How to hire a field director

How to hire a field director, step by step

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

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

What does a field director do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

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

   Type of Field Director	Description	Hourly rate
   Field Director	Sales managers direct organizations' sales teams. They set sales goals, analyze data, and develop training programs for organizations’ sales representatives.	$22-59
   Account Manager	Account managers are employees who act as the bridge between the company they represent and the client of the company. They are assigned to handle specific clients so that the company will be able to tailor-fit any product or service according to the clients' requirements... Show more	$20-52
   Campaign Manager	Campaign managers are responsible for developing, executing, and managing marketing campaigns for events, products, and services targeting consumers or organizations. These professionals typically collaborate with external agencies in the preparation and execution of campaigns... Show more	$26-52

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Community Outreach
   • Data Collection
   • Direct Reports
   • Volunteer Recruitment
   • Event Planning
   • Facebook
   • Twitter
   • Local Events
   • Field Supervision
   • Data Analysis
   • Strategic Plan
   • Campaign Events
   • Phone Bank
   • Community Events

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage online and mobile advertising campaigns in DoubleClick DFP ad server across all CBSI own platforms.
   • Manage monthly PPC budgets efficiently and accurately.
   • Manage logistics and implementation of an experiential marketing campaign in a mall setting - including on-site management.
   • Motivate, organize, and align students to implement ministry team objectives.
   • Initiate strategies to increase donations, and build relationships with potential ministry donors.
   • Prepare flyers using Photoshop and conduct presentations at local schools to recruit and train volunteers.

   More field director duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your field director job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A field director salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, field directors' average salary in kansas is 41% less than in new york.
   • Seniority. Entry-level field directors earn 62% less than senior-level field directors.
   • Certifications. A field director with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a field director's salary.

   Average field director salary

   $77,037yearly

   $37.04 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level field director salary

   $47,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 12, 2025

   Average field director salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$97,768	$47
   2	New York	$95,479	$46
   3	Virginia	$91,292	$44
   4	District of Columbia	$89,785	$43
   5	Washington	$88,681	$43
   6	Pennsylvania	$84,227	$40
   7	Connecticut	$82,231	$40
   8	Nevada	$82,159	$40
   9	Massachusetts	$81,574	$39
   10	Arizona	$79,556	$38
   11	Wisconsin	$78,140	$38
   12	Minnesota	$78,043	$38
   13	Texas	$76,595	$37
   14	Wyoming	$73,157	$35
   15	Georgia	$72,674	$35
   16	Illinois	$70,245	$34
   17	Nebraska	$70,120	$34
   18	North Dakota	$69,994	$34
   19	Indiana	$67,102	$32
   20	Michigan	$66,903	$32

   Average field director salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	AbbVie	$116,250	$55.89	10
   2	Bristol-Myers Squibb	$114,639	$55.11	10
   3	Baker Hughes	$113,501	$54.57	54
   4	Halliburton	$112,089	$53.89	3
   5	Exact Sciences	$109,861	$52.82
   6	Mastercard	$102,206	$49.14	53
   7	New York Life Insurance	$101,328	$48.72	2
   8	Sanofi US	$94,437	$45.40	24
   9	Johnson & Johnson	$93,042	$44.73	52
   10	Supermicro	$90,994	$43.75	13
   11	WestLand Resources	$88,953	$42.77	6
   12	The Travelers Companies	$85,446	$41.08	2
   13	Stantec	$85,204	$40.96	97
   14	Edward Jones	$85,010	$40.87	3
   15	BD	$83,022	$39.91	13
   16	POWER Engineers	$81,995	$39.42	15
   17	Tetra Tech	$77,893	$37.45	17
   18	Time Warner Cable Enterprises LLC	$75,782	$36.43	1
   19	Sage Therapeutics	$75,007	$36.06
   20	Mi Familia Vota	$74,477	$35.81

4. Writing a field director job description

   A job description for a field director 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 field director job description:

