Workflow library · 01

First Round workflow

From an open role to an interview, a hiring decision and a working team. Follow the company and candidate journeys together, including the handoffs into the Employer workspace and FirstRound Shifts.

A detailed process guide, not a live application tracker or an automation. Steps depend on the employer, the application destination, enabled tools and account access. Practice does not submit an application, and a hiring decision does not automatically complete workforce setup.

1Open role
2Application
3Interview
4Employer review
5Offer & onboarding
6Shifts & operations

Jump to a stage

Employer workspace

Establish the company and hiring team

Company / hiring team

Create or select the correct company record. Complete the company profile, then set up team access so the people responsible for recruiting, interviewing and operations work in the same company context. A company listing alone does not prove that an account is authorized to manage it.

Candidate / employee

Create a candidate account when you need saved applications, invitations or private results. Complete your career profile and add the résumé and skills you want to use for preparation and applications.

What happens in between

Company setup follows a sequence: company profile, team and access, jobs and compensation, applications and policies, interview setup, communication setup, then review and launch.
For an existing company, use the applicable claim or access process rather than creating a duplicate company. Wait for approval where required.
Company identity, account identity and employee identity are different records. Selecting a company does not automatically make a candidate an employee.

Handoff: An authorized hiring team, a selected company and an identifiable candidate account where a signed-in flow requires one.
Before moving on: Confirm company ownership or access, responsible team members and profile readiness before collecting hiring information.

Open employer workspace

Jobs & compensation

Define the open role before inviting applicants

Company / hiring team

Create the position with its title, responsibilities, location, employment arrangement and compensation. Define what successful performance looks like and which requirements are essential. Connect the position to the appropriate department and hiring manager when applicable.

Candidate / employee

Read the responsibilities, location, compensation and required experience before deciding whether the role fits. Prepare examples that connect your own work to the actual requirements rather than a generic interview script.

What happens in between

Use the Job Description Studio or a template as a starting point, then review the wording for accuracy and relevance. Generated wording is a draft, not an approved vacancy.
Configure applications and policies, the interview experience and communication settings before launch. Review the complete company setup rather than assuming that a saved job is already published.
Separate a recruiting position from a Shifts staffing role. A job describes whom to hire; a staffing role describes how an employee can cover scheduled work.

Handoff: A reviewed position with clear requirements and the application or interview route the employer intends to use.
Before moving on: A responsible employer approves publication and confirms that the vacancy is current.

Browse job description templates

Public job discovery

Discover an opportunity in Open Roles

Company / hiring team

Keep the company and job information accurate, including the application destination. Public job discovery can include roles sourced from outside FirstRound as well as company-managed opportunities.

Candidate / employee

Explore Open Roles, open the full job details and review the company context. Check whether the action takes you to an employer application, an external careers site or a FirstRound-supported experience.

What happens in between

A public listing is not proof that its employer uses the FirstRound employer workspace. Do not assume that every discovered job has an internal recruiter or assessment attached.
Review the source and destination before sharing personal information. An external application is completed under that employer’s process.
Practice for a discovered role can help you prepare, but it does not submit an application or create an employer interview invitation.

Handoff: The candidate identifies a role and chooses the correct application destination, with practice as a separate optional branch.
Before moving on: Confirm that the job is still open and that the application route belongs to the intended employer.

Explore Open Roles

Simulation Lab · optional branch

Prepare without confusing practice with an application

Company / hiring team

Use employer assessments for actual recruiting. A candidate’s independent practice is not automatically delivered to your team or entered into your hiring pipeline.

Candidate / employee

Open Simulation Lab, select or generate a relevant scenario and review the briefing. You can use career-writing and résumé tools to improve your preparation. Choose the available practice format and review permissions before starting.

What happens in between

Review your role, the interviewer’s role, the scenario objective and difficulty. Where editing is available, save the session briefing before beginning.
For video practice, review the presenter options, duration, credit information and consent displayed in the setup. Availability depends on the selected experience and account access.
Practice feedback and skills evidence support development. They are not a job offer, a real employer decision or proof that an application was received.

