Creating Offer Templates

Objective

After completing this lesson, you will be able to create offer templates using merge fields to centralize the job offer process.

Job Offer Management

Effectively managing job offers is crucial for attracting top talent. SmartRecruiters streamlines this process by centralizing offer management within the candidate application. SmartRecruiters simplifies offer management by providing a centralized location within the candidate's application.

SmartRecruiters offers the following offer-related feature options:

Companies can create personalized offers from templates that include offer clauses/additional paragraphs, send them via email or via an optional DocuSign integration, and monitor applicants' responses.
For those with offer approvals in place, the offer creator can submit the offer for approval and track approvals.
Offers can be approved sequentially or in parallel.
Only users with full access to the job can send offers, view offer details, or view related messages. Hiring team roles on the job with write access for approvals can create and send offers.
When the applicant responds, these users can either mark the applicant as hired or withdrawn.
If DocuSign integration is enabled, the offer will automatically move to the hiring process step offer is accepted in the hiring workflow.

Recruiting offer screen: Offer Details with template menu; fields for name, start date Apr 28 2017, USD 100000 salary, job title; Save and Cancel.

Key Features of Offer Letters and Clauses

Organizations can create and manage personalized job offers in SmartRecruiters by leveraging key features of offer letters and clauses, ensuring a consistent, efficient, and professional experience for both internal teams and candidates.

Offer Templates: Offer templates are managed under Settings/Admin→Offer Templates. Offer letters are created externally (e.g., in Word) and uploaded into SmartRecruiters.
Merge Fields: Use merge fields to pull values from your offer forms into your offer letters. These fields are enclosed in open and closed brackets. Copying and pasting merge fields is recommended to avoid errors.
Application Fields: Application fields can be configured under Configuration→Application fields. These fields can be set to appear on the offer form, hire form, and candidate profile.
Clauses: Clauses add flexibility by allowing you to include additional information in your offer letters based on specific criteria. For example, you can create a clause for a signing bonus that appears only if the candidate is eligible.
Note
The maximum number of clauses associated with an offer template is 20.
Trigger Questions: Set up a trigger question for each clause. If the answer to the question is yes, the clause will be added to the offer.
Code Snippets (for adding clauses): Add the provided code snippet into your offer letter.
Hint
Best Practice - Merge fields in offer letters come from application fields. Before creating offer letters, make sure all required application fields are set up and configured as merge fields. This includes deciding which application fields should appear in the Offer section of SmartRecruiters. SmartRecruiters already provides many built‑in application fields, so always check for an existing field before creating a new one.
Do not make application fields mandatory in the offer section. The merge fields that need to be completed will automatically become mandatory if configured in the offer letter template.

Create an Offer Template with Merge Fields

Steps

Create the offer template file.
Create a new offer template using a supported text editor format:
- DOC
- DOCX
- ODT
Hint
Best Practice - Use DOC or DOCX to avoid formatting issues.
Identify candidate-specific information.
1. Identify all the information that should be customized for each candidate, such as:
  - Salary
  - Office location
  - Stock options
2. On your current offer forms, mark this information with square brackets (e.g., [Salary]), so it is easy to identify for the next steps.
Confirm application and job fields.
Since you're creating a single template to make offers for multiple candidates, you'll need to include placeholders for candidate-specific information. To do this, you can insert merge fields into the offer text.
1. Ensure the merge fields are generated from existing application fields and job fields in your SmartRecruiters account.
2. Set up all required application fields and job fields before building the template to avoid rework later.
Review available merge fields.
Once you have all the necessary merge fields, replace each input field in the template with its corresponding merge field.
1. Review the list of existing merge fields created by a Super User or Admin.
2. Go to Settings→Offer Templates→Merge Fields and Instructions.
3. Confirm there is a merge field for each piece of candidate-specific information identified earlier.
Create missing merge fields (if needed).
1. If a required merge field does not exist, create a new application field or job field.
2. Once created, the new field will become available as a merge field.
3. Replace each input field in the template with its corresponding merge field.
Example merge fields in an offer letter:
Code Snippet
```
1234567891011
<<OfferLetterDate>>

 Dear <<ApplicantFirstName>>,

 We are pleased to offer you the position of <<JobTitle>> with a
starting date of <<StartDate>>.   

Your annual salary will be <<AnnualSalary>> and you will report to
<<HiringManagerFamiliarName>>.

Please indicate your acceptance by signing below.
```

Offer Template Creation Tips and Tricks

Avoid using floating objects, as they may be repositioned incorrectly during document conversion.
Minimize heavy styling and formatting; remove unnecessary formatting where possible.
Create templates using new Word documents rather than reusing older files.
Ensure anchor text is locked to the correct text line.
Avoid copying and pasting content from older templates, as hidden formatting may carry over.
Accept or reject all tracked changes before uploading the document.
Pro Tip: If adding DocuSign merge fields (anchor text) for signatures or initials:
1. Insert them in black text.
2. Change the text color to white so they do not appear in the offer letter.
3. DocuSign will still recognize the fields and place the required signature blocks automatically.

Upload an Offer Template

Steps

Navigate to Offer Templates.
Select Upload a template.
Select your template to upload.
Once the template has been uploaded, select the page icon to preview it.
If you encounter errors, they are usually caused by missing clause values or application fields that either do not exist or are not visible on the offer form. To fix this, delete the template, update the original document, and then re-upload it.
Note
Offer templates containing OLE Objects will not be processed when uploaded. This measure is being implemented to ensure the highest level of security and to protect our users from potentially malicious documents. If you encounter difficulties uploading an offer template or generating offers due to this restriction, please check your document for any embedded OLE Objects and remove them before re-uploading.
Once you've uploaded the template, set the date format or make it available to specific jobs by selecting the Edit icon.
1. To make the offer template available on any job, leave All for each Org field in the list.
2. To make it available for specific jobs, choose different values for one or more fields.
  Note
  Set it to Day/Month/Year unless the offer letter template will be used in the US. US offers use flexible dates to avoid binding contracts and manage background check delays.

Offer Template Limitations

Offer template names are limited to 400 characters. Because filtering options are basic, such as alphabetical order, recent activity, or keyword search, it's recommended to use a clear and consistent naming convention to make templates easier to find and manage.

When updating offer templates, you may need to temporarily hide a version from users until it is officially ready for use (e.g., during a Hire Sync update). This can be done by assigning the template to a country that is not currently used.

There is no limitation on the number of candidate fields. However, when creating the Word template, make sure headers and images are sent fully to the back, not just sent backward, to avoid layout issues.

When working with clauses, always paste clause snippets using keep source formatting or text only to prevent formatting problems. Remove duplicate content and delete any unnecessary No options.

Be aware of file size and quantity limits. The maximum file size for an offer template is 2 MB. Each offer template can include up to 20 clauses, and each clause must not exceed 30 KB. The combined size of an offer template and its clauses must also stay within 2 MB limit.

Watch the video below for more details about creating an offer.

This video is for demonstration purposes. Any references made in this video to previous or later videos in this course (including titles, numbers, links, or sequence) may differ from the current course structure. Additionally, some functionalities shown may have evolved over time due to ongoing enhancements or business decisions.

Summary

SmartRecruiters centralizes offer management within the candidate application, streamlining the process of creating and sending personalized job offers.
Admins can create and upload new offer templates using various text editor formats and upload them to SmartRecruiters.
Merge fields are used to include candidate-specific information in offer templates, ensuring each offer is personalized.

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