How to hire a design manager

How to hire a design manager, step by step

Here's a step-by-step design 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 design manager job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new design manager
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a design manager do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

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

   Type of Design Manager	Description	Hourly rate
   Design Manager	Architectural and engineering managers plan, direct, and coordinate activities in architectural and engineering companies.	$33-72
   Engineering Supervisor	An engineering supervisor is responsible for monitoring the engineering operations of an organization, developing strategic processes and techniques to improve staff's performance, and facilitating training and programs to maximize productivity. Engineering supervisors evaluate technology procedures and reports to identify and design new opportunities that would generate more resources for revenues and profits... Show more	$34-62
   Engineering Director	An engineering director or director of engineering is a professional who manages a team of engineering managers and coordinates all the engineering activities within the organization. Engineering directors work closely with the organization's executives to develop new strategies to reduce unnecessary costs and time to complete their projects... Show more	$52-114

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Sketch
   • Project Management
   • Visualization
   • User Experience
   • PowerPoint
   • Design Process
   • Revit
   • Customer Service
   • Design Concepts
   • Design Development
   • Product Development
   • Product Design
   • Graphic Design
   • UI

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Help achieve status of medical device manufacturer through the FDA.
   • Manage several consultants preparing contract documents on the various NYC let and NYS let projects.
   • Manage and collaborate with ASIC library/memory vendors.
   • Manage design, tooling, equipment implementations and process improvements for foundry/machining metalworking manufacturer of automotive OEM products.
   • Design blueprints, bills of materials, FEA as required.
   • Include producing FDA and ISO-9000 level documentation of the project.

   More design manager duties

3. Make a budget

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

   Average design manager salary

   $102,637yearly

   $49.34 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level design manager salary

   $69,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 14, 2025

   Average design manager salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$138,165	$66
   2	Arizona	$118,552	$57
   3	Washington	$117,742	$57
   4	Texas	$107,420	$52
   5	Oregon	$106,734	$51
   6	District of Columbia	$105,986	$51
   7	Massachusetts	$104,718	$50
   8	New Jersey	$104,271	$50
   9	Pennsylvania	$101,726	$49
   10	New York	$98,789	$47
   11	Maryland	$95,903	$46
   12	Wisconsin	$95,875	$46
   13	Illinois	$95,435	$46
   14	Virginia	$94,463	$45
   15	Ohio	$94,034	$45
   16	North Carolina	$93,239	$45
   17	South Carolina	$92,055	$44
   18	Alabama	$91,519	$44
   19	Georgia	$89,901	$43
   20	Minnesota	$89,831	$43

   Average design manager salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Meta	$200,744	$96.51	831
   2	Airbnb	$193,103	$92.84	2
   3	Google	$192,726	$92.66	90
   4	NVIDIA	$192,294	$92.45	59
   5	Apple	$182,598	$87.79	519
   6	eBay	$175,988	$84.61	1
   7	Stitch Fix	$174,495	$83.89
   8	Citi	$173,582	$83.45	1
   9	Atlassian	$171,737	$82.57	9
   10	SoFi	$167,017	$80.30	6
   11	Microsoft	$163,330	$78.52	58
   12	Koch Industries	$162,247	$78.00
   13	Zoox	$161,339	$77.57	14
   14	Okta	$159,177	$76.53	2
   15	Rivian	$157,781	$75.86	24
   16	Xilinx	$156,967	$75.46
   17	KLA	$156,371	$75.18	41
   18	Wellington Management	$156,196	$75.09
   19	Texas Instruments	$155,597	$74.81	32
   20	Payscale	$155,361	$74.69

4. Writing a design manager job description

   A design 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. Below, you can find an example of a design manager job description:

   Design manager job description example

   Job SummaryManages and coaches a team that delivers high quality design projects. Oversees the development and production of print and digital deliverables, including providing creative direction and guidance to ensure all design executions meet strategic and financial objectives. Major Tasks, Responsibilities, and Key Accountabilities
   
   Oversees the creative production of print and digital advertising, including direct mail, brochures, internal and external flyers, guides, videos, catalogs, emails, websites, and social media.
   
   Partners with marketing and merchandising teams to drive the creative strategy across categories and deliverables.
   
   Approves design concepts, monitors design progress, and assesses and manages risks over project life cycles.
   
   Prioritizes incoming requests, ensures project goals are defined and translated into production tasks, and provides feedback for print and digital marketing collateral.
   
   Creates and manages production processes and systems to drive workflow improvements and efficiencies.
   Presents design concepts and final outputs to senior leadership.
   Nature and Scope Solutions require analysis and investigation. Achieves planned results by decisions and actions based on professional methods, business principles, and practical experience. Manages a group or team of professional individual contributors and/or indirectly supervises support staff.
   Work Environment Located in a comfortable indoor area. Any unpleasant conditions would be infrequent and not objectionable. Most of the time is spent sitting in a comfortable position and there is frequent opportunity to move about. On rare occasions there may be a need to move or lift light articles. Typically requires overnight travel less than 10% of the time.
   Education and Experience Typically requires BS/BA in a related discipline. Generally 7+ years of experience in a related field. May require certification. Advanced degree may offset less experience in some disciplines.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right design manager 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 design manager job on Zippia to find and recruit design manager candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit design managers, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   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 design manager

   Once you have selected a candidate for the design manager 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 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.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is 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 design manager?