# How to fill iCIMS, Taleo and SuccessFactors job applications > All three usually ask for an account at each company, read your resume into a profile you need to check, and spread the form over several steps. On Taleo, keep moving or save, because the session times out (30 minutes by default) and only one session works per browser. On iCIMS, use Finish Later if you need a break and come back to the same portal for your status. On SuccessFactors, accept the privacy statement, then attach your resume before you edit the fields it fills. By Arivu, founder of Shortlist. Published 2026-10-31, updated 2026-10-31. Source: https://shortlist.cruscible.com/guides/icims-taleo-successfactors-application-tips iCIMS, Oracle Taleo and SAP SuccessFactors are the tracking systems behind many large employers' application forms, common in fields such as healthcare, retail, banking and the public sector. They are older and longer than one-page forms like [Greenhouse](/guides/greenhouse-application-tips) or [Lever](/guides/lever-ashby-application-tips), and each has its own habits. Not sure which one a job uses? The link usually tells you: `icims.com`, `taleo.net` or `successfactors.com`. See [which ATS is this job using](/guides/which-ats-is-this-job-using) for the other signs. ## What all three have in common - **An account at each company.** Each employer runs its own site, so an account at one does not work at another. Use the same email everywhere and a password manager. If you applied to the company before, sign in instead of registering again: a second account can create a duplicate candidate record. - **A profile built from your resume.** You upload a resume, the system reads it into fields, and you check the result. The reading is rarely perfect: jobs get merged, dates go missing, bullets land in the wrong place. Check every section. - **Several steps.** Personal details, work history, education, the employer's questions, voluntary questions about gender, ethnicity or disability, and a final review. Expect fifteen to thirty minutes. - **The employer decides the details.** Two companies on the same system can have very different forms. What follows is what you will usually see. ## iCIMS **Starting.** The job's Apply button usually leads to an iCIMS page asking for your email address. Depending on the employer, you then sign in, create an account, or connect a social or Microsoft account. **The resume.** You can usually start without one, but most employers require it before you finish. Some portals let you upload from Google Drive or Dropbox as well as from your computer. Read the upload instructions: some employers want the resume and cover letter as **one file**, and will only keep one upload. **Breaks.** At certain steps there is a **Finish Later** option. Your progress is kept, and you continue from the same company's portal. **After you apply.** iCIMS keeps your applications under your account on that company's portal. Sign in there to see your status, apply to other roles at the company, or update your profile. ## Oracle Taleo **Starting.** Taleo sites (`company.taleo.net/careersection/...`) usually open with a privacy agreement to accept, then ask you to sign in or create an account. Some sites lock the account after repeated wrong passwords, so use the "forgot password" link early rather than guessing. **One session, and a time limit.** Two habits catch people out: - **The session times out.** By default Taleo ends a session after 30 minutes without activity and warns you ten minutes before; employers can change this. Writing a long answer in another window and coming back later is the classic way to lose a page. Keep moving, or save as you go. - **One Taleo session per browser.** Opening a second Taleo application in another tab of the same browser is not supported, and signing out of one ends them all. Finish one application before starting the next. **The resume.** Many Taleo forms offer to read your resume and fill the profile. As always, check every job and date it fills. **eSignature.** Near the end, Taleo asks you to type your full name as an electronic signature, sometimes with the date. Type it exactly as you entered your name on the form; some employers will not process an application without it. **My Jobpage.** This tab lists your **draft** and **submitted** applications at that company. If you quit partway, your draft is here, and you can finish it later. The status of submitted applications shows here too. Some employers that used Taleo have moved to Oracle's newer Recruiting Cloud, whose links contain `oraclecloud.com`. There you usually start with your email address and confirm a code sent to it, then fill a shorter set of steps. ## SAP SuccessFactors **Starting.** SuccessFactors job pages often sit on the company's own careers domain, and the application moves to a `successfactors.com` or `successfactors.eu` address. You create an account or sign in, and you are asked to accept a **data privacy statement** before your profile is created. Declining it usually means you cannot apply. **Your candidate profile.** SuccessFactors keeps one profile per company: your contact details, work history, education and resume. Every application you send to that company reuses it, so getting it right once saves time later. **Attach the resume first.** Many SuccessFactors sites read your resume to fill the profile, and some offer **Apply with LinkedIn**. On some setups, attaching a resume after you have typed into the form can overwrite the fields you filled. Attach your resume first, let it fill what it can, then correct the fields. **The application itself.** After the profile come the job's own questions and the voluntary questions. Some sites let you save a draft; finish and submit when you can, rather than leaving a draft open for long. ## Before you submit, on any of them - Read the review page. It is where you catch a missing job, a wrong date or an answer in the wrong field. - Check the screening questions twice. Questions about work authorisation, sponsorship, location or salary can filter you out before anyone reads your resume. See [how to answer common screening questions](/guides/screening-questions). - Make sure the resume you uploaded is the one [tailored to this job](/guides/tailor-resume-without-lying). Some recruiters read the file, not the fields. After you submit, the status labels these systems use ("Submitted", "Under review", "Not selected" and so on) are explained in our guide to [application status meanings](/guides/application-status-meanings). ## How Shortlist handles these forms [Shortlist](/) recognises iCIMS, Taleo and SuccessFactors application pages. It fills the fields it can from your profile, a step at a time, attaches your resume, and lists anything it could not fill so you can answer it yourself. It stops before Submit, so you review and send every application. ## FAQ ### Why do iCIMS, Taleo and SuccessFactors need a new account for every company? Each employer runs its own site on the system, with its own candidate records. An account at one company does not carry over to another, even on the same system. ### Why did my Taleo application log me out? Taleo sessions end after a period without activity, 30 minutes by default, and opening a second Taleo session in the same browser can end the first. Save as you go and keep one application open at a time. ### Do I still have to fill the form after uploading my resume? Usually yes. All three systems read your resume into the form, but the result needs checking: jobs, dates and descriptions are often incomplete or in the wrong fields, and the employer's questions are never filled from a resume. ### Where can I see the status of my application? On the same company's careers site, after signing in: the candidate portal on iCIMS, My Jobpage on Taleo, and your candidate profile or applications page on SuccessFactors. Many employers also email you when the status changes.