An email invitation only works if the candidate remembers to put the event in their calendar. A calendar invitation does it for them — the event appears in their Google or Outlook calendar as soon as you schedule it, their own calendar reminds them, and they answer with the Yes, Maybe, and No buttons they already know. Fewer forgotten interviews, fewer no-shows.
You choose how to invite the candidate in the second step of the scheduling window, and you can send an email invitation, a calendar invitation, or both.
Note: The Invitations section only appears if you’re allowed to send emails to candidates and your mailbox is synced with Recruitee. The Calendar option also needs a connected Google or Microsoft calendar see Connect your own calendar to Recruitee.
Choose how to invite the candidate
Every invitation method lives in one place, so you can see at a glance who gets notified and how.
Open the candidate’s profile and click Schedule.
Fill in the event details — the Event name, type, date, time, and interviewers — then click Continue.
Find the Invitations section in the second step. The summary line tells you what will happen, for example Invite all participants via email & calendar.
Click Show options to open the checkboxes.
Select or clear Email and Calendar (Outlook/Google) in the Invite candidate via row.
Click Schedule and invite to finish.
Tip: Recruitee remembers your choices and preselects them the next time you schedule an event, so you only have to set this up once.
What each option sends
Email sends the invitation email you write in the second step, from your own mailbox or a shared mailbox
Calendar (Outlook/Google) creates the event in the host’s connected calendar and adds the candidate as a participant, so their calendar provider invites them
Both sends two separate messages — one from Recruitee and one from the calendar
Note: Interviewers are always invited through the calendar when a calendar is connected. Their Calendar (Outlook/Google) checkbox is selected and locked, and the tooltip reads “Interviewers are always invited via calendar.” You can still decide whether they also get an email.
Email invitation compared with calendar invitation
Both methods give the candidate every detail of the event. They differ in where the event ends up and how the candidate answers.
Calendar invitation
The event appears in the candidate’s calendar automatically, with no action from them
Their own calendar sends the reminders
They answer with Yes, Maybe, or No in their calendar, and their answer syncs back to the event in Recruitee
They’re listed as a participant of the calendar event, so they can see who else is invited
Email invitation
The candidate gets an email from Recruitee with an invite.ics attachment they can open to add the event
The email carries an Accept or decline button that opens a page where they confirm, answer maybe, or decline
The event page linked from the email has an Add to calendar button with Google Calendar, Yahoo! Calendar, Outlook, and iCal
Adding the event is a manual step, so some candidates skip it
Note: When you invite the candidate through the calendar, the Accept or decline button disappears from the email. The candidate answers in their calendar instead, so the email doesn’t ask them twice.
Set the title of the calendar invitation
The Event name in the first step of the scheduling window becomes the title of the calendar event, so you can set it before you schedule anything.
Open the candidate’s profile and click Schedule.
Clear the Event name field and type your own title, up to 250 characters.
Finish scheduling as usual.
To change the title of an event you already scheduled, click Schedule again on the candidate’s profile, edit Event name, and save. Everyone invited gets a notification about the change.
Note: If Don’t show candidate full name is selected, the event name can’t contain the candidate’s first or last name. Recruitee shows the error “Remove candidate name to keep their data private” and won’t let you continue until you take the name out.
Keep the candidate’s data private
The first step of the scheduling window has a Privacy settings for Google Calendar & Outlook section with three checkboxes. Two of them still allow a calendar invitation, one blocks it.
Make event private
The event is private in Google, Microsoft, and other synced calendars, so only the participants can see its details. Calendar invitations still work, which makes this the option to choose when you want both privacy and the convenience of a calendar invite.
Don’t show candidate full name
Synced calendars won’t show the candidate’s full name. Calendar invitations still work, but the event name has to leave the candidate’s name out.
Don’t add candidate to the list of participants
The candidate isn’t added to the list of invited people, so they can’t see the interviewers’ email addresses. Because the invitation works by adding them as a participant, selecting this checkbox blocks the calendar option. Recruitee warns you right away: “You can still invite the candidate via email in the next step, but the ‘Invite via calendar’ option will be blocked.”
