The Search tab is the primary sourcing engine within Workspaces. It's where your AI-generated search criteria come to life — surfacing matched candidate profiles across all of your available talent pools in one unified experience. From here, you can refine your search criteria, browse candidates across multiple sources, and begin building your shortlist as you go.
The Search tab is the second step in the Workspaces workflow, sitting between the initial Setup and the Evaluate tab. It supports two search modes (Smart Match and Boolean), automatically saves your progress with Sticky Search, and integrates directly with People Insights so you can understand your talent pool at a glance.
Before You Begin: Completing Workspace Setup
The Search tab is populated based on the criteria you establish during the Workspaces setup wizard. If you haven't completed setup yet, Workspaces will guide you through it step by step before landing you in the Search tab.
Once setup is complete, Workspaces uses AI to generate your initial search and drop you into the Search tab with results already loaded.
New to Workspaces setup? See How to Use SeekOut Workspaces for a full step-by-step walkthrough.
Navigating to the Search Tab
Open your Workspace from the left sidebar of your SeekOut dashboard.
At the top of the screen, you'll see the main Workspace tabs: Overview → Search → Evaluate → Shortlist → Outreach → Candidates → Pipeline.
Click Search to enter the candidate sourcing view. If you've searched in this Workspace before, your last search will automatically reload (see Sticky Search below).
What You'll See in the Search Tab
The Search tab is split into two main areas:
Left panel — Search Toolbar Criteria: Your active search filters are displayed here. These were pre-populated by Workspaces AI during setup but can be adjusted at any time. Filters may include job titles, skills, experience, location, employers, and more.
Right panel — Candidate Results Profiles matching your current search criteria are displayed here. Each profile card shows relevant candidate information to help you quickly assess fit. The total number of matching profiles is shown at the top of the screen, broken down by talent pool source.
Search Modes
The Search tab offers two modes. You can switch between them at any time using the overflow menu (⋯) in the search panel.
Smart Match (Default)
Smart Match is the default mode for Workspaces. It uses SeekOut's AI-powered matching to surface the most relevant candidates based on your job setup, including titles, required skills, and preferred skills.
Best for:
Quick searches from a job description
Recruiters who want AI to guide the initial candidate pool
Teams newer to Boolean logic
Enter a job title, paste a job description, or let SeekOut auto-populate based on your Workspace setup. SeekOut Assist will interpret the role and surface matching candidates. Use filters to narrow results further, and if results aren't quite right, SeekOut Assist provides in-line suggestions to help you refine without starting over.
Boolean Search
Boolean mode gives you full control over your search query using standard Boolean logic (AND, OR, NOT, quotation marks for exact phrases, and parentheses for grouping).
Best for:
Power users and experienced sourcers
Highly specific or niche searches
Situations where Smart Match results need deeper customization
Note: For more information on using Boolean and to review the available Boolean fields, please refer to our article Boolean Syntax & Field-Based Search
Switching between Search Modes
Switching to Boolean:
In the Search tab, click the overflow menu (⋯) in the search panel.
Select Switch to Boolean Search.
Confirm in the pop-up dialog. Note: your current Smart Match search will be cleared.
Switching back to Smart Match:
Click the overflow menu (⋯) again.
Select Switch to Smart Match.
Confirm in the pop-up. Your Boolean query will be cleared.
Note: Switching between modes clears your current query. Save your search before switching if you want to preserve it (see Saving Searches below).
When switching from Smart Match to Boolean, SeekOut will automatically translate your Smart Match criteria into Boolean syntax where possible. This means that your candidate count will change when switching between search modes. If any filters can't be translated, you'll see an inline notification explaining what changed.
Searching Across Talent Pools
One of the most powerful features of the Search tab is the ability to browse candidates across multiple talent pools without losing your place or resetting your filters. Highlighted tabs appear directly above the search criteria panel, allowing you to switch between sources:
Talent Pool | Description |
Public Profiles | Nearly 800 million profiles aggregated from public data sources — ideal for sourcing hard-to-find or specialty talent |
Your ATS | Candidates already in your Applicant Tracking System, including past applicants and silver medalists who are warm leads already familiar with your company |
Alumni | Former employees who may be open to returning — they know your culture, products, and people, making for faster onboarding |
More | Additional talent pools are available depending on your specific SeekOut subscription. For an overview of all our search pools, please refer to our article Overview of SeekOut Talent Pool |
Tip: Your filters persist as you move between talent pool tabs, so you won't need to re-enter your criteria each time you switch sources. The count of relevant matches for each pool is displayed at the top of your screen.
Refining Your Search Criteria
Your initial search criteria are a starting point, not a final answer. Workspaces expects you to adjust and refine as you review results. There are two ways to do this:
1. Filter Toolbar Adjustments
Edit the criteria directly in the left-hand toolbar panel. You can add, remove, or modify any filter — including job titles, skills, experience ranges, locations, and employer preferences — at any time. Results will update automatically as you make changes.
2. Toggle between Full/Partial Matches
You can also toggle between Full Match and Partial Match results at the top of the results list when using Smart Match (Boolean searches return only Full Match candidates).
Full Match shows candidates who meet all your search criteria.
Partial Match broadens the pool to candidates who meet most, but not all, criteria — useful when the talent pool is narrow.
