrades. Finally, take advantage of free trials to test out the tool and see if it meets your specific recruitment needs. Overall, by considering these key criteria, you can make an informed decision on which candidate management tool is right for your recruiting needs.
- I can attest that Gem has evolved significantly over time to meet users' needs. Since its launch, Gem has consistently released updates and new features based on user feedback, making it a much more powerful and efficient tool for candidate management.
- One of the key ways Gem has evolved is through the addition of AI-powered automation features. For example, the "Sequences" feature allows recruiters to automate personalized outreach and follow-ups to candidates, reducing the amount of manual work needed for candidate engagement.
- Gem has also expanded its integrations with other tools in the recruitment tech stack, such as LinkedIn and Slack, which has helped to streamline the recruitment process even further.
- Gem has continued to innovate and evolve over time to meet the ever-changing needs of its users. As a result, it has become a go-to tool for many recruiters looking to increase their efficiency and productivity.
I believe that Gem is very good for a variety of users and organizations. Gem is an excellent tool for companies of all sizes, from small startups to large enterprises, and for recruiters who handle high-volume hiring needs.
In particular, Gem is well-suited for recruiters who prioritize efficiency and productivity in their hiring process. The tool's AI-powered automation features, such as the ability to automate outreach and follow-up, save recruiters a significant amount of time and increase their productivity. Additionally, Gem's ability to integrate with other recruitment tech tools, such as LinkedIn and Slack, makes it an ideal tool for those who use these tools in their daily work.
Furthermore, Gem's easy-to-use interface and seamless user experience make it an excellent tool for all levels of experience, from seasoned recruiters to those who are new to the profession. Overall, Gem is a great tool for any recruiter or organization looking to increase their efficiency, productivity, and success in candidate management.
For instance, companies that have unique or complex hiring processes may find that Gem's more streamlined and automated approach may not be well-suited to their specific needs. Similarly, recruiters who prioritize a more personal touch in their candidate management, rather than relying heavily on automation, may not find Gem to be the best fit for their work style.
Also, companies that have strict data security or compliance requirements may need to carefully evaluate Gem's data protection policies and procedures to ensure they align with their specific requirements.
While Gem is a highly effective candidate management tool for many recruiters and organizations, it's important to carefully evaluate your specific needs and requirements to determine whether it's the right fit for your recruitment needs.
Interseller
Intersteller focuses on email marketing for supercharged recruitment. You can synchronize all your candidates and source emails from their databases, then set up automated drips for prospects. The tool was recently acquired by Greenhouse.
PROS
CONS
Interseller’s platform allows sourcing and full desk recruiting teams to leverage the same powerful technology that sales teams are using to engage prospective customers. Specifically, their tool lets users source talent from the open web via chrome extension, and then put them into email sequences with automated follow up and a layer of intelligence designed to protect your deliverability rates.
The startup was acquired by Greenhouse, one of the top ATS companies, in October 2021. This speaks lengths to the reliability of the tool, and means that, as per a Greenhouse press release, Interseller customers get Greenhouse-level integrations and support.
Foursquare, Squarespace, Compass, Honey, Mogul
- Standard: This plan costs $100 per user per month and is ideal for individuals or teams to reach out to new and existing contacts.
- Recruiter: At $200 per user per month, this plan is ideal for recruiters with complex needs.
Best For
Companies looking for an easy to use candidate sourcing and outreach platform.
I used Interseller specifically for its email marketing and talent sourcing outreach. Specifically, we test out different email strategies to get candidates to respond. I like that the links in each email are tracked on whether they specifically click on the link or not as this automates scheduling passive candidates for introduction calls. We track replies and the consistency of replies in the tool and the behavior sentiment of the replies to adjust the content that we are sending to our ICP.
The data. I also specifically like the automated workflow of sending emails. I also really like the Gmail integration and how seamless it is.
My CEO was friends with the CEO and Founder of Interseller, so we have used the product since its launch. We specifically use it for lead generation on the sales side and talent sourcing for the diversified search business line. We have generated over 15mm in revenue just from using lead generation. The key benefits are specifically being able to track the behavior of potential leads and helping us learn so much about our ICP.
- The emails given by Interseller aren't always valid.
- You can only upload 25 contacts at a time into Interseller.
- You also have to wait a while for Interseller to download the emails which can take up a good amount of time (like 1-2 hours of your time).
Interseller is more automated and integrated than any other email tool outside of Salesforce and/or HubSpot.
If you need a tool to write your emails then this is not the tool but it does do a/b testing, behavior tracking of each recipient, and tracks whether the email you are sending the message to is valid or not. I would recommend making sure you have Gmail and other ATS/CRM integrations capable specifically with Interseller as that will make the workflow automation easier and give you a ton more information.
Greenhouse has bought the tool so now this will be a proprietary tool of just 1 ATS vs. before you could use it on any ATS.
Startups
Not good for those who are not technologically savvy and not up to date on where Interseller can be integrated
Loxo
Loxo has a massive proprietary talent database, with over 1.2 billion candidates to source from. Their people search engine combines hundreds of data sources to create a hiring machine tailored to your needs.