Handoff: The candidate has rehearsed relevant examples and can return to the job’s actual application route.
Before moving on: Keep personal practice and employer-issued assessments separate, including their results and permissions.

Open Simulation Lab

Application route · candidate workspace

Apply and preserve the application context

Company / hiring team

For company-managed recruiting, review incoming candidates against the intended company and position. Keep the candidate identity and source associated with the right vacancy so later invitations and decisions do not become detached from the role.

Candidate / employee

Complete the application at the destination shown by the job. Review requested information and consent, submit through that destination and keep its confirmation. Use Applications & invitations to review your tracked activity and account-linked invitations.

What happens in between

A tracked application or a personal confirmation is not necessarily a live status synchronized from an external applicant-tracking system.
An outside employer may continue the entire process on its own website. Do not expect its recruiter notes or decisions to appear here unless a supported connection actually provides them.
If the role uses a FirstRound assessment link, open the issued secure link rather than trying to visit an assessment stage directly.

Handoff: An actual application or employer-issued invitation, associated with the candidate and the intended role where the flow supports it.
Before moving on: Distinguish “viewed,” “tracked,” “submitted” and “invited”; they are not interchangeable hiring states.

Open candidate workspace

Employer candidates & screening

Review candidates and prepare the interview

Company / hiring team

Use the Candidate directory, résumé screening tools and available candidate records to identify relevant evidence. Review qualifications against the published role, then decide which candidates need an interview or additional information.

Candidate / employee

Keep your résumé and profile accurate. Be ready to explain your own contribution, the context and the outcome of each example. If information is missing, provide it through the employer’s requested channel.

What happens in between

Screening suggestions help organize review; the employer remains responsible for eligibility checks, fair treatment and decisions.
Match the candidate to the correct company and position before sending invitations. A similar name is not enough to establish identity.
Choose the required interview format, interview content, evaluation criteria and any human follow-up. Do not treat every practice result as employer-authorized screening evidence.

Handoff: A reviewed candidate and an intentional next step: interview invitation, clarification, continued consideration or an employer-managed decline.
Before moving on: Review relevant evidence and missing information instead of making an automatic decision from a single generated score.

Open employer workspace

Employer interview invitations

Issue and open the correct interview invitation

Company / hiring team

Configure the interview and issue the candidate’s invitation through the relevant employer tool. Review the recipient, role, experience and communication channel. Confirm delivery or share the issued link through the supported process; creating a link alone is not proof that an email was delivered.

Candidate / employee

Open the invitation intended for you. Sign in when the secure experience requires it, review the role and instructions, and complete access checks before moving into the assessment.

What happens in between

The employer workspace separates audio, written, video, human-led and in-person interview areas. The actual invitation determines the format and requirements.
Secure assessment stages require a valid issued session link. A copied stage URL without its access context is not a substitute for the invitation.
Use the employer’s communication channel if the invitation is missing, expired or associated with the wrong role. Do not share another candidate’s access link.

Handoff: A candidate reaches the intended interview with verified access and the correct position context.
Before moving on: Check candidate, company, job, invitation validity and any time or access restrictions before starting.

Open employer workspace

Interview setup & access checks

Review instructions, consent and readiness

Company / hiring team

Set expectations for the interview and ensure the configuration reflects the role. Make the purpose of the assessment clear and provide a route for questions or accommodation needs.

Candidate / employee

Read the briefing, required agreements and technical instructions. For a live audio or video experience, check the requested device permissions. Review duration and usage information where shown, then start only when ready.

What happens in between

Setup and consent are separate from the actual interview. Do not assume that opening a preview means a session has begun.
Only enable recording or other permissions that are part of the displayed experience. Do not infer a recording policy from a different practice or interview product.
If you cannot complete a required step, resolve it with the employer or support route before attempting to bypass the access checks.

Handoff: The participant understands the experience and has completed its required setup.
Before moving on: Required consent and readiness checks are complete; the correct candidate intentionally starts the session.

Audio · written · video · human-led

Complete the interview and relevant follow-ups

Company / hiring team

Use the configured interview to collect role-relevant evidence. Where human review or follow-up is appropriate, use it to resolve ambiguity rather than treating an SI response as a final hiring decision.

