Handing live recruitment processes to a new Recruitment as a Service (RaaS) team is often planned too lightly. Roles are open, candidates are mid-process, and the RaaS provider is about to take over a hiring plan that is already under way. If nobody records where each vacancy stands, the first weeks fill with avoidable problems. Two different recruiters contact the same candidate. A hiring manager repeats a decision already made. Results from work carried out earlier are counted towards the new RaaS service by mistake.

None of this needs a large project. It needs a short, written plan that a Head of Talent, a recruitment operations lead or a COO can agree in the first days of a RaaS engagement.

At Wide and Wise, we start new RaaS work with parallel workstreams, so ownership, ATS access, reporting and feedback cadence are settled in week one while market mapping and role calibration continue. This guide covers recording live vacancies and candidates, defining process ownership, preparing a handover acceptance checklist, and setting the baseline data used to measure performance.

Table of Contents

Why Live Vacancies Need a Handover Plan

Moving live recruitment processes into the RaaS model is different from starting a search for a new role from scratch. Some roles have been open for weeks. Some have shortlists that hiring managers are still reviewing. Some candidates were approached by an agency, an internal recruiter or a previous supplier, and each of them has already had a contact experience with your company. That experience and the contact history need to be preserved through the handover.

Three risks tend to appear when this history is not captured:

  • Duplicated outreach. A candidate already in conversation receives a fresh message from a new recruiter. This hurts candidate experience and the employer brand.
  • Lost decisions. Feedback given to a previous recruiter, such as why a candidate was declined, is not passed on. The new team then resubmits similar profiles.
  • Performance cannot be measured accurately. Without clear baseline data, it is hard to separate work carried out earlier from the new team's contribution.

A written handover plan helps prevent duplicated candidate outreach, preserves earlier decisions and makes it possible to measure the new team's contribution accurately. It also gives the RaaS provider a fair starting point, because their work is measured against a known position instead of an assumed one.

Build a Vacancy and Candidate Handover Register

The handover rests on a shared register of open vacancies and candidate processes already under way. It is a shared sheet or ATS export. Design it to be simple enough for the teams to keep updating. A register that stays current is worth more than a detailed table nobody fills in.

For each vacancy, record the following:

Field What to capture Why it matters
Role and hiring manager Title, location, named decision maker Confirms who gives feedback
Stage Brief agreed, sourcing, shortlist, interviews, offer Shows what is already in motion
Source of activity Internal team, agency or previous supplier Marks which party holds each relationship
Last contact Date and channel of the latest candidate or manager contact Prevents repeat messages
Permissions What the client has approved the new team to do Avoids contact that was not agreed
Feedback Decisions and reasons from earlier submissions Stops resubmission of declined profiles
Next action Single step, owner and date Keeps the process moving through the transition

For each candidate, add a short row: candidate name, the vacancy they applied for, current process stage, last contact date, who spoke to them, and any communication preference they stated. Mark candidates at final interview or offer stage as protected and name their process owner in the handover plan. These should stay with the current owner until the process closes, unless the hiring manager and the candidate relationship holder agree otherwise.

Two practical points keep the register honest. First, name one person on your side as the register owner, so updates have a single home. Second, decide how current it needs to be. During the first two weeks the register can be updated weekly. Fast-moving processes, such as candidates at offer stage, may need more frequent updates.

Agree Ownership Before New Outreach Begins

Once the register exists, process ownership and communication rules should be agreed in writing before the new team contacts any candidate.

Process ownership

For each vacancy, decide who owns the process from this point. One example of how the work can be divided: the RaaS team runs sourcing and screening while an internal recruiter keeps scheduling, or the internal team keeps vacancies at offer stage while new roles go to the RaaS team. Different models can work. What matters is that the chosen model is understood by all parties and recorded in writing.

Also name who makes the final call when feedback conflicts. In most companies this is the hiring manager, with the Head of Talent as the escalation point.

