How to hire a contract project manager

How to hire a contract project manager, step by step

Here's a step-by-step contract project manager hiring guide:

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

What does a contract project manager do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a contract project manager, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect contract project manager also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   Here's a comparison of contract project manager salaries for various roles:

   Type of Contract Project Manager	Description	Hourly rate
   Contract Project Manager	Construction managers plan, coordinate, budget, and supervise construction projects from start to finish.	$25-59
   Business Analyst/Project Manager	A business analyst/project manager is responsible for developing project management procedures, analyzing processes, and ensuring the accuracy and efficiency of project deliverables, following clients' specifications and requirements to meet their highest satisfaction. Business analysts/project managers manage project resources, delegate tasks to project staff, setting deadlines, and coordinating with the clients for regular updates and suggest strategic adjustments as needed... Show more	$34-65
   Project Manager/Team Lead	Project Managers are responsible for managing and overseeing the operations of a project from inception to completion. Their duties include defining project scope, developing a project plan, creating work breakdown structures to distribute resources, and communicating responsibilities to all project team members and vendors... Show more	$39-66

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Project Management
   • Project Scope
   • Contract Project
   • HR
   • Infrastructure
   • Project Budget
   • Status Reports
   • Risk Management
   • Business Process
   • HVAC
   • Construction Projects
   • Change Order Management
   • Management System
   • Project Documentation

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage weekly CMS build outs from feature prioritization through implementation including test cases and training documentation.
   • Manage RFI's, field directives, construction changes, payments, and billing associate with project.
   • Manage the day to day duties of the turn-key/design build/plan and specification and retrofit-installation of the HVAC contracting department.
   • Manage, monitors and measures project portfolio status, recommending corrective action as necessary and communicate portfolio status to their management.
   • Install hundreds of replacement windows and doors.
   • Install windows, doors, and hardware for commercial and residential projects.

   More contract project manager duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your contract project manager job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A contract project manager salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for a contract project manager in Florida may be lower than in Massachusetts, and an entry-level contract project manager usually earns less than a senior-level contract project manager. Additionally, a contract project manager with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average contract project manager salary

   $81,263yearly

   $39.07 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level contract project manager salary

   $53,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 15, 2025

   Average contract project manager salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$109,138	$52
   2	Massachusetts	$104,994	$50
   3	Washington	$100,844	$48
   4	New York	$97,438	$47
   5	Oregon	$97,357	$47
   6	New Jersey	$93,784	$45
   7	Illinois	$92,273	$44
   8	Maryland	$89,323	$43
   9	Wisconsin	$88,875	$43
   10	Pennsylvania	$87,704	$42
   11	Arizona	$85,993	$41
   12	Colorado	$83,025	$40
   13	Nevada	$83,017	$40
   14	Ohio	$82,255	$40
   15	North Carolina	$78,322	$38
   16	Minnesota	$78,166	$38
   17	District of Columbia	$76,092	$37
   18	Georgia	$73,735	$35
   19	Texas	$72,854	$35
   20	Florida	$64,908	$31

   Average contract project manager salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	PRO Unlimited	$132,120	$63.52
   2	Intel	$114,035	$54.82	12
   3	Westward360	$111,697	$53.70	1
   4	Shaw Industries	$100,674	$48.40	5
   5	Avanade	$100,113	$48.13
   6	Sanofi US	$97,483	$46.87	39
   7	Veolia Water Tech	$94,380	$45.38	17
   8	King County	$93,298	$44.85	3
   9	Water Town Usa	$91,624	$44.05
   10	General Electric	$90,425	$43.47	35
   11	AutoNation	$90,096	$43.32
   12	Randstad North America, Inc.	$89,955	$43.25	8
   13	Crowder	$89,592	$43.07	5
   14	Granite Telecommunications	$88,804	$42.69	7
   15	GPAC	$86,664	$41.67
   16	The Building People	$86,478	$41.58	15
   17	Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical	$86,234	$41.46
   18	Trane	$86,081	$41.39	29
   19	Veolia Environmental Services North America	$85,469	$41.09	12
   20	Turner & Townsend	$84,559	$40.65	325

4. Writing a contract project manager job description

   A contract project manager 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 contract project manager job description:

   Contract project manager job description example

   Open Systems International, Inc. (OSI), An AspenTech Business, is a fast-paced, growing, high technology company, headquartered in Medina, Minnesota. As a world leader in the Operations Technology (OT) field, OSI develops and supplies state-of-the-art energy management, optimization and control software solutions to energy utility companies worldwide.
   The Role
   The Project Manager, Large Proposals and Contracts will be responsible for planning, budgeting, and project execution of bids, contracts, and design discovery events for OSI's solutions (software, hardware, implementation services.) projects with medium to large scale potential customers. The Design and Discovery projects are services only projects where OSI would be consulting on the design and requirements for a future OSI system. These key projects define the full statement of work for multi-year, multi-million-dollar contracts and ensure both the customer and OSI are aligned on the system design and implementation scope. This role will also be central in facilitating the mutually agreed upon contract documents by working with both internal legal/commercial managers and customer legal teams to finalize contract agreements.
   
   Your Impact
   Develop and oversee the development of project approaches and completion schedules Execute the project schedule via meeting facilitation and replanning as changes are discovered Communicate customer requirements to internal stakeholders Identify and coordinate a division of work across key OSI departments - to include software development, solutions architects, product management, legal, finance, sales management, and project implementation. Manage and determine budget, timelines, priorities, and resources for the project Participate in sales demos and customer meetings Proactively establish mitigation plans and manage project risks and issues Report progress to Senior Leadership Prepare and manage customer correspondence and communications
   
   What You'll Need
   
   Minimum
   Bachelor's degree and at least 5 years of project management experience required. Experience managing complex, large-scale projects that coordinate a multi-functional group Experience with highly technical and complex projects
   
   Preferred
   Experience with Jira and Microsoft Office Suite of products, including Microsoft Project Electric utility industry and/or automation/SCADA project experience International project management and solid understanding of international cultures and business transactions
   
   Soft Skills Required
   Ability to prioritize and manage several projects simultaneously while keeping tasks organized and on track Strong organizational and time management skills Business leadership, coaching and mentoring skills Excellent communication skills when interacting with both internal teams and customers

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find contract project managers 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 contract project manager job on Zippia to find and recruit contract project manager candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting contract project managers 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.

   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 contract project manager

   Once you've decided on a perfect contract project manager candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your agreement with a contract.

   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.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new contract project manager. 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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