Quick answer: Give the agency its own agency access in your ATS, never a shared login. Agree in writing who owns a candidate and for how long. Use the same stages for agency and direct candidates. Write a specific reason every time you decline someone. Done together, these mean every rejection tells the recruiter what to change in the next batch.
Of the 967 seed to Series C startups whose public job boards we track, Ashby is the most common ATS (39%), followed by Greenhouse (13%), then Gem, Workable, Dover and Lever (4–8% each). This guide covers how to set either of the two leaders up so an agency works as part of your team, not as an inbox you forward resumes from.
> Hiring engineers at a seed to Series C startup? We work inside your Ashby or Greenhouse, so every candidate, stage and decision stays in one place. Talk to us about your search →
Three things go wrong when an agency sends resumes by email:
Working inside the ATS fixes all three. Your ATS timestamps every submission, so ownership is clear. Feedback is recorded where the recruiter can read it. And the candidates stay in your database after the search.
Exact menu names change between plans and versions, so check your admin settings or ask your ATS support team.
| Topic | What to agree | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Candidate ownership | How long an agency "owns" a candidate it introduced (often 6 to 12 months; it's your call) | Avoids disputes when someone is hired later for a different role |
| Duplicates | Earlier record in the ATS wins, by timestamp | Clean, provable rule |
| Feedback time | A decision within 2 to 3 working days of each stage | Good candidates have other offers |
| Rejection reasons | A short written reason on every decline | The recruiter recalibrates the next batch |
| Stage names | Same stages for agency and direct candidates | Comparable pipeline reports |
| Interview loop | Shared in advance with the agency | Candidates arrive prepared |
They are how the recruiter learns what you actually want. Ashby makes an archive reason mandatory, so in the client Ashby accounts we work in, every one of the nearly 1,400 candidates we submitted who left the process has one. But 35% of those reasons are just the picklist option "lacks skills/qualifications", which tells the recruiter almost nothing. So pick the reason, then add one specific line. A specific reason ("needs more distributed systems depth", "comp expectations above band") changes who the recruiter sends next. A decline with no reason means the next batch is a guess.
Good reasons are short and specific:
Any ATS with agency access works. Ashby and Greenhouse, the two most common among the startups we track, both support agency users, source tracking and duplicate flags; check what your plan includes. Spreadsheets and email-only hiring are where agency relationships break down.
If you're choosing an ATS now, pick one with:
For a side-by-side of the ATSs startups actually use, see which ATS should a startup use.
Give the agency its own agency access, never a shared employee login. Agency access limits what they see to the jobs you share, and every submission is timestamped under the agency's name.
Agree in writing that the earlier record in your ATS wins, by timestamp. Both Ashby and Greenhouse flag likely duplicates for your team (Greenhouse matches on email, phone or LinkedIn URL). In Ashby, agency users don't see the flag, so the rule has to be in your agreement.
It's set in your agreement. Six to twelve months from the submission date is common. Write it down before the first submission.
Within two to three working days of each stage. Strong engineers are often in several processes at once, and slow feedback loses them to faster ones.
Only what you allow. A common setup shares the current stage and the rejection reason and keeps interviewer notes internal.
We work with seed to Series C startups hiring software, AI/ML and forward deployed engineers, inside your ATS from day one. Talk to us about your search →
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