Automate Temporary Recruiting with a Custom Voice AI Agent
The best voice AI provider for temporary recruitment is a custom agent built with the Claude API. It outperforms off-the-shelf platforms in handling complex, non-linear screening conversations.
The system's scope depends on the number of roles you hire for and the complexity of your applicant tracking system (ATS) integration. A build for a single, high-volume role connecting to an ATS like Lever is a two-week project. A system screening for ten distinct roles with conditional logic requires a more involved four-week build.
We built a voice agent for a 12-person staffing agency specializing in event staff. It screened 400 applicants a month for 15 different short-term roles, reducing their time-to-hire from 5 days to just 48 hours. Recruiters now spend their time on final interviews, not initial phone screens.
What Problem Does This Solve?
Most small businesses first look at SaaS recruiting platforms like Paradox or Eightfold. These systems are designed for large enterprises hiring thousands of people per year. They require expensive annual contracts, a 3-month implementation cycle, and a dedicated HRIS team. For a small business with fluctuating hiring needs, paying a fixed monthly fee for features you only use three months a year is inefficient.
A more technical team might try to build something with Twilio's Voice API. They quickly find that Twilio provides the phone number and call connection, but not the intelligence. You are responsible for building the speech-to-text pipeline, state management, and the logic to understand candidate responses. This requires a full-time engineer, turning a simple automation project into a major development effort.
Consider a regional catering company that needs to hire 80 temporary servers for the holiday season. They use a standard recruiting chatbot. The bot asks, "Do you have a valid food handler's permit?" A great candidate replies, "Mine expired last month but I'm taking the renewal class on Tuesday." The chatbot's rigid logic disqualifies them. The business loses a good candidate because the system cannot understand nuance.
How Does It Work?
We start by connecting directly to your Applicant Tracking System (ATS) via its API, whether it's Lever, Greenhouse, or a custom internal tool. We work with you to define the 5-7 core screening questions for your temporary roles. All conversation logs, transcripts, and candidate scores are stored in a Supabase database that you own.
We build the core conversational logic in a Python application using FastAPI. When a candidate enters your pipeline, a webhook from your ATS triggers our system. The FastAPI application initiates an outbound call and uses the Claude 3 Sonnet model to dynamically ask questions. The agent can handle interruptions and understand nuanced answers, achieving a response latency under 800ms to maintain a natural conversational flow.
After each call, which typically lasts 3-4 minutes, the complete audio is transcribed. A separate, asynchronous process uses the Claude API to summarize the conversation, extract structured data (like availability dates or specific certifications), and generate a qualification score from 1-10. This summary and score, generated in about 20 seconds, are posted directly to the candidate's profile in your ATS using an httpx API call.
The entire system is deployed on AWS Lambda, allowing it to scale from zero to hundreds of concurrent calls instantly. This event-driven architecture means you only pay for compute time when calls are active. A system handling 5,000 calls a month has infrastructure costs under $60. We use structlog for structured logging and configure CloudWatch alarms to send a Slack alert if API error rates exceed 1%.
What Are the Key Benefits?
Screen Candidates Within 15 Business Days
Go from project kickoff to screening your first live applicants in three weeks. Avoid the quarter-long implementation cycles of enterprise SaaS platforms.
Pay Per Call, Not Per Recruiter
Our model is a one-time build fee with low, usage-based hosting costs. There are no per-seat licenses that penalize you for growing your team.
You Own The AI and The Source Code
You receive the complete Python source code in your company's GitHub repository. Modify screening questions or logic any time without vendor approval.
Alerts for Dropped Calls, Not Bad Answers
Monitoring focuses on technical health. You get a Slack alert if an API fails or latency spikes, not for business outcomes like candidate disqualifications.
Writes Summaries Directly To Your ATS
The system integrates with Lever, Greenhouse, or any platform with an API. Your recruiters work from a single source of truth, no new software required.
What Does the Process Look Like?
Week 1: Scoping & ATS Integration
You provide API keys for your ATS and a list of screening questions. We build the data connection and deliver a mapping document confirming read/write access.
Week 2: Agent Build & Internal Testing
We build the core FastAPI application and Claude API prompts. You receive a link to a private test number to interact with the agent yourself.
Week 3: Deployment & Live Trial
We deploy the system to AWS Lambda and connect it to your live applicant flow. You receive daily reports summarizing the first 20-50 screened candidates.
Week 4+: Handoff & Maintenance
We deliver the source code, an architectural diagram, and a runbook for common issues. After a 30-day monitoring period, we transition to an optional flat-rate support plan.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What does a custom voice AI recruiting agent typically cost?
- The cost depends on the number of unique roles to screen for and the complexity of your ATS integration. A typical engagement is a fixed-price build completed in 3-4 weeks. Because every project is custom, we provide a detailed proposal with a fixed price after our initial discovery call. You can book a call at cal.com/syntora/discover to discuss your specific needs.
- What happens if a candidate hangs up or the call drops?
- The system immediately saves the partial transcript and summary to your ATS. It flags the candidate record for human review. The agent will not automatically redial a dropped number to avoid creating a negative candidate experience. Your recruiters can see exactly where the conversation ended and decide whether to follow up manually.
- How is this better than using a VA service for phone screens?
- A VA service bills per hour, regardless of call volume, and requires training. This agent bills per second of active call time, works 24/7, and ensures 100% consistency in screening. The AI provides structured data output directly into your ATS, eliminating manual data entry. You get better data and lower costs, especially during high-volume hiring periods.
- Can the agent understand different accents or languages?
- Yes. The underlying models from Anthropic and AWS provide state-of-the-art accuracy for dozens of languages and dialects. For engagements focused on non-English speaking candidate pools, we conduct specific tests using sample audio to benchmark transcription accuracy and conversational quality before beginning the full build. Standard North American and UK English accents are handled out of the box.
- How do we change the screening questions after the system is live?
- The screening questions and conversational prompts are stored in a plain text configuration file. We provide a runbook that includes step-by-step instructions for editing this file and redeploying the AWS Lambda function with a single command. A non-engineer can typically update the questions in under 15 minutes without writing any code.
- Who owns the conversation data and transcripts?
- You own all data. Conversations are processed in a secure, isolated cloud environment. All transcripts, summaries, and recordings are stored in your own Supabase database instance, not ours. We do not retain any candidate or conversation data after the project handoff is complete. You have full control and ownership of your recruiting pipeline.
Related Solutions
Ready to Automate Your Small Business Operations?
Book a call to discuss how we can implement ai automation for your small business business.
Book a Call