A Guide to Recruiting Intake Sessions
"If you aim at nothing, you'll hit it every time."
— Zig Ziglar
The best recruiting teams always know what “yes” looks like before starting a search. Having a clear target creates recruiter efficiency, reduces negative candidate experiences, and minimizes the time hiring managers spend finding the right candidate. Considering that the average interview process consumes 3-5 hours of a hiring manager’s time, avoiding even one unnecessary interview through a proper intake session represents a significant return on investment. Even for repeat openings, intake sessions are crucial for recalibrating expectations.
Download our Intake Session Framework
What Is an Intake Session?
Intake sessions are 30-60 minute meetings held after finalizing a job description and before posting the role externally. These sessions are designed to:
Align the role and hiring manager expectations to the company’s leveling framework.
Create competencies to guide skills-based interviews.
Calibrate the job description with the hiring manager’s vision of the role.
Highlight potential variances that could hinder the recruiting process, allowing recruiters to escalate issues early.
The Unicorn Talent Intake Session: Explain this job to my Grandma in three bullets.
Why? Because grandmas don’t care about jargon, technical specifications, acronyms, or industry language. They want something simple they can proudly brag about during a game of canasta. This exercise forces hiring managers to distill the role into three broad competencies. These competencies not only form the foundation of your interview rubric but can also be assigned to interviewers in a skills-based interview process.
As recruiters, we excel at asking probing questions. Breaking down these three competencies into critical vs. non-critical elements sharpens our ability to evaluate candidates effectively—a skill we apply throughout the hiring process.
Additional Key Elements of an Intake Session
Organizational Position: Understanding where the role fits in the reporting structure provides clarity and allows you to analyze the role against the leveling and title framework. If discrepancies arise, involve your HRBP immediately.
Process Clarity: Define who will evaluate candidates and whether additional steps, such as exercises or at-home tests, are necessary. Ensure these steps measure specific competencies and manage candidate expectations upfront.
Success Metrics: Ask hiring managers how they measure success in the role. This information creates a “yes/no” framework for interview rubrics and drives alignment during post-interview debrief discussions.
The Far-Reaching Impact of Intake Sessions
Intake sessions are the DNA of an HR organization, continuously validating HR philosophies as interpreted by managers. Variances identified during these sessions offer insights into the health and efficacy of your HR strategy.
Key Areas Influenced by Intake Sessions:
Job Pricing: Are we compensating appropriately for the desired role?
Job Pitch: Is the role compelling to candidates in today’s market?
Sourcing Targets: How large is the candidate pool for this role?
Interview Rubrics: What is the process for evaluating candidates’ abilities?
Career Ladders: Does this role align with a clear career progression?
Debriefing: Is there alignment among hiring teams on candidate decisions?
Looking Ahead
In future articles, we’ll explore advanced strategies for leveraging intake sessions across an organization and managing the resulting data to create a fully validated HR ecosystem. For now, remember: intake sessions aren’t just about filling roles—they’re about building a foundation for efficiency, alignment, and long-term success.