Phone pre-screening and Job ID
Let applicants call in with a 6-digit Job ID and answer your screening questions by phone.
Phone pre-screening is a short voice interview that applicants can take after they apply. An AI assistant asks your screening questions over the phone, and you get the recording, a transcript, the answers and a written summary on the applicant’s page. It saves you the first screening call for every applicant.
Candidates always call in. They dial one number and key in the job’s 6-digit Job ID, so the call is linked to the right job. Tahoe never calls candidates.
Plan and cost
| Details | |
|---|---|
| Plan | Growth and above. See pricing. |
| Cost | Credits are charged for the actual length of each candidate’s call, not a flat fee, from your existing credit balance. |
| Languages | English, Korean, or bilingual (English and Korean). |
| Who calls | The candidate. Tahoe never places calls to candidates. |
Turn it on for a job
Open the pre-screen section
In the job form (Create job, or the Posting tab of an existing job), scroll to AI / voice pre-screen.
Switch it on
Tick Would you like to receive applicants’ voice recordings? If your plan does not include it, the box is greyed out with a link to View plans.
Pick the interview language
Under Candidate interview / question language, choose English, Korean or bilingual (English and Korean).
Review the questions
Tahoe prepares two sets of questions, explained below. Edit them until they ask what you would ask on a first call. On a new job, the questions are saved when you post.
You can also switch it on or off later from the job’s Preview tab, in the Phone pre-screening panel: tick Offer an AI phone pre-screen to applicants for this job. The same panel shows the Job ID candidates key in and the number they call.
The questions
| Section | What it asks |
|---|---|
| Section 1 · Standard questions | Asked on every job: work authorization, sponsorship, relocation, pay expectations and availability. |
| Section 2 · Role-specific questions | Written by AI from your job description, up to 5 per job. For example, how many crews someone has scheduled at once. |
On a new job, Tahoe writes the role-specific questions once you have added a title and enough of the job description. You can also click Write the questions from my description. Then:
- Click a question to change its wording.
- Use ↑ and ↓ to change the order, and Remove to drop a question.
- Click Regenerate from job description to have Tahoe write the role-specific questions again, for example after you change the description.
- Type your own question in Add your own question, choose Role-specific or Standard, and click Add question.
- Open What the AI interviewer will ask to read the full call script.
The 6-digit Job ID
Every job gets a 6-digit Job ID when it is first saved. You find it in three places: the job header (“ID 482913”; hover it to see “Callers key this in to start their phone pre-screen”), the Job ID column on Job Postings, and the Preview tab. Put the dial-in number and the Job ID wherever you share the job, such as a LinkedIn post or an email.
How candidates take it
Apply first
The candidate applies on the public job page. They enter the phone number they will call from, with the country code.
Get the number and Job ID
Right after applying, Tahoe shows “One more step: a short phone pre-screen” with the number to call, the Job ID and a Copy button. The same details are on the job page and on the candidate’s confirmation page.
Call and key in the Job ID
The candidate calls from the number on their application. Tahoe matches them by caller ID, so a withheld number cannot be matched. When asked, they key in the Job ID.
Answer the questions
The AI assistant asks the questions. The call tells them how long it usually takes. If the call ends early, they can call back to finish.
Jordan Rivera applies to Field Coordinator in Columbus, Ohio (Job ID 482913)
After submitting, Jordan sees the dial-in number and 482913. Jordan calls from the phone on the application, keys in 482913, and answers five standard and three role-specific questions. After the call, the pipeline shows Jordan’s pre-screen as Complete, and the applicant page has the recording and a summary. Your workspace is charged for the length of that one call.
Candidate consent and control
The pre-screen is optional. On the application form, candidates see a section called “AI phone pre-screening, optional” that tells them, before they agree:
- they can apply and be considered without it, and skipping it will not count against them;
- the call is recorded and transcribed, and how many questions the AI asks;
- an AI scores the answers and writes your team a summary and a suggested next step, which affects where they appear in your applicant list;
- a person at your company makes every hiring decision;
- who can listen to the recording, and how long it is kept;
- they can listen to it, or ask for it to be removed, at any time.
To agree, they tick two boxes that are never ticked in advance: one to be recorded, and one confirming they are 18 or older. The form also gives a contact for anyone who needs an accommodation. A candidate who does not tick the box online can still call; the call asks their permission before anything is recorded.
After the call, the candidate’s status page (the link in their confirmation email) offers free options, with no account needed:
- Get my recording: listen to their own recording and read the transcript and the answers that were captured.
- Try again: ask for one free re-record. The newest completed recording replaces the earlier one.
- Delete recording: remove the recording from your team. You immediately lose access to the recording, the transcript and the AI summary. Their application stays active, and they have a few days to undo it.
What you see afterwards
In the pipeline
The Pre-screen column shows each applicant’s state: Complete, Partial (with how many questions were answered), In progress, Aborted, or none. Filter the list with the Pre-screen menu, and click N answers under a name to read the answers without leaving the table.
On the applicant page
Open the applicant and choose the Phone Pre-Screening tab. You see:
- the AI summary, written automatically when the call completes: a recommendation (Advance, Hold or Decline), a confidence level, and lists of strengths, concerns and points from the call. It is a recommendation, not a decision. Read the transcript before acting on it;
- the call status, duration, time of the call and how complete it was;
- a player for the recording;
- the pre-screening answers and the full transcript;
- Employer notes, private to your team. Click Save notes.
Common questions
A phone number shows “can’t be matched”
Tahoe could not read the number on that application, so a call from it cannot be linked to the applicant. The candidate is told to reply to their confirmation email with the number in full international format.
An applicant shows “Shared number”
Another applicant on the same job applied with the same phone number. Tahoe links the call to the most recent application, so check the answers before relying on them.
The public job page does not show the phone pre-screen
Open the job’s Preview tab. If the number candidates call says “Not configured yet”, or the panel says pre-screening is switched off across the whole workspace, the phone details stay hidden on the public page until that changes. Contact [email protected].