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The Candidate Pipeline is the third and final step of the job creation wizard, after Job Post and Application Form. Here you define the stages candidates move through, from application to hire, along with the automations attached to each stage. Nothing you set up here is locked in. After the job is live, open the job’s Settings page and switch to the Candidate Pipeline tab to edit stages at any time.

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Choosing Stages

Every pipeline starts with the Applied stage. It is a system stage, always comes first, and is where every new application lands. From there, add the stages that match your hiring process. Equip offers 11 stage types:
When you add an Assessment, One-Way AI Interview, or Conversational AI Interview stage, Equip automatically creates the underlying assessment or interview for that stage. You can review and adjust it before inviting candidates.
The three terminal stages (Hired, Rejected, Withdrawn) cannot be deleted. Together with Applied and Offered, they are the fixed endpoints every pipeline is built around.

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Reordering and Naming

The pipeline builder is drag-to-reorder: pick up any stage card and drop it where it belongs in your process. Each stage carries two names: Use the Stage Name for filters and stage-change menus (for example, “Interview 2”) and the Internal Name as a short dashboard label (for example, “July Hiring”). Candidates see only the job title, except that Video Interview and Custom invitation emails can include the stage name.
If you delete a stage that already holds candidates, Equip archives it instead of deleting it. You will see the message “Stage has candidates and was archived instead of deleted”. Archived stages can be restored at any time, so no candidate data is lost.

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Attaching Templates and Assignees

Each stage can carry its own automations: email templates, a scorecard, and an assignee. What you can attach depends on the stage type: These automations are visible only after the job opening is saved; you will not find them while still creating it. To configure a stage:
1

Open the stage

Click the stage card in the pipeline builder to open its configuration.
2

Attach templates

Pick an invitation email template for stages where candidates receive an invite, and a rejection email template so rejections from this stage use consistent wording. Defaults are provided, and you can manage your own under Templates.
3

Attach a scorecard

For Phone Screening, Video Interview, and Custom stages, select a scorecard so interviewers rate every candidate against the same criteria.
4

Set an assignee

Choose a team member responsible for candidates in this stage. Click the circular icon on the top right of the stage card and pick a team member from the list. Assignees power the “Mine” filter on the applications dashboard, so everyone knows what is on their plate.
Attaching an email template does not mean emails go out automatically. Emails on Equip are always recruiter-triggered: when you move a candidate to a stage, you choose whether to send the email, and you can preview it first.
  • Pipeline Stages - A deeper look at each stage type and when to use it
  • Changing Stages - How to move candidates through the pipeline you built
  • Email Templates - Create and customize the templates you attach to stages
  • Scorecards - Build scorecard templates for structured interviewer feedback