Use the chase panel
Four time limits decide when an application is worth a follow-up, where those numbers come from, and why no row changes stage by itself.
The chase panel answers one question: which of these is worth a follow-up today.
The four time limits
| Days | What changes |
|---|---|
| 7 | A follow-up becomes normal. Earlier than this reaches somebody who was going to answer anyway |
| 9 | How long a saved but unsent role stays worth sending. Employers accept applications for about nine days on average |
| 14 | A second chase, and the ceiling on how often one is suggested. Also when a live conversation counts as gone quiet |
| 45 | Silence becomes an answer. Applications very rarely produce anything after this |
These numbers come from published research on how long employers really take. We did not make them up.
What the panel does
- Lists up to eight rows, with the reason each one appeared and the suggested action.
- Repeats the same line on the card itself, so the board and the panel cannot disagree.
- Leaves the stage alone. No row is moved for you.
What it will not do
It never sends anything. There is no automatic follow-up email, and no template is sent for you. A follow-up that sounds machine-written can ruin the application it is following up.
Closed rows are never chased. Rejected, withdrawn and no response are finished, and a board that nags about a rejection from March is a board people stop opening.
How to work it
- Open the tracker once a week, not once a day.
- Read the panel top to bottom. Eight is a session; eighty is a scroll.
- For each one, decide: chase, close, or leave.
- Move anything past forty-five days to no response, so your reply rate describes your search rather than your archive.
- Update the stage on anything that moved. The counters are only as honest as the stages.
Writing the chase itself
Short, and about them. Name the role, the date you applied, and one line of why you are still a fit. If you want a draft to edit, open Applications in the menu on the left, then Write to a recruiter. The cold email allowance that goes with it is described in plans, credits and what each tier unlocks.
What a recruiter can see from their side, which is less than most people assume, is in what recruiters actually see.
Questions about this
Does the tracker move a row to no response on its own?
No. No row is moved automatically at any threshold. The board offers, and you decide what your own search looks like.
How many rows does the panel show?
Up to eight, with the reason and the suggested action on each. The same line also appears on the card itself.
Is chasing on day three a bad idea?
It usually reaches somebody who was going to answer anyway. The median first meaningful reply lands around day six or seven.
What counts as silence?
No news for longer than the time limit for that stage. An automatic 'we got your application' email does not count, because software sent it.
Chase the eight, not the eighty
The panel turns a week of follow-ups into a short list, instead of a long scroll through everything you ever sent.
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