Templates
Templates hold wording and settings you reuse, so nobody types the same email or interview details twice. Open Templates from the dashboard sidebar. The page has two tabs:
| Tab | What is in it | Who uses it |
|---|---|---|
| Your templates | Email templates and Interview Event templates that you create | A person picks one when rejecting, sending an offer, scheduling an interview or writing an email |
| Automatic emails | The emails OpenATS sends by itself | Nobody picks these. OpenATS sends them at the right moment |
Hiring Managers and Super Admins can create and change templates. Interviewers can open them to read.
Email templates
An email template is a subject and a message. It is used in three places:
- the email sent when you reject a candidate
- the offer letter a candidate reads when you send an offer
- as a starting point for a manual email to a candidate
Create an email template
- Open Templates and select New Template.
- Choose Email, then Continue.
- Enter a Template name. Only your team sees the name.
- Enter the Subject and write the message.
- Check the Preview on the right. It fills the variables with sample data.
- Select Save template.
The editor supports bold and italic text, three heading sizes, bullet and numbered lists, links, dividers and buttons. Type / in the message to add any of these from the keyboard.
Variables
A variable is a placeholder such as {{candidate_name}}. OpenATS replaces it with the real value when the email is sent. To add one, place the cursor where it should go and select Variable.
| Variable | Replaced with | Works in |
|---|---|---|
{{candidate_name}} | The candidate's full name | Any email |
{{job_title}} | The job the candidate applied for | Any email |
{{company_name}} | Your company name | Any email |
{{employment_type}} | The employment type | Any email |
{{start_date}} | The start date in the offer | Offer letters only |
{{salary}} | The salary in the offer | Offer letters only |
{{currency}} | The currency of the salary | Offer letters only |
{{reporting_manager}} | The reporting manager in the offer | Offer letters only |
{{benefits}} | The benefits in the offer | Offer letters only |
{{offer_review_url}} | The candidate's private link to the offer | Offer letters only |
The offer-only variables have a value only when an offer is sent. If a template that uses one is chosen for a rejection, OpenATS refuses to send it and names the variable, so a candidate never receives an email with a gap in it.
Interview Event templates
An Interview Event template describes one kind of interview, for example "Technical interview". It does not hold dates. You choose the times each time you schedule an interview.
| Setting | What it is |
|---|---|
| Event name | The title of the interview. Candidates see it |
| Length | How long the interview lasts, from 15 minutes to 2 hours |
| Note for your team | An optional note. Candidates do not see it |
| Virtual or On-site | A video call, or in person at an address |
| Meeting link | For a virtual interview: Google Meet (a new link for each interview) or My own link (Zoom, Teams or any other link) |
| Address | For an on-site interview |
| Message to the candidate | Optional. Sent in the email that asks the candidate to pick a time |
Create an Interview Event template
- Open Templates and select New Template.
- Choose Interview Event, then Continue.
- Fill in the settings above.
- Check the Preview, which shows what the candidate will see.
- Select Save template.
If you leave Message to the candidate empty, the automatic "Interview: pick a time" email is sent with its usual wording.
A Google Meet link can only be created for an interviewer who has connected their Google account. See Interviews and feedback.
Automatic emails
OpenATS sends these emails by itself. Each has built-in wording, so they work without any setup.
| Sent when | |
|---|---|
| Application received | A candidate applies |
| Assessment invite | A candidate reaches a stage that has an assessment |
| Assessment completed | A candidate hands in an assessment |
| Interview: pick a time | You schedule an interview and let the candidate choose a time |
| Interview confirmed | The interview gets its time |
| Interview cancelled | You cancel an interview the candidate had confirmed |
| Offer | You send an offer. It links to the offer letter |
Change the wording
- Open Templates and select the Automatic emails tab.
- Select Edit next to an email.
- Change the subject or the message. The variable list shows only what that email can fill in.
- Select Save changes.
An email you have changed is marked Edited. To go back to the built-in wording, open it and select Reset to default.
Only the subject and the message can be changed. OpenATS adds the details, such as the date and address, and the buttons, such as Choose a time, when it sends the email. This means a link the candidate needs can never be removed by mistake.
How emails look and where they are kept
Every email to a candidate uses the same design, with your company name at the top.
Every email is also saved in the candidate's Email tab, whether a person wrote it or OpenATS sent it. An email the mail provider did not accept is marked Not delivered.