Pipeline stages & moving candidates

Each job has a pipeline — the set of candidates in process. Open a job and select the Pipeline tab, where you can switch between a board (kanban) and a table view.

Stages and outcomes — two separate things

Every application tracks two things independently:

• Stage — where the candidate is in your process. Stages are defined by your workspace (the default set is Sourced → Applied → Screen → Submitted → Client review → Interview → Offer) and fully customisable — see Customising pipeline stages.
• Outcome — how it ended: placed, rejected or withdrawn. Outcomes are not stages: rejecting a candidate at Interview doesn't drag their card backwards — it stamps the outcome and preserves the stage they reached, so your funnel history stays honest. See Recording outcomes.

The board

The kanban board shows one column per active stage and a Placed column for candidates whose outcome is placed. When applicants are awaiting review, an Inbound column appears before the pipeline stages (see Reviewing inbound applicants).

Drag a card to a new column — the stage updates immediately and the move is logged on both the job's and the candidate's History timeline. Cards can show days in stage and the candidate's AI match strength, so you can prioritise within a column. While dragging, drop zones for Reject… and Withdraw… appear so you can record an exit without leaving the board.

The table

Switch to table view for a full-power list of the pipeline's candidates — the same columns, filters, sorting and saved views as any record list, with application details (stage, outcome, dates) alongside candidate fields.

Adding candidates to the pipeline

• From the Pipeline tab, add an existing candidate from your database.
• From a candidate's Pipeline tab, add them to the job.
• By accepting an inbound applicant — they enter at the stage you pick, falling back to the posting's stage and then to the workspace's Inbound default stage.
• By accepting an AI match suggestion from the job's Matching tab.

Submitted tracking

Stages can be flagged as "Marks submitted" in settings — when a candidate reaches such a stage (or any stage after it), Kepler stamps their submitted date automatically. That's what powers the delivery funnel and the Submitted column on the Pipeline page.

Pipeline hygiene

• Keep stage definitions honest — "Interview" should mean a confirmed client interview, not "sent the CV and hoping".
• Record outcomes when candidates drop — the dashboard and reports read stage and outcome data, and stale pipelines produce fantasy forecasts.
• Use the Interviews tab to log rounds, feedback and scheduling alongside the stage itself.