Key takeaways
- A recruitment portal lets you publish vacancies, receive applications online and manage candidates in one place.
- Key features include job posts, application forms, CV uploads, screening, shortlisting and email or SMS updates.
- Structured forms and scoring make shortlisting faster, fairer and easier to audit.
- Applicant data must be protected and retained in line with the Data Protection Act.
In this guide
Advertising a job and receiving hundreds of CVs by email quickly becomes chaos: attachments get lost, shortlisting takes weeks and good candidates move on. A recruitment portal brings structure, speed and fairness to hiring.
Who needs a recruitment portal?
- Companies hiring regularly or across branches.
- Counties, public institutions and parastatals.
- NGOs recruiting project staff and volunteers.
- Recruitment agencies managing many clients.
Essential features
- Careers page listing open vacancies with full job descriptions.
- Candidate accounts and online application forms.
- CV, certificate and cover letter uploads.
- Screening questions and minimum requirement filters.
- Shortlisting, scoring and interview scheduling.
- Email and SMS updates to applicants.
- Reports on applicants per vacancy, gender and location.
Step-by-step
- Map your hiring workflow and approval stages.
- Design structured application forms per role.
- Define scoring criteria for objective shortlisting.
- Build the portal and link it from your website.
- Test with a live vacancy, then roll out.
Fairness and compliance
Structured scoring makes decisions defensible and easier to audit. Applicant data must be protected, used only for recruitment and deleted after the retention period, in line with the Data Protection Act.
Beyond hiring
Successful candidates can flow directly into your HR and payroll system, avoiding re-entry of personal details.
Permalink Business Ltd. helps Kenyan businesses with websites, software, branding, networking and security. Request a free quote today.
Frequently asked questions
Why not just receive CVs by email?
Email gets disorganised quickly. A portal stores every application, filters candidates and keeps the whole hiring team in sync.
Can the portal shortlist candidates automatically?
Yes. Screening questions and minimum requirements can filter and rank applicants before human review.
How much does a recruitment portal cost?
Simple portals may start around KES 150,000, with advanced workflows, integrations and assessments costing more.
A Nairobi IT company helping Kenyan businesses grow with websites, software, marketing, networking and security. Our guides are written from real client projects.