The company-wide setting
An administrator can turn candidate names off for the whole company, which blocks calendar invitations everywhere.
Go to Settings > Company settings > GDPR Compliance.
Find Candidate full names in synced calendars and click Edit.
Choose Show full names or Don’t show full names.
Click Save.
Important: Don’t show full names blocks calendar invitations for every event in the company and locks the per-event checkbox for everyone. The dialog warns you before you save: “Inviting candidates via Google or Microsoft calendar will be blocked.” Choose Make event private on individual events instead if you want privacy and calendar invitations at the same time.
Note: Changing this setting needs the permission to manage GDPR settings. If you can’t open GDPR Compliance, ask your company administrator.
When the calendar option is unavailable
If Calendar (Outlook/Google) is greyed out in the Invite candidate via row, hold your pointer over it. The tooltip names the reason.
Tooltip | What to do |
Candidate has no email address | Add an email address to the candidate’s profile. |
Please connect Microsoft or Google calendar in your Recruitee profile settings | Connect your calendar, then reopen the scheduling window. |
Unavailable because the organizer has not connected their external calendar | Ask the event host to connect their calendar, or make yourself the host in the first step. |
Unavailable because an administrator enabled the GDPR setting to hide candidate names in synced calendars | Ask your administrator to change the company-wide GDPR setting. |
Unavailable because you enabled the privacy setting “Don’t add candidate to the list of event participants” in the previous step | Go back with Edit and clear that checkbox. |
You can’t change this when editing an event | Nothing — the invitation method is fixed once an event is scheduled. |
Tip: Having trouble with a calendar that used to work? See How to resolve calendar connection issues?
How teams use calendar invitations
Calendar invitations can help you keep interviews on candidates’ calendars while protecting event details from the wider team.
Schedule a private first interview
You’re arranging a first interview for a Sales Manager candidate. Your team wants the candidate to receive a calendar invite, but doesn’t want interview details visible to everyone in shared calendars. In the first scheduling step, name the event “First interview - Sales Manager” and select Make event private.
In the second step, open Show options and select both Email and Calendar (Outlook/Google) for the candidate. Then click Schedule and invite. The candidate receives your email and a separate calendar invitation.
They can respond in their calendar, and their response syncs back to the event in Tellent Recruitee. The event is private in synced calendars, so only participants can see its details.
Frequently asked questions
What’s the benefit of inviting through the calendar?
What’s the benefit of inviting through the calendar?
The event appears in the candidate’s Google or Outlook calendar automatically, their own calendar reminds them, and they answer with the Yes, Maybe, and No buttons they use every day. That combination improves the candidate experience and lowers no-shows.
How many emails will the candidate get?
How many emails will the candidate get?
Selecting both Email and Calendar (Outlook/Google) sends two separate emails — one from Recruitee and one from the connected calendar. Select only one option to send only one message.
Which email address is the invitation sent from?
Which email address is the invitation sent from?
The email invitation comes from the mailbox you pick in the From field in the second step, either your own or a shared mailbox. The calendar invitation comes from the event host’s connected calendar, so if the hiring manager is the host, the candidate sees the hiring manager’s address.
Can I keep the candidate’s name private and still invite them through the calendar?
Can I keep the candidate’s name private and still invite them through the calendar?
Yes. Select Make event private or Don’t show candidate full name in the first step. Both keep calendar invitations available. The company-wide Don’t show full names setting and the Don’t add candidate to the list of participants checkbox both block them.
Can I change the title of the calendar invitation?
Can I change the title of the calendar invitation?
Yes. Edit the Event name field in the first step of the scheduling window before you schedule. You can also edit it afterward, but everyone invited gets a notification about the change.
What if the candidate doesn’t use Google Calendar, Outlook, or iCal?
What if the candidate doesn’t use Google Calendar, Outlook, or iCal?
They still get the email invitation with all of the event details, an invite.ics attachment, and a link to the event page where they can add it to any calendar.
Can I change the invitation method after the event is scheduled?
Can I change the invitation method after the event is scheduled?
No. The calendar checkboxes are locked once an event exists, and the tooltip reads “You can’t change this when editing an event.” You can still send a notification about a change to the date, time, or details.
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