3. SeekOut Assist (Natural Language Refinement)
Located at the top of the Search tab when using Smart Match search, SeekOut Assist allows you to refine your search using plain, conversational language — no Boolean expertise required.
Simply describe what you're looking for as you would to a colleague. For example:
"Look for candidates with experience leading product teams at enterprise SaaS companies"
"Add nursing degrees as a requirement"
"Narrow results to candidates in the Pacific Northwest"
SeekOut Assist interprets your intent and automatically applies the relevant filters. It may also suggest follow-up prompts to help you narrow or broaden your results further.
Pro tip: Think of SeekOut Assist's suggestions as a guide. You can accept, modify, or ignore them at any time — you're always in control of the final criteria.
Reviewing Candidate Profiles
People Insights
The Search tab includes People Insights, which gives you an aggregate view of your search results — helping you understand the composition of your talent pool before you start shortlisting.
To access People Insights: Click the Insights toggle or panel within the Search tab results view. 
What you can see:
Geographic distribution of candidates
Seniority and experience breakdown
Top companies represented in results
Diversity composition (where available)
People Insights updates dynamically as you adjust your search filters, giving you a real-time picture of your talent pool.
Sticky Search
Sticky Search automatically saves your search state so you never lose your progress when navigating around a Workspace.
What gets saved automatically:
Your search query (keywords, skills, filters)
The search mode (Smart Match or Boolean)
Cross-channel tab selection
Page number and page size
Full Match / Partial Match toggle
Your sticky search is personal to you — other collaborators in the Workspace see their own sticky search. When you return to the Search tab — even after leaving the Workspace or closing your browser — your last search reloads automatically.
Saving Searches
You can save any search configuration to return to it later or share it with teammates.
To save a search:
Run your search and refine it to your liking.
Click the Save Search option in the search toolbar (or overflow menu).
Give the search a name.
To load a saved search:
Click the Saved Searches option in the Search tab.
Select the search you want to load.
Shortlisting and Evaluating Profiles
As you browse results, you can review individual profiles on a candidate's full background — including work history, skills, education, and any AI-generated insights tied to your scorecard criteria.
Shortlist — Click the Shortlist button to the right of the profile to save a candidate to your Shortlist tab for further review and outreach.
Run Evaluation — From the three stacked dots (⋯) above the first profile in your results, you can send selected profiles — or all results — to the Evaluate tab to be scored against your AI scorecard before adding them to the Shortlist.
Tip: You don't have to wait until you've finished browsing to shortlist. Add candidates as you go to build your list progressively across multiple talent pool tabs.
To learn more about the Shortlist Tab, please reference our article Using the Shortlist Tab in SeekOut Workspaces
Sending Multiple Profiles to the Evaluate Tab
The Evaluate tab uses AI to score candidates against your scorecard criteria and rank them for easier comparison. You can trigger this directly from the Search tab:
Click the three stacked dots (⋯) in the toolbar above the first profile in your results.
Choose to run the Evaluation for selected profiles or all results.
Navigate to the Evaluate tab to review ranked scores and shortlist top matches.
Note: Running Profile Evaluation uses AI Credits. You receive 10,000 AI Credits per month. A notification will appear before any evaluation runs, showing the credit cost and your remaining balance.
To learn more about the Evaluate Tab, please reference our article Using the Evaluate Tab in SeekOut Workspaces
Tips for Getting the Most Out of the Search Tab
Start with Smart Match, then go deeper. Let AI surface an initial pool, then switch to Boolean if you need more precise control.
Check your ATS first. Past applicants are already familiar with your company and role, making them faster to convert — especially when speed matters.
Save searches before switching modes. Switching between Smart Match and Boolean clears your current query.
Use SeekOut Assist for unfamiliar roles. If you're recruiting outside your area of expertise, SeekOut Assist can suggest relevant titles, skills, and criteria you might not have thought to include.
Don't overlook Alumni. Former employees in good standing are often highly receptive to re-engagement and can be some of your fastest hires.
Use People Insights early to validate your talent pool size and diversity before investing time in outreach.
Use Partial Match if your Full Match pool is too narrow — it's a quick way to expand without rewriting your search.
Filters persist across tabs. Switching between talent pools won't reset your criteria — take advantage of this to compare the same search across all available sources.
Quick Reference: Search Tab Actions
Action | How To |
Access the Search tab | Click Search in the top Workspace navigation |
Switch search mode | Click ⋯ in the search panel → Switch to Boolean / Smart Match |
Switch between talent pools | Use the highlighted tabs above the search criteria panel |
Edit search criteria manually | Adjust filters directly in the left-hand panel |
Refine with natural language | Use SeekOut Assist at the top of the screen |
Toggle Full / Partial Match | Use the toggle at the top of the results list |
View talent pool insights | Click the Insights toggle in the results view |
Save a search | Click Save Search in the search toolbar |
Shortlist a candidate | Click the Shortlist button to the right of a profile |
Send profiles to Evaluate | Click the ⋯ menu above results → select profiles or all results → Run Evaluation |
Proceed to Evaluate tab | Click Evaluate in the top Workspace navigation |
Additional information on Workspaces can be found here.
Need more help? Contact the SeekOut Support team at [email protected]