Connect Candidate Profiles

Link two candidate profiles that belong to the same person, even when they applied with different email addresses.

Overview

Discovered recognizes a person by their primary email address. When someone applies to two of your job posts with the same email, their profiles are linked automatically and the briefcase icon shows both. When they apply with two different email addresses, for example a personal and a school address, Discovered treats them as two different people.

Connect to another profile lets you tell Discovered that two profiles are the same person. Once they're connected:

  • The briefcase icon lists both profiles
  • Each profile shows activity from the other in its additional sections and in the Job posts: filter on the Communications tab. See View Candidate Activity Across Job Posts.
  • Future applications from the person's primary email address are matched to them

Connecting doesn't merge the profiles. Each profile keeps its own job post, status and history. Discovered connects them by giving the profiles that change the same primary email address. The old primary address is kept on the profile as a secondary address, so no email address is ever deleted.

Before You Start

  • You need Admin or Editor permissions. Viewers don't see the option.
  • You can only connect profiles within the same company. Profiles of the same person at another company are never listed or changed.
  • Two profiles on the same job post can't be connected.
  • If your access is limited to specific jobs, you only see the profiles on job posts assigned to you. Some options may be unavailable if they would change profiles you can't open.

How to Connect Two Profiles:

1. Open the Connect Window

  • Open the candidate's full profile, or their preview from the job post.
  • Click the actions menu (···) in the header.
  • Select Connect to another profile.

2. Find the Other Profile

  • Discovered lists people from your company. Likely matches appear first, with the reason under each name: Same phone number, Same email address or Similar name.
  • Everyone else appears under Other candidates. Scroll to load more.
  • To find someone specific, type a name, email address or phone number in the search box.
  • Each person shows their email, phone and the profiles you can open, with the job post, status and date added.

Note: Some people are greyed out and can't be selected. The label on the right explains why: Already connected, Same job post or Cannot be connected.

3. Review and Choose the Primary Email

  • Select the person. A Review panel opens on the right.
  • Under Primary email for this person, choose whose address the person keeps. Each option shows the address and what it changes:
    • The other person's address (Changes this profile.) changes only the profile you're on.
    • This profile's address (the note names the other person's profiles that change) changes every profile of the other person in your company.
  • Discovered marks one option as Suggested, usually the one that keeps the person's existing connections. Choose it unless you have a reason not to.
  • If an option is greyed out, the note under it explains why, for example when you don't have access to all of the other person's profiles.
  • Read the summary below the options. It shows which profiles change, the new primary email, the current primary email that will be kept as a secondary address, and the profiles they'll be connected to.

Important: If this profile is already connected to other profiles, choosing the other person's address separates it from them. An amber message names the job posts it will be separated from.

4. Connect the Profiles

  • Click Connect profiles.
  • You'll see Profiles connected. The profile header and the briefcase icon update straight away.

Note: If the profiles can't be connected, for example because someone else changed one of them while you were reviewing, the panel shows Not connected. and the reason. The window stays open so you can review the options again.

Changing a Primary Email Address

Because Discovered recognizes a person by their primary email address, changing it can also connect or separate profiles. When you edit a candidate's emails in Edit email addresses (from the profile header, the candidate preview or the Details tab), Discovered now checks the change before you save:

  • If the new primary address belongs to another person in your company, a message says the change moves this profile to that person and names the job posts it will be connected to.
  • If the profile is connected to other profiles, the message says the change separates it from them.
  • In either case the button changes to Save anyway, so you can confirm on purpose.
  • If one of the addresses is already used by another candidate on the same job post, you can't save until you change it.

Adding or removing a secondary address doesn't change who the profile belongs to.

Undoing a Connection

There is no undo button. To reverse a connection, open Edit email addresses on each profile that changed and set its original email address back as the primary. The old address is still on the profile as a secondary address. Discovered shows the same message before you save, and records the change on the timeline.

Tracking Changes

Every connection, and every primary email change that moves a profile, adds a Connection changed entry to the candidate's Communications tab. It shows:

  • Who made the change, and how: Connected to another profile, Primary email edited or Application received
  • The old and new primary email address
  • The job posts the profile is now connected to, or no longer connected to

Entries marked by the platform were added automatically when a new application came in. The Notifications widget on your dashboard also shows a short Connection changed notice with a link to the candidate.

What Candidates See

Nothing. Connecting profiles doesn't send the candidate an email or text. Their next application is matched to them by the new primary email address.

Blocked Candidates

A block follows the person. If you connect a profile to someone who is blocked, the profile shows as blocked too, but its status doesn't change to Rejected automatically. Move it yourself if needed. See Block Candidates.

Why This Matters

Duplicate people make your pipeline harder to trust. Connecting profiles helps you:

  • See one person's full history in one place
  • Avoid contacting the same candidate twice under two names or emails
  • Fix email typos without accidentally moving a profile to the wrong person

Use Cases

  • Recruiters: Connect a returning candidate who applied with a new email address to their earlier profile.
  • Hiring Managers: Spot that two applicants with the same phone number are one person before you schedule interviews.
  • Coordinators: Correct a misspelled email and see clearly whether the change affects other profiles.

Best Practices

  • Start with Likely matches. A shared phone number or email address is a strong sign it's the same person.
  • Choose the Suggested option unless you know which address the candidate prefers.
  • Read the summary before you click Connect profiles. There's no undo button.
  • If you see a warning in Edit email addresses that you didn't expect, check whether you're editing the right profile before you click Save anyway.

What Happens Next

  • The connected profiles appear in the briefcase icon, and their activity shows up on each other's profile. See View Candidate Activity Across Job Posts.
  • New applications from the person's primary email address are added to the same person.

With connected profiles, you can keep one clear picture of every candidate, however many email addresses they use.

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