What outreach and comms covers
send_candidate_email covers the one-off case: a rejection note, a follow-up, a scheduling nudge, addressed to one or more candidates with a subject and body the agent drafts for your review first, not a generic placeholder it expects you to fill in.
get_email_engagement looks up whether a candidate opened or clicked a prior email and when they last engaged with it, which the agent is expected to check before recommending a next step, so the suggestion it makes fits what actually happened rather than what usually happens.
create_interview_invite lives in this same tool group and is covered on its own page, since inviting someone to an AI interview is its own approval and its own workflow, distinct from a plain email even though both start from the same conversation with the agent.
Between the two, send_candidate_email is the more general-purpose tool, built for anything that isn't specifically an interview invite: a rejection, a status update, a request for references, a scheduling nudge that doesn't need a formal link attached.
A walkthrough: deciding whether a follow-up is worth sending
An employer says: "has this candidate opened the scheduling email we sent last week?" The agent calls get_email_engagement and reports back that it was opened twice, three days ago, but never clicked. The employer says draft a short follow-up.
The agent writes a two-line note referencing the original scheduling link and asks the employer to review it before anything goes out, showing the exact subject and body rather than a description of what it plans to write. Once the employer approves, the approval card reads: "Send an email to 1 candidate(s) (Marcus Webb), subject: 'Following up on your interview time'?"
and the send only happens after that confirmation. If the employer had instead found out the email was never opened at all, the conversation would likely have gone a different way, toward checking a phone number on file or trying a different channel instead of sending a third email into the same inbox.
Boundaries
What stays a draft until you say send
send_candidate_email always requires your approval, and the agent is required to draft the full subject and body first so the approval card shows exactly what a candidate would receive, not a summary of it.
A rejection email is never sent automatically after a rejection action; it is offered, and only drafted if you ask for it, since a rejection and the note explaining it are treated as two separate decisions even when they happen back to back.
get_email_engagement is read-only and safe to check as often as you want before deciding whether a follow-up is worth sending at all, and checking it never counts as an action against a candidate's record.
Frequently asked questions
Will the agent send a candidate an email without me reviewing it first?
No. send_candidate_email requires the agent to draft the full subject and body and requires your approval on the exact content before anything sends.
Can the agent tell me if a candidate has read a previous email?
Yes. get_email_engagement checks whether a specific email was opened or clicked and when the candidate last engaged with it, so you can decide whether a follow-up is worth sending.
Does rejecting a candidate automatically send them a rejection email?
No, sending an email is always a separate step. The agent will offer to draft a rejection note after a rejection action, but only sends one if you ask.
Is this the same as the branded email templates in the email center?
No. This covers one-off plain emails to specific candidates. Reusable branded templates with your logo and colors are a separate tool group, covered on the email drafting page.
Can I send the same message to more than one candidate at once?
Yes, send_candidate_email accepts one or more recipients in a single call, and the approval card lists everyone who would receive it before you confirm, so a batch follow-up gets the same review as a single email.
Related pages
Check before you follow up
Ask the agent whether a candidate opened your last email, then let it draft a follow-up worth sending.