How to hire a co-leader

How to hire a co-leader, step by step

Here's a step-by-step co-leader hiring guide:

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

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the co-leader you need to hire. Certain co-leader 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 co-leader's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, co-leaders 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 co-leaders and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Co-Leader	Description	Hourly rate
   Co-Leader	Recreation workers design and lead recreational and leisure activities for groups in volunteer agencies or recreation facilities, such as playgrounds, parks, camps, aquatic centers, and senior centers. They may lead activities such as arts and crafts, dance, sports, adventure programs, music, and camping.	$28-114
   Activities Director	An activities director is responsible for planning engaging events for the participants, considering individual interests and the safety of procedures and resources. Activities directors guide the activity staff on assisting the participants, ensuring that they are comfortable with joining the activities... Show more	$12-35
   Summer Camp Counselor	Summer camps are programs with different themes organized for children or teenagers during the summer months. Summer camp counselors are responsible for the overall supervision of campers and the planning and implementation of the different programs to give children a memorable experience... Show more	$8-17

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Sap Fi
   • CPR
   • Mental Health
   • BI
   • Master Data
   • Business Process
   • QA
   • Group Sessions
   • Group Therapy
   • Profitability Analysis
   • PCA
   • Functional Specifications
   • Social Development
   • FI/CO

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage and provide performance and career counseling regarding leadership, academics and physical training to strength personnel in their professional development.
   • Train in child and infant CPR with a
   • Re-Launch Facebook page and engage members online.
   • Design, prepare and present seminars and webinars using PowerPoint and Exel.
   • Facilitate Facebook group/recruit new members.
   • Provide academic support to a variety of classes, including advance mathematics

   More co-leader duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the co-leader job description is a good way to get more applicants. A co-leader salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a co-leader in Utah may be lower than in Maine, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level co-leader. Additionally, a co-leader with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average co-leader salary

   $120,244yearly

   $57.81 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level co-leader salary

   $60,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 16, 2025

   Average co-leader salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	New York	$131,730	$63
   2	District of Columbia	$110,952	$53
   3	Massachusetts	$109,773	$53
   4	Washington	$109,476	$53
   5	Minnesota	$99,672	$48
   6	Pennsylvania	$99,184	$48
   7	Virginia	$97,763	$47
   8	California	$94,385	$45
   9	North Dakota	$94,037	$45
   10	North Carolina	$87,719	$42
   11	New Jersey	$86,594	$42
   12	Arizona	$82,571	$40
   13	Illinois	$80,710	$39
   14	Missouri	$77,381	$37
   15	Wisconsin	$76,999	$37
   16	Texas	$74,422	$36
   17	Indiana	$66,272	$32
   18	Colorado	$66,047	$32
   19	Georgia	$64,110	$31
   20	Florida	$59,751	$29

   Average co-leader salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Sanofi US	$179,129	$86.12	11
   2	Microsoft	$130,222	$62.61	1
   3	UPMC	$127,183	$61.15
   4	Moffitt Cancer Center	$112,087	$53.89
   5	Intone Networks	$108,566	$52.20
   6	General Dynamics	$101,966	$49.02	3
   7	ABB	$98,046	$47.14
   8	Johnson Controls	$97,874	$47.05
   9	Xcel Energy	$95,150	$45.75	1
   10	Finger Lakes Community Health	$90,615	$43.56
   11	JFrog	$77,471	$37.25
   12	Montessori Academy of Colorado	$51,217	$24.62	2
   13	Americorps	$48,976	$23.55	3
   14	Upbring	$40,844	$19.64
   15	Virginia Commonwealth University	$38,011	$18.27
   16	POWDR	$30,857	$14.84
   17	Lutheran Social Services of Michigan	$30,598	$14.71
   18	St. Louis Community College	$30,052	$14.45
   19	Goddard School	$28,050	$13.49	18
   20	Bowdoin College	$26,391	$12.69	1

4. Writing a co-leader job description

   A co-leader 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 co-leader job description:

   Co-leader job description example

   • Competitive Salary
   • Full-time positions available
   • Comprehensive benefits for full-time faculty members including health, dental and vision insurance and a 401(k) with company match!
   • No weekends and limited evening hours, except occasional faculty meetings or school events that may be in the evening
   • You will get support from your colleagues and directors every step of the way to help develop and grow your teaching skills
   • Your health and safety is our priority! We have protocols more stringent than state requirements to ensure the safety of all our faculty and students
   • Discounted childcare
   • Prioritized focus on your professional development – we’ll even pay for your CDA credential!
   • Plus, we’ll support you in your career path to become a lead teacher and beyond

   Our assistant teachers will work with a lead teacher as part of the teaching team to encourage a positive learning environment for all children within the School. Responsibilities include the following:

   • Establishing and maintaining a safe, healthy and nurturing learning environment
   • Supporting each child’s social and emotional development
   • Establishing positive and effective family relations
   • Working with the lead teacher and in conjunction with the entire faculty

   
   Requirements:

   • CDA credential, Associate or Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood Education or related field (you can be enrolled in a program).
   • Meets background check eligibility
   • Develops relationships and communicates effectively with children, parents and faculty members.
   • Works productively without supervision within established organizational policies and procedures.
   • Is highly motivated and takes direction well with excellent interpersonal and communications skills.

   What's it like to be a teacher at our School?

   • Feel comfortable and safe working in our clean, state of the art facilities with strict health and safety guidelines.
   • Feel a sense of accomplishment as you hear the laughter and experience the wonder of children participating in activities you planned.
   • Engage with other early childhood professionals and continue to grow in your profession.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find co-leaders for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

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

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with co-leader candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete 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 co-leader

   Once you've found the co-leader 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 also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new co-leader. 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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