--- title: "ATS user roles and permissions: A practical access guide" description: "Set up ATS roles for recruiters, hiring managers, interviewers, administrators, executives, and agencies without exposing unnecessary candidate data." canonical: "https://recooty.com/resources/blogs/ats-user-roles-and-permissions" author: "Recooty Team" date: "2026-09-15T00:00:00+05:30" updated: "2026-09-15T00:00:00+05:30" image: "https://recooty.com/resources/blogs/media/2026/09/14-ats-user-roles-and-permissions-b8fb0553ff07.png" --- # ATS user roles and permissions: A practical access guide ATS user roles define what each person can view and do inside an [applicant tracking system](https://recooty.com/applicant-tracking-system). Good permissions let recruiters, managers, and interviewers complete their work while limiting access to unrelated jobs, private notes, compensation details, candidate exports, and administrative settings. I would begin with tasks, not job titles. Two hiring managers may need different access because one leads a single vacancy and the other oversees a whole department. ## Key takeaways - Give users the minimum access needed for their recruiting tasks. Teams comparing [recruiting software](https://recooty.com/) can use this overview to assess which workflow fits their hiring process. - Separate system administration, recruiting, hiring decisions, interviews, and reporting where practical. - Scope access by job, department, location, or business unit when candidate visibility should differ. - Protect private notes, compensation, exports, and configuration with tighter controls. - Review access after role changes, project completion, and employee departure. - Test every role with sample accounts before launch. ## What are ATS user roles? ATS user roles are permission sets assigned to people who take part in recruiting. A role controls access to candidate records, jobs, feedback, communication, reports, integrations, exports, and system configuration. | Role | Typical work | Access to consider | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------ | ----------------------------------------------------------------- | | Administrator | Configures the ATS | Users, roles, fields, templates, integrations, retention, reports | | Recruiter | Runs hiring workflows | Assigned jobs, candidates, messages, stages, scheduling, reports | | Hiring manager | Owns role decisions | Relevant jobs, shortlisted candidates, feedback, approvals | | Interviewer | Evaluates candidates | Interview details, selected profile data, assigned scorecard | | Executive | Reviews progress | Aggregate reports and selected vacancy status | | Agency user | Submits candidates | Approved client jobs and its own submissions | | HR operations | Receives completed hires | Approved new hire fields and handoff status | | Use an [interview question generator](https://recooty.com/tools/interview-question-generator/) to prepare role-specific questions before the conversation. | | | These are starting points. Build roles around the product's available controls and your organization structure. ## What should ATS administrators be allowed to do? Administrators need configuration access, but they do not always need unrestricted visibility into every evaluation or compensation field. Separate technical administration from recruiting access if the platform supports it and the organization is large enough. Administrative permissions may cover: - Creating users and assigning roles - Configuring jobs, pipelines, fields, and templates - Managing integrations and authentication - Setting retention and deletion rules - Creating organization-wide reports - Importing, merging, exporting, or deleting records - Reviewing activity history Use a small number of named administrators. Shared accounts make accountability and offboarding difficult. ## What access should recruiters have? Recruiters usually need broad access to the jobs and candidates they manage. They may create vacancies, review applications, communicate with candidates, schedule interviews, collect feedback, record outcomes, search talent pools, and run recruiting reports. Global recruiter access is not always required. Regional or business-unit teams may need boundaries for confidential roles, local candidate data, or separate operating units. Bulk export, mass email, permanent deletion, and permission changes deserve extra control because one action can affect many records. ## What should hiring managers see in an ATS? Hiring managers should see the candidates, jobs, tasks, and evidence needed for their own hiring decisions. They rarely need access to every vacancy, system setting, private recruiter note, or company-wide candidate export. A useful manager role may allow users to: - View assigned jobs and relevant candidate profiles - Review resumes and screening answers - Request or schedule the next step - Submit scorecards and comments - Mention members of the hiring team - Approve requisitions or offers where authorized - See progress for their own openings Keep the interface focused. Occasional users are more likely to submit timely feedback when the task is obvious and unrelated controls stay out of view. ## What should interviewers see? Interviewers need enough context to run the assigned interview and record evidence. This usually includes the role, selected candidate details, interview plan, relevant materials, and scorecard. Some teams hide other interviewers' scores until each person submits feedback. That configuration can reduce anchoring, where an early opinion shapes later evaluations. Interviewers should not browse candidates outside their assignment or download a large candidate list. Limit access after the interview process ends. ## Which ATS permissions need extra care? High-impact permissions can expose data, change history, or alter the hiring process for many users. Grant them to named owners and review their use. Pay close attention to: - Candidate and report exports - Bulk email and bulk stage changes - Record deletion and merge actions - Private notes and sensitive fields - Compensation and offer information - Retention and consent settings - User and permission management - Integration credentials and API tokens - AI screening rules and automated rejection - Audit or activity history For a current comparison, see this guide to [AI-powered applicant tracking systems](https://recooty.com/resources/blogs/best-ai-powered-applicant-tracking-systems). An ATS should preserve enough activity information to investigate mistakes and support access reviews. ## How do you design ATS access control? Map each recruiting task to the data and action it requires. Then create the smallest reusable roles that cover those tasks without making every permission a one-off exception. Use this process: 1. List user groups and recruiting responsibilities. A [job description generator](https://recooty.com/tools/job-description-generator/) can turn responsibilities and requirements into a clear first draft. 2. Identify candidate, job, report, and configuration data used by each group. 3. Mark sensitive actions and fields. 4. Scope access by assigned job, department, location, or business unit. 5. Create sample accounts for each role. 6. Test view, edit, export, delete, and approval behavior. 7. Document who can request and approve access changes. 8. Review access on a regular schedule. Include offboarding. Disable access promptly, rotate exposed credentials, transfer ownership, and check integrations or exports the departing user controlled. ## How does Recooty support hiring team access? Recooty includes custom user access controls, collaborative feedback, scorecards, and @mentions. It also supports two-factor authentication and GDPR-related hiring needs. Use a sample recruiter, manager, and interviewer account during evaluation. Confirm what each person can see across jobs, candidate profiles, notes, reports, and bulk actions. The [candidate scorecard guide](https://recooty.com/resources/blogs/a-guide-to-candidate-scorecard-in-ats) can help define interviewer access around structured evidence. ## Frequently asked questions about ATS permissions ### Should hiring managers have full ATS access? Most hiring managers need access to their own vacancies and candidates, not the entire database. Limit private notes, system settings, company-wide exports, and unrelated roles unless their responsibilities require them. Test the manager workflow so limited access still supports timely decisions. ### Can interviewers see each other's feedback? That depends on company policy and ATS settings. Hiding feedback until each interviewer submits a scorecard can reduce influence from earlier opinions. After submission, the hiring team may review evidence together under a defined decision process. ### How often should ATS access be reviewed? Review access after hires, departures, transfers, agency engagements, and major role changes. A scheduled quarterly or semiannual review can catch permissions that no longer match current work. Higher-risk administrator and export access may deserve more frequent checking. ### Who should approve ATS administrator access? The accountable ATS owner should approve administrator access with input from IT or security where required. Keep the number of administrators small and assign named accounts. 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Keep the number of administrators small and assign named accounts." } } ], "@id": "https://recooty.com/resources/blog/ats-user-roles-and-permissions#faq" } ] } ```