How to hire a director of social work

How to hire a director of social work, step by step

Here's a step-by-step director of social work hiring guide:

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

What does a director of social work do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the director of social work you need to hire. Certain director of social work 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 director of social work's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, directors of social work 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.

   Here's a comparison of director of social work salaries for various roles:

   Type of Director Of Social Work	Description	Hourly rate
   Director Of Social Work	Social and community service managers coordinate and supervise social service programs and community organizations. They manage staff who provide social services to the public.	$21-45
   Student Manager	Student managers are executives who assist in coaching staff with practice management and games. They are employed to ensure the efficient and safe operation of the organizations... Show more	$17-33
   House Manager	A household manager is someone who manages a household completely. Household managers have various duties and may manage staff depending on the size of a household... Show more	$13-22

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Social Work
   • Patients
   • Rehabilitation
   • Discharge Planning
   • MSW
   • Patient Care
   • Crisis Intervention
   • Community Resources
   • LTC
   • Community Outreach
   • MDS
   • Psycho-Social Assessments
   • Home Health
   • Admission Paperwork

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage projects and ambulatory system initiatives, and collaborate with system leadership teams to ensure EMR alignment with all regulatory requirements.
   • Discharge planning to home, acute rehabilitation hospitals and diagnosis specific residential facilities.
   • Work on the sub-acute rehabilitation unit and coordinating discharge planning in a fast pace environment.
   • Maintain update knowledge of current regulations governing Medicare/ Medicaid and private insurance company reimbursement processes.
   • Prepared/Conduct evaluations of individuals job performance and skills as they relate to patients, coworkers and customers.
   • Participate in discharge and aftercare planning for patients and aids patients in seeking therapeutic resources for follow-up in their community environment.

   More director of social work duties

3. Make a budget

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

   Average director of social work salary

   $65,174yearly

   $31.33 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level director of social work salary

   $45,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 15, 2025

   Average director of social work salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$87,725	$42
   2	New Jersey	$81,935	$39
   3	New York	$79,594	$38
   4	Virginia	$75,839	$36
   5	Florida	$72,956	$35
   6	Texas	$72,066	$35
   7	Arizona	$67,483	$32
   8	Washington	$67,120	$32
   9	Connecticut	$64,754	$31
   10	Maryland	$61,969	$30
   11	Nevada	$60,259	$29
   12	Delaware	$59,887	$29
   13	Tennessee	$59,037	$28
   14	Colorado	$57,725	$28
   15	South Carolina	$53,685	$26
   16	Montana	$53,016	$25

   Average director of social work salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Stanford Health Care	$104,948	$50.46	4
   2	New York University	$90,870	$43.69	3
   3	Maria Regna Residence	$85,630	$41.17
   4	Northwell Health	$82,453	$39.64	50
   5	Schuyler Hospital	$79,906	$38.42
   6	ProMedica Toledo Hospital	$78,100	$37.55	6
   7	The Brooklyn Hospital Center	$77,098	$37.07
   8	Geisinger Medical Center	$76,764	$36.91	22
   9	Bridgeport Hospital	$76,003	$36.54
   10	Mount Sinai Health System	$75,218	$36.16	27
   11	HCR ManorCare	$69,220	$33.28	7
   12	Central State University	$67,811	$32.60
   13	Beacon Health Options	$66,745	$32.09	3
   14	Oswego Health	$61,855	$29.74
   15	FutureCare Health	$61,754	$29.69	9
   16	Brattleboro Memorial Hospital	$61,343	$29.49
   17	New York Edge Music	$60,935	$29.30
   18	University of Tennessee	$60,887	$29.27	7
   19	Nexion Health	$60,884	$29.27	5
   20	Randstad North America, Inc.	$57,890	$27.83

4. Writing a director of social work job description

   A job description for a director of social work role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a director of social work job description:

   Director of social work job description example

   At FutureCare, our Director of Social Work play a critical role in advocating for our residents and improve access to health care services provided within our FutureCare facilities. They provide support through crisis intervention and promote good health and wellbeing for our residents. We provide Clinical Supervision to ensure that FutureCare standards and quality are delivered at the highest level of competency.
   
   Voted 10 years in a row in The Baltimore Sun as a "Top Workplace" and recognized in US Newsweek's publication as "Best Nursing Home", FutureCare stands out as a leader in managing health care across a continuum of care. We embrace cultural diversity within our facilities and are known for recognizing hard work and dedication. Our team members are rewarded for their compassion and care. We offer a competitive Salary, Excellent Benefits Package, Tuition Reimbursement, Employee Assistance, and a 401K Plan.
   * $5,000 Sign-On Bonus, plus Flexible Schedule Options!*
   
   Responsibilities
   
   * Coordinates and supervises medically related social services provided by the facility's staff to assist residents in maintaining or improving their ability to manage their everyday physical, mental, and psychosocial needs
   * Supervises programs designated to the Social Work Department
   * Participates in daily meetings with the interdisciplinary team
   * Assists in meeting the psychosocial needs of residents, their families, and significant others as necessary in coping with the effects of illness, disability, treatments and stay in the facility
   * Addresses advance directives and assists in the determination of the appropriate medical decision maker
   * Provides individual, family and group services designed to maximize psychosocial well-being
   * Promotes actions by staff members that maintain or enhance each resident's rights and dignity in full recognition of each resident's individuality
   * Assists in the development of an interdisciplinary plan of care for residents
   * Provides support and grief counseling as indicated.
   * Oversees and coordinates the process of discharge planning to all other settings
   
   Qualifications
   
   * Must have either a bachelor's degree (required) and/or master's degree (highly preferred) in Social Work
   * Must possess a current valid Maryland Social Work license
   * Experience in a skilled nursing or sub-acute health care setting is preferred
   * Management experience in an interdisciplinary setting is preferred
   * The ability to lead and develop the department and its staff members
   * The ability to function as a member of an interdisciplinary team
   * Excellent interpersonal skills to appropriately relate to residents, their families, and community agency personnel
   * Ability to prioritize and organize tasks to meet deadlines and proven ability handling distractions well
   * Ability to navigate and provide detailed documentation in an electronic health record system

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right director of social work 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 director of social work job on Zippia to find and recruit director of social work 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 directors of social work, 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 to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you 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 director of social work

   Once you have selected a candidate for the director of social work 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.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new director of social work. 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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