PROS
- Loxo boasts a large candidate database, offering recruiters a wide pool of potential talent.
- The platform utilizes AI technology to effectively find, screen, and rank the best-matching candidates from its database.
- The availability of a free plan with unlimited user seats and jobs provides flexibility for businesses.
- There’s a fully functioning Applicant Tracking System (ATS) and Candidate Relationship Management (CRM) system built in.
- Users highly appreciate its customer support, finding it easy to reach out to the support team for assistance.
- The platform allows for scheduling multi-medium campaigns with timed sequences, automatically pausing when contacts respond.
CONS
- Due to its sophisticated nature and AI features, the learning curve can be high with Loxo.
- Integration with third-party VOIP services for call/text recording is lacking.
- Some sourcing information may be outdated, and the available contact information is limited to work emails.
- The complexity of the Boolean search function and occasional oversights in internal searches result in missed or skipped candidates.
- The mobile app is quite basic and primarily supports outreach activities.
- According to a few users, bulk emailing can be slow at times.
Loxo’s AI-powered suite packs a host of tools to supercharge your talent sourcing and recruiting efforts. With access to a vast database of 1.2 billion individuals, the platform helps you search for potential candidates based on the job description you feed it, then build candidate lists by saving profiles from the database or importing from external sources like LinkedIn.
Its customizable pipelines help you track candidates’ progress in an organized way, while its outreach tools allow you to get in front of candidates through automated sequences of emails, texts, calls, and LinkedIn messages. To facilitate collaboration between your recruiting team members, Loxo enables feedback and candidate profile sharing. Simply put,
We think everything in Loxo is well thought out.
Among Loxo’s customers are several recognizable companies, including Amazon, Randstad, Cigna, Lockton, and CT Assist.
- Free: Completely free of charge, this plan lets you access Loxo’s ATS, recruiting CRM, and Chrome extension. It allows for an unlimited number of seats and jobs. However, additional add-ons are not included in this plan and must be purchased separately.
- Professional: This plan costs $299 per seat per month when billed annually. It includes all the features of the Free plan and adds advanced sourcing tools, customized workflows, built-in communication tools such as email, SMS, and calling, onboarding support, priority customer support, and more.
- Enterprise: This plan has custom pricing, no user limit, and provides its users with access to all features the platform has to offer.
Best For
Companies of all sizes can benefit from Loxo’s talent sourcing and outreach platform, though mid-sized companies and agencies are likely to get the most out of it.
Why Talent Acquisition Teams Use Sourcing Tools
It's still incredibly difficult to find the best talent in many demographics: engineers, diversity candidates, experienced sales reps, etc.
Over the past decade, many companies have developed internal recruiting and sourcing functions to find the right talent. As the market got tight, companies could either rely on expensive third party recruiters or start to do the work themselves.
However, even these internal teams can be stretched thin as the demands of a growing organization take their toll on your recruiting team. This is where sourcing tools come in, and recruiting software in general. This software/services category is all about building the top of your recruiting funnel with quality passive applicants.
Some of these tools are trying to be better and/or cheaper than a LinkedIn Recruiter license. Some are trying to be your outsourced sourcing team. And some are doing both. All of them are what we’d consider to be part of an elite group of the best candidate sourcing software.
Regardless, these tools are all looking to increase your ability to build relationships with and hire the right people for your hardest to fill roles through AI sourcing, social media, .recruitment marketing, and various other talent sourcing methods.
Talent Sourcing Tool ROI Calculator
If you’re looking to buy a tool or service to augment your sourcing capability, here are our thoughts on how to calculate the return on investment. Some key points in this calculator:
- How to capture increases in recruiter productivity
- How decreases in time to fill affects the organization
- How sourcing tools can decrease agency fees
We highly suggest your use the video to the right in order to best understand how to use our calculator!
You can make your own copy of this google sheet here, or download in excel here.
Beyond the dollars and cents, there are also some non-economic benefits of using talent sourcing tools. For example, the vast majority of recruiters we talk to do not like sourcing. The idea of sending cold emails, and then playing phone tag with the people who are interested is very unappealing. Optimizing or outsourcing these tasks means more time for your team to do the things they like, as well as think strategically.
Staying Organized
If you’re looking at buying a new sourcing tool, or using one of the managed services we have listed, you need to stay organized. Chances are, you’re going to do at least 3-5 demos. Unless you have a perfect memory, it’ll be tough to remember which tools have which features.
Taking notes is great, but we recommend you do it in a structured way that objectively captures which vendors have which features that matter to you. So, we’ve put together the below spreadsheet that comes with some sample questions, along with an easy to modify structure that will allow you to pick the right candidate sourcing tool for your business.
You can download the spreadsheet here.
Questions to ask Talent Sourcing Vendors on Demos
- Where do you get your data? Is your service GDPR and CAN SPAM compliant?
- Is this a tool or a managed service or both? What is the pricing difference between the two?
- What automation features do you offer once candidates have been identified?
- How do candidates/applications get into my ATS software?
- What are your response rates, and interview rates from candidates? Put another way, what percent of candidates that we’ll be reaching out to respond positively, and what percent want to interview?
