How to hire an engagement director

How to hire an engagement director, step by step

Here's a step-by-step engagement director hiring guide:

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

What does an engagement director do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your engagement director job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find an engagement director for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

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   Hiring the perfect engagement director 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.

   The following list breaks down different types of engagement directors and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Engagement Director	Description	Hourly rate
   Engagement Director	Advertising, promotions, and marketing managers plan programs to generate interest in products or services. They work with art directors, sales agents, and financial staff members.	$36-78
   Partner	A business partner is responsible for providing strategies and recommendations on how the business will operate, increasing its revenues while sharing profits. Business partners must have extensive knowledge of how the current market industry works to identify the best decisions for the business... Show more	$14-87
   Product Manager	A product manager is responsible for ensuring product development, providing the best marketing strategies, and effectively handling the sales and marketing team. Product managers' duties include monitoring the market trends and conditions, identifying business opportunities and plan initiatives, and collaborating the product launch process with the appropriate departments... Show more	$38-73

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Healthcare
   • Project Management
   • Digital Marketing
   • Customer Service
   • CRM
   • Digital Transformation
   • Community Engagement
   • Direct Reports
   • Client Relationships
   • Infrastructure
   • Client Facing
   • Alumni
   • Twitter
   • Cloud

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage the facility web site and Facebook page.
   • Lead team in rebranding from TransitCenter to WageWorks after being acquire.
   • Lead effort to redesign cdc.gov by implementing new user interface, content management system and technical architecture.
   • Lead company through comprehensive rebranding initiative and complete overhaul of sales collateral, booth graphics and corporate website.
   • Establish an active alumni association and regional advisory council to manage affinity benefits, plan events, and coordinate giving opportunities.
   • Create CRM strategy to align with marketing campaigns and patient communications.

   More engagement director duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your engagement director job description helps attract top candidates to the position. An engagement director 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 an engagement director in Missouri may be lower than in Rhode Island, and an entry-level engagement director usually earns less than a senior-level engagement director. Additionally, an engagement director 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 engagement director salary

   $111,426yearly

   $53.57 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level engagement director salary

   $75,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 16, 2026

   Average engagement director salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$122,900	$59
   2	Michigan	$122,670	$59
   3	Virginia	$122,583	$59
   4	Georgia	$118,838	$57
   5	District of Columbia	$118,108	$57
   6	New York	$118,029	$57
   7	Illinois	$116,827	$56
   8	New Jersey	$116,684	$56
   9	Texas	$111,909	$54
   10	Massachusetts	$111,678	$54
   11	North Dakota	$106,768	$51
   12	Maryland	$105,177	$51
   13	North Carolina	$102,029	$49
   14	Minnesota	$100,010	$48
   15	Oregon	$99,614	$48
   16	Florida	$99,530	$48
   17	Washington	$97,786	$47
   18	Delaware	$96,890	$47
   19	Arkansas	$96,384	$46
   20	Pennsylvania	$95,375	$46

   Average engagement director salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Credit Karma	$182,042	$87.52	3
   2	Salem Academy Christian Schools	$167,443	$80.50
   3	NVIDIA	$166,639	$80.11	6
   4	Bain & Company	$164,377	$79.03	4
   5	Meta	$163,132	$78.43	74
   6	PayPal	$160,385	$77.11	36
   7	StubHub	$155,922	$74.96	2
   8	First Republic Bank	$153,318	$73.71
   9	Citi	$152,650	$73.39	5
   10	Capgemini	$152,224	$73.18	35
   11	DoorDash	$150,748	$72.47	5
   12	Bloomberg	$149,849	$72.04
   13	Instacart	$148,726	$71.50
   14	Dermalogica	$147,513	$70.92	2
   15	Scribd	$147,065	$70.70	1
   16	AstraZeneca	$145,879	$70.13	22
   17	Sharecare	$145,871	$70.13	54
   18	Boehringer Ingelheim	$143,439	$68.96	21
   19	Royal Bank of Canada	$142,910	$68.71
   20	Wpp Us Holdings Inc	$142,464	$68.49	16

