What is a passive candidate?
A passive candidate is a person who is not actively applying for jobs, usually because they are employed, but who may be open to the right opportunity if someone approaches them. Recruiters find passive candidates through sourcing and outreach, rather than waiting for applications.
Passive versus active
An active candidate applies to postings and is searching now. A passive candidate has to be found and persuaded, so the first message matters: be specific about the role, the reason for contacting them and what happens next. Respect a no, and keep their data only as long as you need it for the recruiting purpose.
Why recruiters target them
Employers pursue passive candidates when a role needs rare skills or when applications are thin. The trade-off is more time spent on outreach per hire. Many recruiters track sourcing channels separately so they can compare how long each takes.
Example
A recruiter finds an engineer who is happy in her current job and sends a short message describing a specific role. She replies a week later asking for a call, and the process begins.