   Field director job description example

   Sage Therapeutics is searching for a creative, resourceful, integrative thinker for an important role that is responsible for building and leading a team of value demonstration and field-based health economists. The Executive Director, HEOR Value Demonstration & Field Directors will be part of the HEOR leadership team, serving as a conduit between the research activities performed in-house and the appropriate conceptualization and development of outward-facing scientific and health care economic materials through to dissemination by the field-based team. The incumbent will be responsible for the development and implementation of the value demonstration materials, the field engagement strategy, creating strategy for partnering with the leaders of other field-based teams, and ensuring appropriate representation and engagement of the HEOR team with external stakeholders.
   Roles and Responsibilities Recruit, develop, and retain of according to functional plans a high performing Value Demonstration team and a HEOR Field team. Work with the HEOR Field Lead to establish a strong, collaborative team culture and ensure team performance objectives are established and achieved according to HEOR strategic priorities. In collaboration with in-house HEOR strategic asset leads, conceptualize and implement all value communications materials, both pre- and post-launch and other high-value, high-impact activities with a multi-stakeholder perspective allowing comprehensive scientific, health economic, epidemiology, and patient-reported outcomes data to be generated (Dossier, field-facing tools, PIE materials). Develop a field engagement strategy and ensure activities are robust in addressing critical success factors and evidence gaps from a payer perspective, thus developing sustainable payer relationships through the field-based team. Direct the approved scientific, medical, financial, and healthcare economic data utilization to health care coverage, formulary, and reimbursement decision makers and as needed participate in the communication of the data. Develop and maintain a high level of collaboration and integration with functions such as Market Access, Medical Affairs, Medical Training, Regulatory, Investor Relations, and other functions as necessary. Develop and implement plans to support regional and national managed care/healthcare systems congresses. In partnership with HEOR Franchise Leads, Market Access, Medical, and External Affairs, lead external peer-to-peer engagement discussions with HEOR experts within payer organizations and value assessment organizations (ICER Collaborate with Legal and Compliance departments to establish and follow processes for compliant proactive and reactive communication and scientific exchange with payers/population health decision makers/hospital formularies, and to ensure that all other activities undertaken by the field-based HEOR team comply with applicable laws and regulations and Sage policies. Experience, Education and Specialized Knowledge and Skills
   Must thrive working in a fast-paced, innovative environment while remaining flexible, proactive, resourceful, and efficient. Must have excellent interpersonal skills, the ability to develop important relationships with key stakeholders, good conflict management and negotiation skills, and the ability to analyze complex issues to develop relevant and realistic plans, programs, and recommendations. Must have a demonstrated ability to translate strategy into action, excellent analytical skills, and an ability to communicate complex issues in a simple way and to orchestrate plans to resolve issues and mitigate risks.
   
   Basic Qualifications Master's in Public Health, Health Economics, or related field is required. 15+ years of HEOR experience including conceptualizing and developing value propositions, field-based experience, and managing teams, including a field-based team, required. Preferred Qualifications Hospital, CNS, and/or women's health experience is a plus. Advanced degree (doctorate) in Public Health, Health Services Research, Health Economics, Epidemiology, Pharmacy, or related field is strongly preferred. Previous experience building and leading a HEOR Value Demonstration and Field teams is strongly preferred. Proven track record of success, especially in the area of establishing relationships with Pharmacy, HEOR Key Opinion Leaders, professional Managed Care organizations, and Value Assessment Organizations (e.g. ICER, IVI, DERP like HTA bodies). Demonstrated leadership in developing and executing HEOR strategies (including real world evidence) for field-related activities with proven ability to anticipate key customers' needs with sufficient lead time for execution of tactical plans. This role oversees a field-based team and Value Communication teams; the ideal candidate must be able to travel approximately 25% of the time, including the ability to travel overnight and occasionally on weekends for congresses/meetings. Must possess strong scientific and clinical knowledge, excellent presentation, and teaching skills. Comprehensive understanding of the US payer market landscape as well as proven ability to implement a horizon scanning program to identify and assess US-health policy and regulatory changes that impact SAGE medicines and investigational drugs. Experience working with all levels of management and consulting with key business stakeholders. An ability to influence for greater outcomes Strong team player that has a customer service approach and is solution-oriented. Attention to detail and the ability to work individually, within a multi-disciplinary team, as well as with external partners and vendors. Possesses strong written and verbal communication skills. Embrace our Core Values. Excitement about the vision and mission of Sage.
   
   Employment Type:
   Employee
   
   Number of Openings:
   1
   
   
   #Biotechnology #Careers #ThisIsSage
   
   All Sage new hires will be required to provide documentation that they are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or, if not, that they are legally entitled to an accommodation due to a medical condition or a sincerely held religious belief.Requests for accommodation will be considered on a case-by-case basis, and Sage will consider, among other things, whether the proposed accommodation would create an undue hardship.
   
   All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability, or any other factors prohibited by law.
   EEO is the Law
   EEO is the Law - Poster Supplement
   We value our relationships with professional recruitment firms. To protect the interests of all parties, and given the large volume of inquiries received from third-party placement agencies, we are not able to respond to all agency inquiries. We do not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than directly from candidates for current or future positions. Submission of unsolicited resumes in advance of a signed agreement between our company and a placement agency does not create an implied obligation and, if an unsolicited candidate represented by a placement agency is hired, we are not obligated to pay a fee. Only approved recruitment firms will be allowed to provide services to Sage Therapeutics, Inc.

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5. Post your job

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

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit field 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.

   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 field director

   Once you've found the field director 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.

   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.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new field director. 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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How much does it cost to hire a field director?