Candidate / employee

Answer the actual question, explain what you personally did and provide a concrete result where possible. Respond to follow-ups with additional evidence, and distinguish your own work from a team’s work.

What happens in between

Different formats have different interfaces and result paths. A written interview is not the same session as a live voice or video interview.
The interviewer may probe an unclear answer or move to the next topic. Specific examples usually provide better evidence than broad claims.
Finish using the experience’s completion controls. Closing a tab early is not equivalent to a confirmed completed assessment; follow the provided instructions if interrupted.

Handoff: The interview ends and its available responses, conversation evidence or completion status can enter the relevant review flow.
Before moving on: Confirm completion before assuming results exist; an interrupted or incomplete session may require follow-up.

Employer results · candidate feedback

Review results, conversations and evidence

Company / hiring team

Open Assessment results and Interview conversations where the selected format provides them. Compare the evidence with the position’s requirements, note unanswered questions and arrange human review before deciding.

Candidate / employee

Review feedback or results that the particular experience makes available to your account. Use practice feedback for improvement, while recognizing that an employer may use a separate review and communication process.

What happens in between

Result availability can differ by interview format, completion state and provider processing. A completed session does not guarantee that every report is ready immediately.
Treat a score as a summary of observed evidence, not a statement about a person’s worth or a guaranteed prediction of job performance.
Missing evidence, a processing delay or a technical interruption should not be silently reclassified as poor performance. The employer should review the context.
Candidate practice history, employer assessments and hiring records have distinct purposes. Do not assume that they all share one public or cross-company results feed.

Handoff: A documented human review identifies whether to continue, request another discussion, hold or decline.
Before moving on: Verify the correct candidate and role, enough evidence and any technical limitations before recording a decision.

Read grading and fairness guidance

Employer decision & offer records

Make the hiring decision and record an offer

Company / hiring team

A responsible hiring team makes the decision. Confirm the chosen candidate, position, employment terms, compensation and start date. Where Offers & Onboarding is available in the company setup flow, use it to prepare the offer record and required approvals.

Candidate / employee

Discuss the actual terms with the employer. Review the written offer and its conditions, ask questions and confirm acceptance through the employer’s stated process rather than assuming a positive interview response is an offer.

What happens in between

An SI interviewer cannot make a binding offer or accept one on behalf of the company. The employer controls hiring decisions.
A saved offer draft, an offer marked sent and an accepted offer are different states. Confirm real delivery and acceptance before changing the record.
Offer records can track signature and provider-delivery states. A local status update is not itself proof that an external signature or email service completed its action.
When the supported offer flow marks an offer accepted, it can update the candidate’s hiring status. That does not, by itself, create a published schedule or approved payroll.

Handoff: An accepted offer with confirmed terms provides the basis for onboarding, subject to the employer’s required conditions.
Before moving on: Confirm approval, communication and genuine acceptance; preserve issued terms and use amendments for changes.

Company onboarding

Turn the accepted offer into a first-day plan

Company / hiring team

Start the supported onboarding plan from an accepted offer. Assign a manager, department, location, start date and task owners. Review the plan’s dependencies and the information needed before the employee starts work.

Candidate / employee

Complete the employer’s requested onboarding steps, provide required documents through its designated channels and confirm first-day arrangements. Ask the employer to resolve missing instructions or conflicting details.

What happens in between

The onboarding checklist covers required documents, credentials and licenses, manager and department, equipment and access, orientation, and first-day instructions.
Assign task owners and dates. A dependent task should not be considered ready simply because another checklist box was clicked.
An accepted offer and completed onboarding checklist are not substitutes for the employer’s legal employment, eligibility, tax or contractual obligations.
Use the existing onboarding plan when one already exists for the offer rather than creating duplicates.

Handoff: A reviewed onboarding plan and the confirmed identity, location, role and start details needed for workforce setup.
Before moving on: Resolve blocked tasks and confirm that a manager owns the transition into active work.

Shared company · employee setup

Create or confirm the employee in Shifts

Company / hiring team

Open Shifts with the correct company and location. Add or confirm the team member in Employees, avoiding duplicate profiles. Set their working role, skills, pay settings, availability, weekly limits and credentials as needed.

