You can configure notification workflows to have a delay for a set period before they send a notification to users. You typically use this feature to prevent the system from sending notifications for job application acknowledgment and screening question status at the same time.
When a candidate answers a question in the job application that results in their status being updated, and they submit their application, two status updates occur. First, the system assigns them the "New" status, and then it assigns them the updated status (for example, "Declined").
These separate updates occur at the point that the candidate submits the job application. As a result, when recruiters open Candidates tab, they see only the candidate’s updated status, and not the status of "New." However, a record of the candidate having passed through the "New" status before being assigned the updated status is still available in the Candidate Pipeline chart of the Overview tab of Recruiting, and also via reports.
Because auto-updated candidates flow through both the "New" and the updated status (for example, “Declined”), they can receive notifications for both status changes (if you have set up the necessary workflows). Moreover, because both of these status updates occur at nearly the same time (that is, at the point that the candidate submits the job application), both notifications are sent to users nearly simultaneously, unless you set up the delay that is described in this section. For example, you can configure the workflow for auto-decline to use the delay feature, so that it sends the notification at a designated period of time (in minutes) after the workflow for the “New” status sends the notification that their application was received.
Use Routing and Decision Nodes to Create a Delay
You can create a delay in your workflow by adding a routing node and a decision node with a timeout response. As a best practice, you should add these between the last condition node in the workflow and the notification node, as follows:
Routing and decision nodes are typically used in workflows that require approvals (for example, requests for new hire). However, when used in a notification workflow, they aren't intended for providing an approval or rejection (that is, there is no form to approve or reject). Instead, you are leveraging their functionality to create a delay in the workflow.
In the properties of the decision node, the Timeout Value setting allows you to type the number of minutes that you want to the workflow to delay for.
When the workflow reaches the decision node, it pauses for the number of minutes that you defined. Once this timeout period elapses, the workflow automatically continues to the notification node, where the message is sent to the users.