Existing supplier boundaries

Agreements with existing recruitment agencies may include specific rights or restrictions regarding candidates already submitted. Check what your agreements say about submitted candidates, exclusivity on specific roles, and any period during which a submitted candidate remains linked to that supplier. Terms differ between agreements, so read your own rather than assuming a standard.

Where a vacancy is still with another supplier, record that in the register and let your procurement or legal team confirm how the overlap should be handled. The new RaaS team should not contact a candidate until it is clear which supplier submitted them and who may contact them. This protects the client from disputes and protects the candidates from mixed messages.

ATS access

Agree which system holds the record and what level of access the RaaS team needs. In many engagements the recruiters work in the client's applicant tracking system (ATS), and Wide and Wise sets up access and reporting with the client in week one. Confirm the following with your IT or security contact:

  • Who grants access, and how long it takes
  • Which roles, folders or requisitions the team can see
  • What permissions apply to editing, moving candidates and sending messages
  • How notes, assessments and feedback are recorded in the shared system, and how earlier records are preserved

Setup depends on the client's tooling and internal approvals. If your ATS cannot provide the access or exports you need, say so early. If ATS access is not possible, a shared sheet or register agreed by both parties can serve as a temporary working record, and the provider can confirm what is workable with your system before work starts.

Candidate communication

Decide who speaks to whom, and when. A simple rule set is enough:

  1. Candidates in process hear from their current contact until a named handover moment.
  2. If the contact person changes during the handover, the candidate is told in advance and the change is explained in one short, clear message.
  3. New outreach uses the approved employer brand wording and the role details in the register.
  4. Candidates who have said they are not interested, or have asked not to be contacted, are excluded from new outreach.

These communication rules help keep the candidate experience consistent and positive through the handover.

Set a Handover Acceptance Checklist

The handover is complete when the agreed checklist items are done and both sides have confirmed them. The acceptance checklist shows what has been completed and what is still open. Both parties review it together, usually at the end of the first week or two, and note anything still open.

A workable checklist covers these points:

  • [ ] Each open vacancy appears in the register with a named hiring manager
  • [ ] Each vacancy has a stage, a last contact date and a next action
  • [ ] Protected candidates are marked, with their current owner named
  • [ ] Feedback from earlier submissions is recorded for each vacancy
  • [ ] Supplier overlaps are noted and confirmed by the right internal team
  • [ ] ATS access is in place or an agreed alternative record exists
  • [ ] The candidate communication message is approved
  • [ ] The feedback cadence with hiring managers is scheduled
  • [ ] The reporting baseline is signed off by both sides
  • [ ] Anything not accepted is listed with an owner and a date

Track items that are not yet complete as actions with a named owner and a target date. A handover plan that records open items and their owners is more reliable than one that assumes everything is finished. Because Wide and Wise works on several workstreams at once, role calibration and market mapping can start while the last items close, but candidate outreach for a vacancy should wait for that vacancy's items to be accepted.

Separate Inherited Pipeline From New Sourcing

Uncertainty in the handover mainly affects the accuracy of performance reporting. If every inherited candidate counts towards the new team's performance, the service's contribution looks higher than it is. If none of them count, it looks lower. Neither helps you decide whether the engagement is working.

Set the baseline

To prevent this, set a baseline that records the position on the handover date. Take a copy of the candidate records on the acceptance date and tag those candidates as inherited. Candidates found after that date are new sourcing. A candidate in the register at the handover date keeps the inherited status even if they are hired later, so the baseline does not change when the new team's contribution is reported.

Report the two views side by side

Reporting view Inherited pipeline New sourcing
Definition In the register at acceptance date Identified after acceptance date
Typical measures Stage movement, decisions, closures Submissions, interviews, offers, conversion
Purpose of the view Records the position at handover and the work done before it Tracks the results of the RaaS team's work
Reported Separately, as a starting position Separately, as the service result

Report the two views for each role. It then becomes clear which vacancies moved because of earlier work and which moved because of new activity. Both are valuable, and neither is hidden.

