Multi-source candidate sourcing: one record per person, many channels

High-volume hiring rarely has one front door. Candidates arrive through job boards, referrals, social media groups, messaging apps, walk-in drives and the agency's own older records. Each channel has its own format, its own data quality and its own way of losing people.

The first problem is identity. The same person appears three times with slightly different names, spellings and numbers. For blue-collar candidates the mobile number is usually the most stable identifier, so matching and merging on it, with care for shared and recycled numbers, removes most duplicates.

The second is normalization. "Heavy driver", "HMV driver" and "truck driver" may mean the same thing, and licence classes, locations and notice periods arrive in dozens of formats. Mapping them into one consistent vocabulary is what makes search and matching actually work.

The third is reach. A candidate who never answers email may reply within minutes on a messaging app. Record each candidate's preferred channel and their consent to be contacted, and respect opt-outs across every source.

Finally, close the loop. Track which source each placed candidate came from, so the team spends its effort on the channels that produce hires rather than the ones that only produce volume.