Quick Guide to Implementing Webhooks in Recruitee

Hey there, fellow Javascript devs! Ready to supercharge your Recruitee integration with webhooks? Let's dive right in and get those real-time updates flowing!

Introduction

Webhooks are like the cool kids of the API world - they don't wait around, they come to you with the latest news. In Recruitee, they're your ticket to instant updates on candidates, job postings, and more. We'll be using the Recruitee API to set these up, so buckle up!

Prerequisites

Before we start, make sure you've got:

• A Recruitee account with API access (you're not sneaking in without an invite!)
• Node.js installed (because, let's face it, who doesn't love Node?)
• A basic grasp of Express.js (we'll be using it for our webhook endpoint)

Got all that? Great! Let's code.

Setting Up Webhook Endpoint

First things first, we need somewhere for Recruitee to send those juicy updates. Let's whip up a quick Express server:

const express = require('express');
const crypto = require('crypto');
const app = express();

app.use(express.json());

app.post('/webhook', (req, res) => {
  const signature = req.headers['x-recruitee-signature'];
  // TODO: Validate signature
  
  console.log('Webhook received:', req.body);
  res.sendStatus(200);
});

app.listen(3000, () => console.log('Webhook server running on port 3000'));

Pro tip: Don't forget to validate that signature! It's like checking ID at the door - keeps the riffraff out.

Registering Webhook with Recruitee API

Now that we've got our endpoint, let's tell Recruitee about it:

const axios = require('axios');

const createWebhook = async () => {
  try {
    const response = await axios.post('https://api.recruitee.com/c/YOUR_COMPANY_ID/webhooks', {
      url: 'https://your-server.com/webhook',
      event_types: ['candidate.created', 'candidate.updated']
    }, {
      headers: { 'Authorization': 'Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN' }
    });
    console.log('Webhook created:', response.data);
  } catch (error) {
    console.error('Error creating webhook:', error.response.data);
  }
};

createWebhook();

Replace YOUR_COMPANY_ID and YOUR_API_TOKEN with your actual details. No sharing those tokens, okay? They're secret for a reason!

Handling Webhook Events

When those webhooks start rolling in, you'll want to do something useful with them:

app.post('/webhook', (req, res) => {
  const { event_type, payload } = req.body;
  
  switch(event_type) {
    case 'candidate.created':
      console.log('New candidate:', payload.candidate.name);
      // Do something cool with the new candidate
      break;
    case 'candidate.updated':
      console.log('Candidate updated:', payload.candidate.name);
      // Update your local database, maybe?
      break;
    // Handle other event types...
  }
  
  res.sendStatus(200);
});

Remember, always respond with a 200 OK, even if you mess up the processing. It's just good manners!

Error Handling and Retry Mechanism

Sometimes things go wrong. It's not you, it's the internet. Here's a simple retry mechanism:

const processWebhook = async (payload, retries = 3) => {
  try {
    // Process the webhook payload
  } catch (error) {
    if (retries > 0) {
      console.log(`Retrying... ${retries} attempts left`);
      await new Promise(resolve => setTimeout(resolve, 1000));
      return processWebhook(payload, retries - 1);
    }
    console.error('Failed to process webhook after retries');
  }
};

Testing Your Webhook Integration

Recruitee's got your back with test events. Use them! They're like a dress rehearsal before the big show.

And when things inevitably go sideways (because let's be real, they always do at first), console.log is your best friend. Sprinkle those logs like confetti!

Conclusion

And there you have it! You're now a Recruitee webhook wizard. Remember, with great power comes great responsibility - use these webhooks wisely, and may your candidate pipeline always be full!

Happy coding, and may your builds always be green! 🚀

P.S. If you're feeling adventurous, look into scaling your webhook processing with a message queue, or beefing up security with HTTPS. The sky's the limit!