Interview reminders and follow-ups

Kula chases candidates and interviewers for you at every stage of scheduling — nudging a candidate who hasn't booked, confirming an interview once it's set, chasing an unanswered calendar invite, and reminding everyone just before it starts. This article covers what goes out, to whom, and when, and what you can send yourself.

Most of this runs on its own. You don't trigger confirmations, RSVP chasers or the pre-interview reminder — they follow from scheduling the interview.

Before the interview is booked

When you've sent a candidate a link and they haven't acted on it, how Kula follows up depends on which kind of link you sent.

Automatic self-schedule reminders keep going until the candidate books, the link is cancelled, or the link expires — whichever comes first. Sending one yourself doesn't use up an automatic reminder, and the automatic cycle carries on regardless.

Availability requests have no automatic cycle at all. If a candidate hasn't sent their times, someone has to chase them. It's worth putting a note in your own follow-up routine, because nothing in Kula will do it for you.

When a link expires

Both link types expire at the end of the scheduling window you chose when you sent them — not after a fixed number of days. A link sent with a Next weekday window expires sooner than one sent with Next week or a Custom window.

• A self-schedule link that expires can no longer be booked. Send a new one if the candidate still needs a slot.

• An availability request that expires is marked expired automatically, and you're notified so you know to follow up.

Once the interview is booked

Confirmations, reschedules and cancellations

When an interview is booked, the candidate and the interviewers get a calendar invite with the details and, for a virtual interview, the meeting link. A separate confirmation email goes out only if you switch it on when you schedule — both emails are off by default. See Scheduling an interview manually. Rescheduling or cancelling sends an updated or cancellation email to the same people. In each case the recruiter who scheduled it gets their own notification, so you know it went out.

RSVP reminders

Candidates and interviewers get a calendar invite, and Kula watches whether they respond. If someone leaves their RSVP pending, Kula reminds them every 24 hours, up to 3 times, until they respond, the interview starts, or it's cancelled. You're notified whenever someone RSVPs, so you can see who's confirmed without opening your calendar.

Interviewers are reminded only on their working days. Kula uses the interviewer's own interview schedule and timezone, holds reminders during a short out-of-office, and stops them altogether if someone is away for a week or more. Candidates don't have a working schedule, so their reminders simply run every 24 hours.

Kula skips RSVP reminders entirely in three cases:

• The interview is on a shared Microsoft calendar, where RSVP doesn't apply.

• The invitee's email provider doesn't report their response back to the organiser's calendar. Kula knows which providers behave this way and won't chase those invitees.

• The interview has been cancelled or deleted.

The reminder just before it starts

10 minutes before the interview begins, Kula reminds attendees it's about to start, as long as it hasn't been cancelled or deleted. If an interview is booked less than 10 minutes before its start time, this reminder is skipped — there's no time to send it.

Good to know

• Automatic reminders are switched on per account, and the two kinds are separate. Self-schedule reminders and RSVP reminders are controlled independently, so one can be running while the other isn't. If either isn't going out, ask support which is enabled for you.

• There's no reminder the day before a confirmed interview. Once a candidate has RSVP'd, the next thing they hear from Kula is the 10-minute warning. If you want a day-before nudge, send it yourself.

• An interviewer with no interview schedule set up gets no RSVP reminders at all. Kula can't tell which days are their working days, so it stops rather than guessing. If one interviewer never seems to be chased, check their schedule first.

• Reminders respect candidate consent. If a candidate's consent has been withheld or withdrawn, Kula won't send them reminders, automatic or manual.

• Manual reminders are always available, whatever the automatic settings are doing, and however many have already gone out.

FAQ

• A candidate hasn't booked their self-schedule slot and hasn't had a reminder. Why?
  Automatic self-schedule reminders are switched on per account. If they aren't going out, ask support whether they're enabled for you. You can always send a reminder yourself — it doesn't use up an automatic one. See How to send a self-schedule link to a candidate.

• Does Kula chase a candidate who hasn't sent their availability?
  No. Availability requests have no automatic reminders. Resend the request yourself, and it's marked expired automatically at the end of the window you chose. See Requesting candidate availability.

• One interviewer never gets RSVP reminders. What should I check?
  Check their interview schedule first. An interviewer with no schedule set up gets no RSVP reminders, because Kula can't tell which days they work. Reminders also stop if they're away for a week or more.

• Can Kula send the candidate a reminder the day before the interview?
  No. After the candidate RSVPs, the next message they get from Kula is the reminder 10 minutes before the start. If you want a day-before nudge, send it yourself.

Need help?

If you have questions or need assistance, reach out to us at support@kula.ai or use the in-app chat.