What Happens to Overlapping Rows in Signals with Different Time Windows?

Daniel M. · 2026-02-02T18:24:30.931Z

I don't fully understand what happens when a signal runs on a frequency. If we are running a New Hire signal monthly, but the "time window" is set for 3-months, then what happens on rows that we already found from a previous month's run?

What Happens to Overlapping Rows in Signals with Different Time Windows? | Clay

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When you run a New Hire signal monthly with a 3-month time window, the signal checks for all employees hired within the last 3 months at each target company. If a row (company) was already identified in a previous month's run, it will be included again in the current run as long as there are new hires within the 3-month window. The signal does not remove or hide previously identified rows; it simply updates the list to reflect all new hires in the current period, so companies with ongoing new hires will appear in multiple runs. [1] [2] [3]
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Is that what you were looking for?
Daniel M.
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So if in Month 1 we find a new hire, let's call him Jake. Then in month 2 we would find that same person (as the Time Window is 3-months) so do we get a second row for Jake in our table? Or is it updated? Or ignored
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When running a New Hire signal monthly with a 3-month time window, whether a new row is created for previously identified employees like Jake depends on your settings:
If "Update existing rows on re-run" is toggled off, each recurring run creates a new row for every result, including those already found in previous runs. This means Jake would appear as a new row each month if he is still within the 3-month window [1], [2].
If "Update existing rows on re-run" is toggled on, the system updates the existing row instead of creating a new one for each run [3].
So, the behavior is determined by this toggle: new rows for each run, or updating existing rows.
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If you need any more help understanding how the signal runs and updates work, I’m here to assist. Would you like to provide more details about what you’re trying to achieve with your signal runs?
Daniel M.
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This only appears to be valid for Custom Signals. I'm using the New Hire signal?
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The "Update existing rows on re-run" setting does not apply to the New Hire signal. This setting is specific to custom signals and scheduled enrichments, not to the built-in New Hire signal. When you run the New Hire signal monthly with a 3-month time window, it checks for all new hires within the last 3 months at each company. If a company already has a row from a previous run, the signal will include it again if there are new hires within the window, but it does not update or create new rows for individual employees—rows are based on companies, not individuals. [1] [2] [3]
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Daniel M.
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that is wrong, rows are based on people not companies
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The New Hire signal creates new rows for the same person in each run if they are still within the 3-month window because it is designed to track all recent hires based on your filters and frequency, and does not use the "Update existing rows on re-run" setting; each run simply adds all qualifying new hires as new rows regardless of previous results. [1] [2] [3]
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Does this clarify things?
Daniel M.
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Clay S. can you confirm the behavior? I don't think the AI is right in this case?
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The New Hire signal creates a new row for each person who is hired within the last 3 months at your target companies, regardless of whether they were previously identified in a prior run. If the same person is still within the 3-month window, they will appear as a new row in each run—there is no updating of existing rows for individuals; each run adds all qualifying new hires as new rows. [1] [2] [3]
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