- How will applicants interact with this software during the hiring and onboarding processes?
- How does the tool know about open positions and prioritize which ones should be actively sourced?
- Does this solution help with interview scheduling, or integrate with an interview scheduling platform?
- How will this tool integrate with the rest of my tech stack?
- Can I use semantic search to query the database to find relevant candidates?
- What analytics are reported to human resources/talent acquisition and on what frequency?
- How does machine learning and/or AI sourcing play a role in this product?
- Is your product able to use the analytics from our talent management platform to understand what types of candidates do well in our company?
- Does this platform leverage social recruiting as one of the sourcing strategies?
Sourcing Tools vs Managed Services/Automated Talent Sourcing
There are two main ways that vendors in this space help with your top of funnel recruiting. Some of these companies offer tools that your recruiters and sourcers can use to find and engage with potential hires. These tools are very similar to LinkedIn Recruiter, but rely on emails vs inmails.
The second way companies in this category can help is by providing a managed service to drive more quality applicants into your pipeline. You tell them the profile you’re looking for, and they do most of the work until the candidate is ready to interview. The candidate either shows up in your inbox, or on your calendar.
While I think most of us would want to simply have calendar invites appear with the right candidates, there are some tradeoffs to the managed service approach. The first is price. The second is a potential loss of control in your process and how your employer brand is being portrayed. However, we don’t believe this is a major concern as every vendor we talked to wants to work closely with their customers to ensure the right messages are being sent to the right people in order to preserve employer branding.
Here’s What HR Needs to Know About Sourcing Tools
Here are some of the points that we found (some) practitioners don’t understand when they first hear about sourcing tools:
- These solutions can help you build relationships with D&I candidates by searching specifically for people that meet various criteria.
- Hiring managers can also use these tools to streamline their own recruiting process, assuming they are taking an active role in top of funnel recruiting.
- Companies that hire 10-100,000 people per year use recruiters. Similarly, sourcing tools can help companies of almost any size.
- No, candidates haven’t opted into this outreach. Just like sales people can email you out of the blue as long as they follow various regulations, you can (and probably are) reaching out to candidates that haven’t “opted in” to your communication. This tactic is the best way to get in touch with passive candidates and is very common across internal and external recruiting teams.
- Utilizing a candidate sourcing tool in concert with other recruiting technology such as video interviewing or employee referrals can greatly magnify the effectiveness of your overall recruiting process, and therefore you should be thinking holistically about how you want your talent acquisition tech stack to look.
- Many applications will not convert down the funnel into hires. Employers that use a recruiting CRM can re-engage and nurture these applicants until they are a good fit for an open role.
- These solutions can be a replacement for agencies and LinkedIn recruiter licenses. But, it’s more likely they’ll augment your other efforts than totally replace them.
- A well run sourcing mechanism is great for getting people into your funnel. But, if you have a poor candidate experience, onboarding, or culture generally, you will constantly be trying to fill a leaky bucket.
Candidate Sourcing FAQs
What is candidate sourcing?
Candidate sourcing is the act of proactively looking for potential candidates to fill open positions, oftentimes using recruiters or software platforms.
Are there different solutions for sourcing candidates?
Yes, there are multiple different solutions for sourcing candidates. You can outsource sourcing to a recruiting firm, hire full-time recruiters to source for your company, or purchase a candidate sourcing software solution.
What is a candidate sourcing platform?
A candidate sourcing platform is a software solution designed to make your sourcing process more efficient by automating or outsourcing the parsing of job boards, databases, employee networks and social media websites.
How can candidate sourcing tools enhance the recruiting process?
Candidate sourcing tools make the hiring process much more efficient. By automating or outsourcing the busywork of scouring networks and databases for the best talent, your HR team will save lots of time. In addition, your team will see a decrease in time to fill thanks to a wider talent pool from sourcing efforts.
Final Advice
Recruiting software can supercharge your talent acquisition efforts. However, it’s one piece of your recruiting process, and doesn’t take the place of a strong human resources team when hiring and onboarding new employees. From the beginning of recruitment through employee onboarding, it’s important to have a human touch that takes into consideration the needs of the humans involved.
That said, leveraging machine learning and AI for your candidate sourcing is a great way to drastically scale your ability to get in front of the right applicants. If your team’s sourcing process lacks technology, you are at a huge disadvantage relative to your talent competition. Moreover, relying solely on job boards or employee referral programs is a surefire way to miss your recruitment goals.
Our advice is to make a list of your priorities, and figure out the 2-3 within your existing recruitment process that need the most help. Maybe it’s adding a recruiting crm, video interview software, or another type of recruiting tool. Whatever the case, we hope this page, and our site generally, is helpful for you to make the right decisions for your business. Enjoy!
About Us
- Our goal at SSR is to help HR and recruiting teams to find and buy the right software for their needs.
- Our site is free to use as some vendors will pay us for web traffic.
- SSR lists all companies we feel are top vendors - not just those who pay us - in our comprehensive directories full of the advice needed to make the right purchase decision for your HR team.
