How to hire a case planner

How to hire a case planner, step by step

Here's a step-by-step case planner hiring guide:

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

What does a case planner do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your case planner job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a case planner for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

   Yes

   No

   A case planner's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, case planners 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.

   The following list breaks down different types of case planners and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Case Planner	Description	Hourly rate
   Case Planner	Social and human service assistants provide client services, including support for families, in a wide variety of fields, such as psychology, rehabilitation, and social work. They assist other workers, such as social workers, and they help clients find benefits or community services.	$15-27
   Family Support Worker	A family service worker is a social service agent who assesses the needs of family and promotes wellbeing, social justice, and human rights through governmental and social service agencies. Family service workers offer services that can include counseling and mediation to families that will help them navigate the protocols of the social system... Show more	$12-25
   Alcohol And Drug Counselor	A drug alcohol counselor treats addicts in either one-on-one or group settings. They help by educating and developing possible treatment plans for patients to support them in coping with their addictive personalities... Show more	$14-32

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Social Work
   • Foster Care
   • NYC
   • Substance Abuse
   • Crisis Intervention
   • NYS
   • Child Abuse
   • Collateral Contacts
   • Community Resources
   • Address Safety
   • Permanency Planning
   • Support Services
   • Domestic Violence
   • Preventive Services

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage a caseload of families with children in DSS custody awaiting return home to family of origin base upon progress make.
   • Keep current on Medicaid rates/services they will reimburse for Medicaid recipients.
   • Sign patients up for all Medicare and Medicaid benefits that are offer to them.
   • Perform concurrent review to assure appropriateness of admission, inpatient/acute care, rehabilitation/SNF status, and discharge using establish InterQual guidelines.
   • Make referrals to home care and/or DME vendors using Medicare/Medicaid criteria/eligibility.

   More case planner duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your case planner job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A case planner can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, case planners' average salary in georgia is 46% less than in district of columbia.
   • Seniority. Entry-level case planners 42% less than senior-level case planners.
   • Certifications. A case planner with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a case planner's salary.

   Average case planner salary

   $43,496yearly

   $20.91 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level case planner salary

   $33,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 21, 2026

   Average case planner salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	New York	$48,471	$23
   2	New York	$48,354	$23
   3	Virginia	$47,977	$23
   4	Pennsylvania	$47,946	$23
   5	New York	$47,288	$23
   6	Nevada	$46,780	$22
   7	New York	$46,590	$22
   8	New York	$46,521	$22
   9	New York	$45,146	$22
   10	New York	$45,138	$22
   11	New York	$44,966	$22
   12	New York	$44,864	$22
   13	New York	$43,779	$21

   Average case planner salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	The New York Foundling	$48,219	$23.18	6
   2	St Johns Residence For Boys Inc	$43,672	$21.00
   3	National Dentex	$43,276	$20.81
   4	Astor Services	$43,108	$20.73	8
   5	Lower Eastside Service Center	$42,409	$20.39
   6	University of Rochester	$41,838	$20.11	2
   7	Leake and Watts Services Inc.	$41,242	$19.83	17
   8	Child and Family Services of NH	$41,090	$19.75
   9	FHI 360	$41,024	$19.72
   10	Fostedale Inc.	$40,737	$19.59	13
   11	Cardinal McCloskey Community Services	$40,707	$19.57	4
   12	The Children's Village	$40,397	$19.42	18
   13	Cayuga Centers	$39,705	$19.09	8
   14	Women's Prison Association	$39,007	$18.75
   15	The Jewish Board	$38,879	$18.69	18
   16	Graham Windham	$38,790	$18.65	24
   17	Good Shepherd Services	$38,740	$18.63	10
   18	HANAC	$37,975	$18.26	11
   19	SCO Family of Services	$37,905	$18.22	9
   20	Sheltering Arms	$37,718	$18.13

4. Writing a case planner job description

   A case planner 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 case planner job description:

   Case planner job description example

   Workweek: 35 Hours

   Job Summary:

   The Family Support Preventive Program provides support for families facing challenges which can impact their ability to parent their children and keep them safe. This program uses the Solution-Based Casework model of practice to assist the families to identify family strengths and normative behaviors that they can use to address challenges.

   The Family Support Case Planner is responsible for working with families who are experiencing circumstances that threaten the safety and well-being of their children. The role of the Family Support Case Planner is to work with families to support, help strengthen and promote healthy growth and development within the family.

   Essential Functions:

   • Visit families in their homes, communities or at the agency as dictated by the family’s circumstance as well as the preventive mandates.
   • Engage the family using the Solution Based Casework Model.
   • Document all case activity in the systems of record – N.Y.S. Connections and N.Y.C. PROMIS
   • Advocate for clients in their effort to secure services, such as public assistance, health insurance and immigration issues.
   • Coordinate and maintain contact with workers at the Administration for Children’s Services
   • Maintain contact with service providers e.g. schools, mental health facilities/therapist, substance abuse and any other services as indicated.
   • Participate in Family Team Conferences, Case Conferences, staff meetings, in-service trainings, and outside trainings for professional development.
   • Assist in emergency situations, as needed.
   • Responsible for ensuring compliance with all agency policies, procedures and governmental regulations.
   • Other duties as required.

   Minimum Requirements:

   • Bachelor or Master’s Degree in Social Work or a related credential from an accredited college or university.
   • At least 1 year of experience in case management, counseling and advocacy services, this may include internship experience.
   • Strong interpersonal, organizational, written, and verbal communication skills
   • Ability to accommodate a flexible work schedule.
   • Bilingual a plus

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right case planner for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your case planner job on Zippia to find and recruit case planner candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting case planners 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. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   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 case planner

   Once you've found the case planner candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new case planner. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

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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How much does it cost to hire a case planner?