Keep the baseline data consistent

A few rules keep the baseline data consistent:

  • Write down the baseline date and the tagging rule in the acceptance checklist.
  • Agree in advance how a candidate who is contacted again or reassessed is reported. Where they had no active process at the baseline date, state clearly in the report how they are classified.
  • Review role-level movement with the hiring manager rather than relying on totals. Role complexity, market conditions and feedback speed all change the result, and no engagement should be judged on volume alone. Wide and Wise does not guarantee candidate volume, placements or time to hire. Reliable baseline data makes the work carried out and the results achieved easier to assess accurately.

For what follows after handover, see our recruitment subscription first 90 days roadmap, which describes how checkpoints work once the engagement is running.

What to Review Internally Before Sharing Candidate Data

Candidate information is personal data. Sharing it with the RaaS provider should be assessed against the applicable data protection obligations and your internal approval processes. Before the candidate records are shared with the RaaS team, have the relevant internal stakeholders review the handover plan and the data sharing conditions. That review usually involves legal, data protection and procurement.

Questions to put to them:

  • What candidate information may be shared with the RaaS provider, and on what basis?
  • Do candidates need to be told, and how should that be worded?
  • Which candidates should be excluded from the register or shared in a reduced form?
  • Do existing supplier agreements restrict sharing candidate details or approaching their candidates?
  • Where will the data be stored, and who can access it?

These reviews can take time, so start them as soon as the plan is drafted. Wide and Wise works with the candidate information the client has approved for sharing and use, and does not migrate or integrate data between systems as part of this plan. Where data has to be transferred between systems, the client's own teams and system owners assess whether it is feasible and how it is done. A manual register, kept inside the client's own tools, is often a sufficient starting point.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does a recruitment handover take?

It depends on the number of vacancies, the state of your records and how quickly internal reviews finish. A small number of vacancies with complete records can be handed over within days. A larger set with several suppliers and approval steps takes longer. Agree the target acceptance date at the start and adjust it as the register fills in.

Should the RaaS team contact candidates already in process?

Usually not until the client has confirmed who owns each relationship. Candidates in late stages normally stay with their current contact until the process closes or a handover is agreed. Early-stage candidates can be taken over by the new team once ownership is confirmed and the communication message is approved.

What if another supplier submitted candidates for the same role?

Check the terms of that agreement with your procurement or legal team, and record the overlap in the register. Until the position is confirmed, the new team should avoid approaching those candidates.

Can the RaaS provider work inside our ATS?

In many engagements, yes, subject to your own security and permission settings. The exact access depends on your system and internal approvals, so confirm it with your IT contact in the first week. If direct access is not possible, a shared register can serve as the working record.

How do we report on inherited and new candidates fairly?

Fix a baseline date, tag each candidate in the register as inherited at that date, and report inherited and new sourcing in separate views. Review movement role by role with the hiring manager.

Key Takeaways

  • Build a handover register with stage, last contact, permissions, feedback and next action for each vacancy and candidate.
  • Settle process ownership, supplier boundaries, ATS access and candidate communication before new outreach begins.
  • Mark late-stage candidates as protected so they stay with their current contact.
  • Use a handover acceptance checklist and list any open items with an owner and a date.
  • Tag the register at the acceptance date so inherited pipeline stays separate from new sourcing in reports.
  • Ask your legal, privacy and procurement contacts to review candidate data sharing and supplier terms before the register is shared.

Conclusion

An effective handover rests on clearly defined responsibilities, up-to-date candidate records and a written plan both sides have approved. It protects candidates from duplicated contact, keeps hiring decisions from being lost, and gives you a fair baseline for judging the service. It also leaves room for the data and supplier checks that only your own organisation can complete.

Wide and Wise delivers RaaS with dedicated recruiters who work inside the client's process, and treats the handover of live vacancies as one of the core steps planned at the start of the service.