How to hire a competitive intelligence analyst

How to hire a competitive intelligence analyst, step by step

Here's a step-by-step competitive intelligence analyst hiring guide:

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

What does a competitive intelligence analyst do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the competitive intelligence analyst you need to hire. Certain competitive intelligence analyst 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 competitive intelligence analyst's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, competitive intelligence analysts 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 competitive intelligence analyst salaries for various positions.

   Type of Competitive Intelligence Analyst	Description	Hourly rate
   Competitive Intelligence Analyst	Police officers protect lives and property. Detectives and criminal investigators, who are sometimes called agents or special agents, gather facts and collect evidence of possible crimes.	$24-46
   Analyst	Analysts are employees or individual contributors with a vast experience in a particular field that help the organization address challenges. They help the organization improve processes, policies, and other operations protocol by studying the current processes in place and determining the effectiveness of those processes... Show more	$25-47
   Military Analyst	Military analysts are military professionals who work in the government or the armed forces to gather military information and make suggestions for an efficient course of action based on their findings. These analysts are required to keep detailed records while communicating information to multiple parties at once... Show more	$28-63

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Pricing Strategy
   • Market Research
   • PowerPoint
   • Market Intelligence
   • Competitive Landscape
   • Tableau
   • Market Trends
   • Competitive Insights
   • Competitive Research
   • Business Development
   • Product Management
   • Strong Analytical
   • Competitor Analysis
   • Swot Analysis

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Generate leads for firm's litigation practice.
   • Communicate with higher level echelons to distribute and manage non-organic ISR assets.
   • Assist docket clerk in preparation of litigation calendar.
   • Devise information requirements for field agents and interrogators to support HUMINT operations.
   • Conduct HUMINT source evaluations making recommendations for termination or retention to unit commanders.
   • Isolate problematic signals and implement database solutions to automate digital SIGINT processing system to improve signal formation and output.

   More competitive intelligence analyst duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the competitive intelligence analyst job description is a good way to get more applicants. A competitive intelligence analyst 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 competitive intelligence analyst in Alabama may be lower than in California, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level competitive intelligence analyst. Additionally, a competitive intelligence analyst with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average competitive intelligence analyst salary

   $70,693yearly

   $33.99 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level competitive intelligence analyst salary

   $51,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 20, 2026

   Average competitive intelligence analyst salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$103,427	$50
   2	District of Columbia	$83,781	$40
   3	New Jersey	$77,403	$37
   4	Virginia	$75,373	$36
   5	Oregon	$74,656	$36
   6	Massachusetts	$74,063	$36
   7	Connecticut	$73,944	$36
   8	New York	$73,715	$35
   9	Illinois	$73,044	$35
   10	Washington	$71,140	$34
   11	Colorado	$69,259	$33
   12	Rhode Island	$69,199	$33
   13	Nevada	$69,095	$33
   14	Michigan	$68,497	$33
   15	Pennsylvania	$67,484	$32
   16	Texas	$67,094	$32
   17	Minnesota	$66,554	$32
   18	Iowa	$64,664	$31
   19	New Hampshire	$64,039	$31
   20	Utah	$63,447	$31

   Average competitive intelligence analyst salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Xoom	$118,127	$56.79
   2	Fortune International Group	$107,737	$51.80
   3	General Motors	$103,862	$49.93	7
   4	Bristol-Myers Squibb	$102,724	$49.39
   5	Kronos Incorporated	$99,875	$48.02
   6	QuintilesIMS	$97,537	$46.89
   7	Vertex Pharmaceuticals	$93,339	$44.87
   8	Northwestern Mutual	$93,245	$44.83
   9	Corning Incorporated	$92,980	$44.70	4
   10	Compass Lexecon	$91,875	$44.17
   11	NRG Energy	$91,800	$44.13
   12	Motorola Solutions	$89,175	$42.87
   13	Lenovo	$89,055	$42.81	2
   14	Cigna	$88,213	$42.41
   15	IBM	$87,959	$42.29
   16	Sandia National Labs	$87,062	$41.86
   17	Yes Virginia	$86,604	$41.64
   18	Elbit Systems of America	$85,790	$41.25
   19	Kimberly-Clark	$84,868	$40.80
   20	McKesson	$84,820	$40.78	3

4. Writing a competitive intelligence analyst job description

   A competitive intelligence analyst 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. To help get you started, here's an example of a competitive intelligence analyst job description:

   Competitive intelligence analyst job description example

   We Believe in Better!
   We are a global information technology company that builds high-performance, security-centric solutions that can help change the world. Enhancing people's lives through secure, reliable advanced technology is our vision.
   At Unisys, we believe in better! Here, you have the opportunity to learn new skills, apply your expertise, and solve complex problems with cutting edge technologies and solutions. You are part of a global diverse team that supports you, drives change, and delivers successful results consistently.
   
   Our associates are at the forefront of everything we do, driving our clients' successes while giving back to communities and making this world a safer and more secure place to live and work. Our success is a direct result of the work of our people who live and breathe our Core Beliefs. Simply put, we believe in better lives. Join us!
   
   Learn more about Unisys and our key solution offerings: Unisys, Stealth™, CloudForte , InteliServe™
   
   What success looks like in this role:
   
   Our Marketing and Communications team is looking for a dynamic, curious and data-driven professional to join our Market & Competitive Intelligence team. Reporting to the Director, Market & Competitive Intelligence, this role will leverage various market and competitive resources to develop competitive intelligence reports, strategic account plans, and prospective client insights. This role will also work with pursuit teams on large and complex IT Services deals. Responsibilities include:
   Works closely with Market & Competitive Intelligence Director, Sales Executives, Client Executives, and Bid Teams to provide deal-based market and competitive intelligence and strategic insights to support new logos and opportunities with existing clients.Provides market insights and competitive intelligence both proactively and in response to ad hoc requests, utilizing proven industry tools and data. Develops competitive analysis for our solutions to enable sellers and go-to-market teams with competitors' solution capabilities, analyst ratings, and differentiation.Provides guidance to client account teams on competitor pricing and costing strategy through all phases of the sales cycle. Encourages targeted audiences to consider innovative alternatives that contribute to the company's business strategy.Provides support as required in large and complex bid situations, supporting the overall sales strategy.Provides ongoing reporting on client opportunities and associated results.
   
   You will be successful in this role if you have:
   Bachelor's Degree in data analytics, market research, economics, statistics or related field. Minimum of 1 year of experience in a market and competitive intelligence role, with a solid understanding of business process, technology and finance. Hands-on experience with industry research tools, including D&B Hoovers, Factiva, ISG, and IDC.Experience working with analyst groups like Gartner, Everest Group Research, and Forrester. Proficiency with Microsoft Office tools and SharePoint.Articulate communicator with ability to interact and present to sales teams and clients as required. Ability to read and understand basic financial statements. Fluency in English language.
   
   #LI-TW1

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right competitive intelligence analyst 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 competitive intelligence analysts they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit competitive intelligence analysts 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 competitive intelligence analyst job on Zippia to find and recruit competitive intelligence analyst candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit competitive intelligence analysts, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates 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 competitive intelligence analyst

   Once you've found the competitive intelligence analyst 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.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new competitive intelligence analyst. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

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 competitive intelligence analyst?