Protect pipeline momentum
Sourced candidates are passive—they did not apply. If your follow-up screening is slow, they accept another offer. Fast screening keeps your pipeline warm and reduces drop-off between outreach and offer.
What Is Candidate Sourcing?
Sourcing fills your pipeline. Screening decides who moves forward. Here's how the two work together—and where Criba fits in.
What is candidate sourcing?
Candidate sourcing is the proactive process of identifying and engaging potential hires before they apply. Recruiters search LinkedIn, job boards, referral networks, and talent databases to build a pipeline of qualified people. Sourcing differs from screening: sourcing finds candidates, while screening evaluates them. Once you have a sourced list, the next challenge is assessing each person efficiently—which is where a tool like Criba comes in.
Sourcing vs. screening: why both matter
Many teams treat sourcing and screening as one activity, but they require different skills and tools. Sourcing is outbound—it demands creativity, network knowledge, and Boolean search skills. Screening is evaluative—it demands consistency, fairness, and speed. Mixing the two creates a bottleneck: recruiters spend hours in back-to-back phone screens that could be automated, leaving less time to source great talent in the first place. Separating the two phases with the right tools makes both work better.
Why great sourcing needs fast screening
Evaluate everyone fairly
A large sourced pipeline tempts recruiters to screen by gut feel. Structured AI screening scores every candidate on the same criteria, so the best person advances—not the most recent phone call.
Scale without adding headcount
Sourcing campaigns can surface hundreds of people. Phone-screening all of them is not realistic. Criba's AI interviews run concurrently, so your team reviews ranked results instead of scheduling calls.
Get explainable scores
Criba links every Pass / Borderline / Reject label to direct candidate quotes. When you share results with a hiring manager, you have evidence—not just a number.
Support bilingual pipelines
Criba conducts AI interviews in both Spanish and English. If your LATAM sourcing surfaces candidates who prefer either language, screening adapts automatically.
Start screening the same day
No lengthy implementation or mandatory sales call. Criba is free to start and priced by usage, so you can screen your first sourced batch today and pay as your volume grows.
How candidate sourcing works
Identify target profiles
Define the skills, experience level, and location you need. This shapes where you search—LinkedIn Recruiter, niche job boards, GitHub, alumni networks, or employee referrals.
Build and engage your pipeline
Reach out with a personalized message that explains the role and why the candidate is a fit. Track responses and keep a running list of interested people ready for the next step.
Hand off to screening
Once a candidate expresses interest, move them into a structured screening step. With Criba, you send a single link and they complete a ~5-minute AI interview on their own schedule—no calendar coordination needed.
Review ranked results and advance top candidates
Criba returns a shortlist labeled Pass / Borderline / Reject, with every score backed by direct quotes. Your recruiter reviews results, selects the best fits, and moves them to the hiring manager—fast.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between sourcing and recruiting?
Sourcing is a subset of recruiting. It refers specifically to finding and attracting potential candidates before they formally apply. Broader recruiting includes job posting, application review, interviews, offers, and onboarding. Many organizations have dedicated sourcers who hand warm candidates to a full-cycle recruiter once interest is confirmed.
Is candidate sourcing the same as candidate screening?
No. Sourcing identifies who might be a good hire; screening evaluates whether they actually are. Sourcing is outbound and proactive. Screening is inbound and evaluative. The two phases are complementary—without sourcing you have no pipeline, and without screening you cannot identify your best candidates.
What tools do recruiters use for sourcing?
Common sourcing tools include LinkedIn Recruiter, Indeed Resume, GitHub, AngelList, Boolean search on Google, ATS databases, and employee referral programs. Sourcing tools focus on discovery and outreach. Screening tools—like Criba—handle the evaluation step that comes after a candidate expresses interest.
How do you screen a large sourced pipeline without burning out your team?
The most effective approach is asynchronous AI screening. Instead of scheduling phone screens, you send sourced candidates a link to a short AI interview they complete on their own time. Criba returns a ranked list with explainable scores, so your team spends its energy on the top candidates rather than conducting repetitive first-round calls.
How long does candidate sourcing take?
It varies widely by role complexity and pipeline size. Sourcing a niche technical role can take days or weeks of active searching. Once you have a list, screening should not become the new bottleneck. Criba's asynchronous interviews mean you can screen a sourced batch of 50 candidates in the same time it would take to phone-screen five.
Can Criba replace my sourcing process?
No—Criba focuses on screening, not sourcing. Your team or sourcing tools still identify and engage candidates. Criba takes over once they express interest, running a consistent AI interview and returning a ranked shortlist. It works alongside your existing ATS and sourcing workflow rather than replacing them.