Dayforce + The Cognitive Integration
The Cognitive integrates with Dayforce so AI interviewing and sourcing run alongside the workflow employers running pay, HR and talent on Dayforce already use: you import active candidates from the Dayforce stage you choose, invite them to a live AI interview, and write each score, summary and report link back to the candidate as a note. Dayforce is one of The Cognitive's 60+ ATS integrations, all connected through one unified integration from the dashboard. Your Dayforce stages and decisions stay yours: the integration never moves or rejects a candidate.
What does the Dayforce integration do?
- Import from a stage: pick the Dayforce stage to import active candidates from, run a sync, and they arrive in The Cognitive ready to invite.
- Note write-back: for imported candidates who have interviewed, the score, a summary and the report link are written back to Dayforce as a note, where Dayforce accepts notes through the integration.
- No automatic stage moves: Dayforce keeps every stage change and rejection decision; the integration only reads candidates and writes notes.
- Outbound too: AI sourcing searches ~900M public profiles for people who never applied, so the pool is not limited to who is already in Dayforce.
- Multi-site screening: interviews run in parallel across Dayforce requisitions, booked by candidates in the window you open.
- Dayforce remains the system of record - The Cognitive layers interviews and evidence on top, never a second database to reconcile.
The Cognitive in a Dayforce workflow
Dayforce calls itself a "single AI-powered people platform", with payroll, HR, benefits, talent and workforce management in one place, according to its homepage read on 3 October 2026. The Cognitive keeps to that one-record idea: Dayforce stays the system of record, and The Cognitive adds a live, two-way AI video interview plus a note with the score, summary and report link for candidates imported from Dayforce.
Dayforce teams usually import candidates from the screening stage of a job requisition and send interview invites themselves; the invitation tells each candidate the interview is run by AI.
When one Dayforce recruiting team covers many sites, the phone-screen queue grows with every location it adds. AI interviews run in parallel whenever candidates book their slots, so the recruiter reads scored reports instead of working through calls one by one. Nothing in Dayforce changes stage or gets rejected by The Cognitive.
How does candidate sourcing get into Dayforce?
That is the gap The Cognitive's AI sourcing fills. A search brief written in plain English runs across ~900M public profiles with contact details enriched from 30+ sources; the role becomes a durable role pool that keeps everyone each search finds. Each candidate a search returns costs 1 credit, an email reveal 5 and a phone number 10, charged only on a successful reveal, so browsing a search result is cheap and only the shortlist you act on is not. People you source stay in The Cognitive's role pool and are not written into Dayforce automatically; you decide who to interview and who to add to Dayforce yourself.
A Dayforce requisition fills from the people who apply, so the sourcing gap shows up on roles where few qualified people do. The Cognitive searches ~900M public profiles from a brief written in plain English, and the people a recruiter chooses to pursue are added to Dayforce by hand.
How does setup work?
- 1. Connect: the dashboard opens one integration window; select Dayforce and authorize the connection there.
- 2. Pick the source stage: tell The Cognitive which Dayforce stage to import active candidates from.
- 3. Run it: sync to import, invite candidates to interview, then send each result back to Dayforce as a note with the score and report link.
- Nothing in Dayforce moves on its own: stages and decisions stay with your team.
Why teams add The Cognitive to their ATS
Dayforce is a system of record, not a sourcer or an interviewer. The Cognitive finds people across ~900M public profiles and interviews them live with AI, scoring every criterion 1 to 5 against the rubric you set, then writes the score and report link back to Dayforce. AI Sourcing starts at $49/month and AI Interview at $99/month.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Dayforce have AI interviews?
Dayforce's site does not describe AI interviews. Its Recruiting page lists AI-assisted screening and candidate scoring, pre-screening questions, texting, and automation for interview scheduling and assessments. The Cognitive adds the interview: you import candidates from a chosen stage, invite them, and each takes a live, two-way AI video interview of 10 or 20 minutes, with a transcript and recording.
Does Dayforce source candidates outside your applicants?
Dayforce's Recruiting page centers on the people in your candidate pools, with AI-assisted screening, job alerts, a candidate portal and Indeed Apply. It does not describe a search of public profiles beyond the people who apply. The Cognitive searches ~900M public profiles from a plain-English brief, and sourced people are added to Dayforce by your recruiter, never automatically.
Does Dayforce Recruiting need an integration with Dayforce payroll?
No. Dayforce says integrations are unnecessary inside its platform, because one data layer connects recruiting with onboarding, payroll and HR. Outside tools still connect through integrations, and Dayforce is on The Cognitive's list: candidates imported from Dayforce get a note with the score, summary and report link, and nothing is moved or rejected automatically.
Does The Cognitive integrate with Dayforce?
Yes, it is one of The Cognitive's 60+ ATS integrations. A sync imports candidates from the Dayforce stage you pick, they take a live AI interview when you invite them, and each result is written back to Dayforce as a note with the score and report link.
Can The Cognitive source candidates into Dayforce?
The Cognitive sources candidates alongside Dayforce: it searches ~900M public profiles from a plain-English brief and enriches contact details from 30+ sources. Sourced people stay in The Cognitive's role pool and are not written into Dayforce automatically. Search results cost 1 credit per candidate returned; an email reveal costs 5 credits and a phone number 10, charged only on a successful reveal.
Which Dayforce stage should feed AI interviews?
Dayforce teams usually import candidates from the screening stage of a job requisition and send interview invites themselves; the invitation tells each candidate the interview is run by AI. You choose the source stage in The Cognitive, each role can use its own rubric, and every decision after the interview stays with your team in Dayforce.
Do I need engineering help to connect Dayforce?
Not for the connection itself. An Dayforce admin signs in through The Cognitive's integration window and chooses the stage to import candidates from.
Which plans include ATS integration?
ATS integration is included on the Scale and Pro interview plans, which are billed monthly and can be cancelled anytime.
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