Job order update or new requisition: how to tell

Published 6 October 2026. Updated 6 October 2026.

A client replies to an old thread: "Can we move the pay up a bit?" Is that an update to the order you already have open, or a second opening? Get it wrong and you either create a duplicate that splits the pipeline, or you overwrite a live order with details meant for a different role. This guide gives a simple way to decide, and a way to record the change.

Why duplicates happen

Recruiters get job orders from several directions: a first email, a reply, a forwarded note from a hiring manager, a call that followed up. Each message can restate the whole role or mention only one detail. Without a habit of checking open orders first, the easy path is to create a new record every time.

Duplicates cause real problems. Two records for one role mean two sets of submittals, two sets of notes and, sometimes, two candidates sent to the same manager by different recruiters at your firm.

Step 1: Check the open orders first

Before creating anything, look at your open orders for the same client. Keep a current list you can search, such as an export from your ATS. Match on:

1. Client company. Does this client already have an open order with you?
2. Role title. A close match counts, since a client may word the same role differently from one email to the next.
3. Location. Same site, or a different one?
4. Thread. Is the email a reply to an earlier message about that role?

If nothing matches, it is most likely new, unless the email says it changes an earlier order.

Step 2: Read what the email actually says

Look for words that signal intent.

When the email says what has not changed, record that too. "Everything else is the same" is a statement you will want to be able to point to.

Step 3: Decide, and mark the doubt

Three outcomes are possible:

• Update. The client and role match an open order, and the email changes some fields.
• New. Nothing matches, or the email clearly describes an additional opening.
• Unclear. Some signals match, others do not.

For the unclear case, do not pick one quietly. Record the likeliest reading, flag it as open, and ask the client a single, direct question. A short question costs one email; a wrong merge can cost a search.

Step 4: Record an update as a change, not a rewrite

When an email is an update, list the differences field by field.

1. Write the field name.
2. Write the value in the open order now.
3. Write the proposed new value.
4. Note where the new value came from.

For example, a pay change from one range to another is one row. Fields the email does not mention stay as they are. Resist the urge to retype the whole order, because every re-typed field is a chance to introduce an error.

Then decide, field by field, whether the change goes into the order. A pay change may affect candidates already in process, so check who has been told what before you update.

Step 5: Tell the people who need to know

An update to an open order often affects other recruiters and candidates. After you apply it:

• Tell the recruiters working the order.
• Check whether submitted candidates still fit the changed requirement.
• Reply to the client with the changes as you have recorded them, so they can correct anything wrong.

Mistakes to avoid

• Averaging a changed range. If the pay range moved, record the new range, not a midpoint.
• Filing a new requirement as a must-have by default. If the client adds a requirement, ask whether it is a must-have or a nice-to-have before it goes in.
• Closing an order because a new one arrived. The new email may be an additional opening.
• Treating silence as agreement. A field the client did not mention is unchanged, not confirmed.

For the fields you should be capturing in the first place, see the fields a job order form needs.

How ReqDrop handles updates

If you upload your list of open requisitions along with the client's email, ReqDrop compares the email with your open orders. The list can be a spreadsheet, a Word file, a PDF or a photo. When the email has the same client and title as one open order, at no different location, or names that order's ID, it proposes an update instead of a new draft and shows the fields that changed, with the open-order value next to the proposed one. A closer call, such as a similar title or several possible matches, is listed as an open problem for you to settle instead of being decided for you.

Without an open-requisition list, ReqDrop cannot check for a match, and the checklist says so. It works from the email you upload and does not read your ATS. The output is a draft you read and paste into your ATS yourself, and a reply to the client that asks only about gaps; ReqDrop does not send it to your client. A second, stronger AI model reviews every result and lists what is left for you to decide. One job order is 12 credits, no subscription. Sign up to try it with your own open-order list.

Questions

What if the client email could be either an update or a new role?

Do not guess. Ask the client one direct question: is this a change to the open order or an additional opening? Until they answer, record the email against the open order and mark the point as open.

Should a client's pay change go into the order straight away?

Not before you check who has been told what. Candidates already in process may have heard the old range, so tell the recruiters working the order and confirm the change with the client in writing.

How do I keep my open-order list current enough to match against?

Export it from your ATS on a regular schedule, and close orders when they are filled or cancelled. A list with stale orders produces false matches and hides real ones.