4. Writing an engagement director job description

   An engagement director 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 an engagement director job description:

   Engagement director job description example

   For over 20 years, Meridian has partnered with pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to research new drugs, medical devices, and diagnostics to help improve lives. The level of service, quality, and integrity we provide makes Meridian unique, but our reputation is great because of our people. Clinical research is tremendously challenging, yet it is incredibly rewarding. We value our employees for being all in, owning it, their teamwork, and sharing it. If you're searching for a career with purpose, integrity, and opportunity, then we want to hear from you!
   Director, Patient Engagement and Recruitment Center
   The director of a Meridian Patient Engagement and Recruitment Center (call center) is responsible for planning and executing the call center operations. Core duties include management and leadership of processes for the continuous improvement of the company's recruitment department. Tactical emphasis is on patient customer service and scheduling, quality management, workforce planning, recruiting, coaching, and training.
   
   Responsibilities
   Lead, manage and hold accountable all call center employees
   · Provide strong, dynamic leadership that mentors, develops, and guides team members to efficiently leverage the value of customer service calls, appointment scheduling, and handling of medical records.
   · Continuously engage in leading and inspiring the recruitment team and developing and documenting best practices in the performances of all duties and responsibilities.
   Create and implement recruitment tools
   · Develop and maintain effective call center quality assurance, fostering continuous improvement and exceeding sponsor and organizational expectations.
   · Manage metrics, ensuring sponsor and patient satisfaction.
   · Ensure compliance with regulatory agency guidelines and standards.
   · Provide high quality services while meeting contracted goals, improving call performance and the adaptation of new proven technologies to increase efficiency.
   Drive enrollment and retention
   · Develop and maintain effective organization of responsibility, including efficient recruiting, training, coaching, recognition, workflow patterns, performance standards, delegation of duties and responsibilities, staffing levels, and supervision.
   
   RequirementsHigh school diploma or equivalent. Bachelor's degree preferred.Excellent oral and written communication skills.Demonstrate ability to work well independently and with subordinates.Demonstrate ability to manage frequent deadlines and competing priorities.Computer proficiency.Regular and punctual attendance.Perform other duties as assigned. Embrace Meridian's core values: “All In, Own It, Teamwork, Share It”
   Travel RequirementsOccasional travel may be required in this position (up to 1 month per year)
   Physical RequirementsProlonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer.Must be able to lift 15 pounds at times.Picking, pinching, typing or otherwise working, primarily with fingers rather than with whole hand or arm as in handling.Talking: Expressing or exchanging ideas by means of the spoken word; those activities where detailed or important spoken instructions must be conveyed to other workers accurately, loudly, or quickly.Hearing: Perceiving the nature of sounds at normal speaking levels with or without correction, and having the ability to receive detailed information through oral communication, and making fine discriminations in sound.The worker is required to have close visual acuity to perform an activity such as: preparing and analyzing data and figures; transcribing; viewing a computer terminal; extensive reading; visual inspection involving small defects, small parts, and/or operation of machines (including inspection); using measurement devices; and/or assembly or fabrication of parts at distances close to the eyes.
   Meridian not only strives to move science forward and improve the lives of others, but we focus on improving the lives of our people by offering a competitive benefits package to all full-time employees. Meridian's benefits package includes eligibility for medical insurance, dental insurance, vision insurance, 401k with company match, seven paid holidays, paid time off, student loan reimbursement program, complimentary life insurance, disability insurance and so much more!

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find engagement directors 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 engagement director job on Zippia to find and attract quality engagement director candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as swipe files, exit five, marketinghire, american marketing association.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit engagement directors, 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.

   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 engagement director

   Once you've selected the best engagement director candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   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.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new engagement director. 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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