Candidate / employee

When your employer invites or links you to employee access, use your own account and complete the required joining steps. Confirm the workplace and your own information before using My Shifts or submitting requests.

What happens in between

The handoff from hiring to workforce management is a manager-controlled setup step. Do not assume that viewing a job, finishing an interview or marking a candidate hired automatically creates a fully configured employee.
Recruiting positions and Shifts staffing roles serve different purposes. Confirm the operational staffing role and location even if a job title already exists.
Employee invitation and account linkage connect the workforce record to the person who can use employee-facing tools. A roster entry alone does not prove that the person has joined.
Shifts requires the applicable employer, company and subscription access. A public preview or sample roster is not a live employee record.

Handoff: An active, correctly scoped employee record with the access and settings needed for scheduling.
Before moving on: Verify company, location, identity, account linkage and working settings before assigning live shifts.

Open FirstRound Shifts

Roles & Staffing Rules · Schedule

Plan coverage, review it and publish the schedule

Company / hiring team

Define staffing requirements and required skills for the location, then build the draft schedule. Compare assignments with availability, weekly limits and qualifications. Resolve conflicts before publishing the approved schedule.

Candidate / employee

As an employee, review the schedule made available to your account. Keep availability current and use the available request process when you cannot cover an assignment rather than assuming an informal message changes the roster.

What happens in between

Draft planning and publication are separate steps. A shift under discussion is not necessarily an approved published assignment.
Use Shift Marketplace for internal coverage opportunities and review nominations before confirming changes. Internal Staffing Matches compares opportunities with employees at the selected location.
Review time-off notices, availability updates and swap requests in Requests. Employee requests require the employer’s applicable review; submission is not approval.

Handoff: A published schedule with identified employees, coverage expectations and a process for exceptions.
Before moving on: A manager approves assignments and confirms coverage after changes, not just at the initial draft.

Open scheduling workspace

Time & Attendance · Payroll Prep

Record attendance and prepare payroll for review

Company / hiring team

Review recorded clock events, actual hours, attendance exceptions and corrections. Resolve discrepancies and approve the relevant time before using Payroll Prep estimates. Check employee rates and applicable policies rather than treating estimates as final pay.

Candidate / employee

Use the clock and attendance tools available to your employee account. Report missed events or incorrect hours through the employer’s process and review your own work records when available.

What happens in between

A scheduled shift is planned work; a clock event is attendance evidence; approved time is the reviewed basis for preparation. These are different records.
Payroll Prep prepares estimates and highlights exceptions. It does not mean that wages were transferred, taxes were filed or a payroll provider completed a pay run.
Manager approval remains important for overtime, missing punches and corrected hours. Resolve discrepancies before sign-off.

Handoff: Reviewed attendance and payroll preparation information ready for the employer’s authorized payroll process.
Before moving on: Confirm approvals, rates, exceptions and the external payroll steps the employer still needs to complete.

Open workforce operations

Training · assurance · ongoing operations

Keep the workforce cycle connected

Company / hiring team

Use daily coverage, workforce insights, training, credentials and assurance tools to identify follow-up work. Assign development or corrective actions to responsible managers, and review the evidence before changing staffing decisions.

Candidate / employee

Keep skills and credentials current, complete assigned training and use the supported employee request channels. Independent career practice remains available for development but is not automatically a company performance record.

What happens in between

Compliance & Certifications tracks credential details and expiry dates. Assurance and labor-policy reviews support oversight; they are not a guarantee of legal compliance.
When an employee leaves, coordinate access, equipment, roster status and any exit-interview process while preserving the records the employer needs.
If staffing demand changes, return to role definition and recruitment. Reuse the correct company context, but do not copy private candidate or employee information into public job content.
Throughout the journey, practice, applications, assessments, offers, employee membership and payroll preparation remain distinct. A human owner confirms each meaningful handoff.

Handoff: Operational learning informs development, coverage adjustments and the next recruiting cycle.
Before moving on: Review real evidence, permissions and human approvals; do not treat this guide as an automation that performs the steps for you.

Return to Open Roles