How to hire a career development director

How to hire a career development director, step by step

Here's a step-by-step career development director hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a career development director job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new career development director
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the career development director you need to hire. Certain career development director roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A career development director's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, career development directors from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list presents career development director salaries for various positions.

   Type of Career Development Director	Description	Hourly rate
   Career Development Director	Postsecondary education administrators oversee student services, academics, and faculty research at colleges and universities. Their job duties vary depending on the area of the college they manage, such as admissions, student life, or the office of the registrar.	$24-49
   Admissions Officer	An admissions officer is responsible for recruiting new students from various venues and channels. You will connect with students and answer their questions about the college or university, and conduct interviews to better understand the students' objectives and background... Show more	$9-26
   Registrar	A registrar's role is to process and maintain accurate records within an institution or establishment. They are the main point of communication to obtain various kinds of information... Show more	$13-26

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Alumni
   • Career Services
   • Professional Development
   • Colleges
   • External Stakeholders
   • Employment Trends
   • Career Planning
   • Career Exploration
   • Career Development
   • Educational Programs
   • Strategic Plan
   • Advisory Boards
   • DOL
   • Human Resources

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Hire, manage and train a team of six sourcing professionals as well as a team of 3 QA managers.
   • Resolve financial issues relate to charitable contributions, provide program budgets, process payroll, and oversight management of operating accounts.
   • Partner with business leadership to develop cutting edge technology to distribute and service insurance products direct to consumers.

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your career development director job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A career development director salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, career development directors' average salary in oklahoma is 39% less than in connecticut.
   • Seniority. Entry-level career development directors earn 51% less than senior-level career development directors.
   • Certifications. A career development director with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a career development director's salary.

   Average career development director salary

   $71,969yearly

   $34.60 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level career development director salary

   $50,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 14, 2025

4. Writing a career development director job description

   A career development director job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a career development director job description:

   Career development director job description example

   The Director of Nurse Retention and Career Development will drive the retention of a multigenerational workforce according to their unique personal and professional development preferences. This role will use evidence-based strategies to operationalize a focused nurse retention program with measurable improvements. The focused retention program will have longevity and with adaptation assist organizations to manage all environmental challenges the organization may face.
   
   Responsible for development and implementation of innovative and evidenced-based nurse retention strategies.
   Establishes short- and long-term goals and objectives for nursing retention.
   Maintains regular communication with newly hired nurses to validate and/or improve their commitment to and satisfaction with their jobs.
   Partners with newly hired nurses to design and implement their professional development plan.
   Serves as resource and mentor to nurses new to the hospital/healthcare system and resident nurses in the nurse residency program.
   Manages the RN Summer Nurse Intern Program and other clinical scholar programs that improve the pipeline for hospital/healthcare system.
   Designs, promotes, and operationalizes nursing advancement opportunities within the hospital/healthcare system.
   Prioritizes nursing recognition. Demonstrates vigilance in knowledge, promotion, and application for nursing awards and recognition internally and externally to the organization.
   Serves as a member of the nurse executive group and engages in proactive, data driven actions designed to stabilize and expand the nursing workforce.
   Serves as a support for recruitment events both internally and externally as appropriate.
   Collaborates with Director of Marketing and Communication to highlight, both internally and externally, nursing achievements and events.
   Partners with the Director of Talent Acquisition to ensure all nursing retention strategies are communicated as part of the recruitment process.
   
   Competencies
   
   Values nursing as a profession
   Demonstrates knowledge and experience in using best practices, research, and strategies to drive nurse retention
   Communicates effectively with key stakeholders both verbally and written
   Demonstrates passion and energy for the profession of nursing
   Prioritizes tasks and uses strong time management skills to drive improvements
   
   Inter-Personal Traits
   
   Strong interpersonal skills, ability to communicate and manage well at all levels of the organization and with staff at remote locations essential.
   Strong problem solving and creative skills, and the ability to exercise sound judgment and make decisions based on accurate and timely analyses.
   High level of integrity and dependability with a strong sense of urgency and results-orientation.
   Action-oriented, entrepreneurial, flexible, and innovative approach to management.
   A savvy leader with proven team building skills.
   Proven written and verbal communication skills with demonstrated leadership ability.
   Capable of developing and motivating people.
   Possess personal qualities of integrity, credibility, and commitment to organization and client's mission.
   
   Requirements:
   
   Bachelor of Science in Nursing
   Master's degree in Nursing, Business, or related field strongly preferred
   Four (4) years of nursing experience with a minimum of two (2) years in a leadership role in an acute care hospital
   Current licensure to practice Practical Nursing in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
   Basic Cardiac Life Support Certification
   Nursing leadership certification strongly preferred
   
   Location: Crozer Health · 8610- Hospital Administration
   Schedule: FR =Full-time Regular, 1 =Day Shift, varied

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right career development director for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with career development directors they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit career development directors who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your career development director job on Zippia to find and attract quality career development director candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as k12jobspot, learn4good, serious teachers, teachingjobs.com.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting career development directors requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new career development director

   Once you have selected a candidate for the career development director position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new career development director first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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