How to hire an operations specialist

How to hire an operations specialist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step operations specialist hiring guide:

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

What does an operations specialist do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The operations specialist hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

   Yes

   No

   An operations specialist's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, operations specialists 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 shows salaries for various types of operations specialists.

   Type of Operations Specialist	Description	Hourly rate
   Operations Specialist	An Operations Specialist is responsible for managing the flow of a workplace and optimizing day-to-day activities. They track and analyze various reports, such as activity budgets, operation activity, and department metrics for making the necessary improvements.	$16-40
   Operations Internship	Operations interns learn the management techniques on how to lead and supervise others. Interns usually gain experience by being an unpaid employee in the operational department... Show more	$12-20
   Operations Representative	As the name entails, an operations representative is responsible for assisting the operations managers. You will typically perform various tasks, including creating a customer database regularly, handling inquiries and office correspondence, and helping the operations managers in managing financial inquiries from clients... Show more	$12-26

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Customer Service
   • Logistics
   • Basic Math
   • PowerPoint
   • Customer Satisfaction
   • Operational Procedures
   • Data Entry
   • Excellent Organizational
   • Troubleshoot
   • Process Improvement
   • Quality Standards
   • Math
   • Work Ethic
   • HR

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Develop and implement VBA scripts to automate tasks in financial reporting.
   • Manage all international A/R functions, reporting, sales, expense analysis and marketing campaigns as well as all royalties.
   • Manage and process 100 FDA electronic and paper submissions including safety reports, new investigator reports, amendments, and protocols.
   • Demonstrate ability to manage and organize clinical setting for patients and families.
   • Personalize and manage a customer SQL network database to consolidate all incoming orders from different marketplaces.
   • Manage a variety of operational tasks for moderately complex securities transactions that require knowledge of vary systems and processes.

   More operations specialist duties

3. Make a budget

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

   $54,752yearly

   $26.32 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level operations specialist salary

   $35,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 14, 2026

   Average operations specialist salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	District of Columbia	$71,196	$34
   2	Maryland	$68,177	$33
   3	Massachusetts	$66,876	$32
   4	Pennsylvania	$66,014	$32
   5	New Jersey	$65,580	$32
   6	New York	$65,141	$31
   7	Delaware	$64,275	$31
   8	Virginia	$64,275	$31
   9	California	$63,082	$30
   10	Nevada	$59,268	$28
   11	Maine	$58,555	$28
   12	Washington	$57,173	$27
   13	Ohio	$56,680	$27
   14	Illinois	$56,472	$27
   15	Oregon	$55,730	$27
   16	Utah	$54,923	$26
   17	Kansas	$52,365	$25
   18	North Carolina	$52,303	$25
   19	Texas	$52,083	$25
   20	Minnesota	$51,135	$25

   Average operations specialist salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Coatue Management	$107,307	$51.59
   2	Google	$104,575	$50.28	60
   3	Microsoft	$102,295	$49.18	11
   4	Meta	$101,540	$48.82	74
   5	McKinsey & Company Inc	$97,692	$46.97	39
   6	Databricks	$96,304	$46.30
   7	KLA	$96,026	$46.17	1
   8	Barclays	$95,765	$46.04	1
   9	Nokia	$95,253	$45.79	6
   10	Intel	$93,778	$45.09	2
   11	SAP	$93,685	$45.04	54
   12	Virtu Financial	$93,199	$44.81	2
   13	Micron Technology	$93,124	$44.77	6
   14	Acadian Asset Management	$92,244	$44.35
   15	Adobe	$91,923	$44.19	12
   16	Ropes & Gray	$91,692	$44.08	4
   17	Synopsys	$91,419	$43.95
   18	Northern Trust	$91,122	$43.81	4
   19	Callan	$90,965	$43.73
   20	Parsons	$90,788	$43.65	11

4. Writing an operations specialist job description

   A job description for an operations specialist 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 an operations specialist job description:

   Operations specialist job description example

   Comcast brings together the best in media and technology. We drive innovation to create the world's best entertainment and online experiences. As a Fortune 50 leader, we set the pace in a variety of innovative and fascinating businesses and create career opportunities across a wide range of locations and disciplines. We are at the forefront of change and move at an amazing pace, thanks to our remarkable people, who bring cutting-edge products and services to life for millions of customers every day. If you share in our passion for teamwork, our vision to revolutionize industries and our goal to lead the future in media and technology, we want you to fast-forward your career at Comcast.
   
   We are looking for a creative thinking person with a never give up attitude who is consumed with quality/accuracy. This individual should be inquisitive and willing to dig deeper into any/all issues, and has the skills as well as experience to stretch outside of their comfort zone to look at options in support of the ability to actively resolve and fix issues that may present themselves including working through findings that may be causing the team to be working ineffectively or inefficiently. Outside of business process review and process improvement this job will also include both manual and automated daily and monthly reconciliation in support of the Cash and A/R accounting team, UAR processes that include third party tools and banks, communication with internal and external partners, management of third-party contractor tool access and other duties as needed.
   Job Description
   Core Responsibilities
   Create and deliver training to team members, sales teams and customers via web, phone and in-person. Will travel to other company locations as well as client sites.Analyze accounts receivable, billing, credit, collections and process inquiries to help educate and guide customers, such as completing complex account reconciliations, trouble-shooting system issues, terms & conditions review, or order to client and agency billing profiles discrepancies.Design, evaluate and implement process improvements including new methods and techniques to maximize resources and improve operational efficiencies. Partner with other departments to incorporate changes as needed to ensure processes and procedures remain aligned to business needs.Analyze metrics to identify trends, areas of opportunity, training needs etc.Create and maintain policy and procedure documentation.Review new account setups and onboarding of new advertisers to ensure information is accurate and advertiser expectations are understood and met.Review customer invoice requests to provide solutions that provide a win-win solution for the customer and the company.Coordinate various projects and assignments with the team and other departments.Consistent exercise of independent judgment and discretion in matters of significance.Regular, consistent and punctual attendance. Must be able to work nights and weekends, variable schedule(s) as necessary.Other duties and responsibilities as assigned.
   
   Preferred Skills:
   Experience using tools such as SQL, Python, Alteryx, Data 360 Analyze or other similar tools to assist in automation of manual processes is highly preferred. Experience analyzing complex ideas and/or proposals .Experience building a range of meaningful recommendations using multiple sources of information including their own findings as well as those from broader stakeholder to develop solutions.
   
   Employees at all levels are expected to:
   Employees at all levels are expected to:Understand our Operating Principles; make them the guidelines for how you do your job.Own the customer experience - think and act in ways that put our customers first, give them seamless digital options at every touchpoint, and make them promoters of our products and services.Know your stuff - be enthusiastic learners, users and advocates of our game-changing technology, products and services, especially our digital tools and experiences.Win as a team - make big things happen by working together and being open to new ideas.Be an active part of the Net Promoter System - a way of working that brings more employee and customer feedback into the company - by joining huddles, making call backs and helping us elevate opportunities to do better for our customers.Drive results and growth.Respect and promote inclusion & diversity.Do what's right for each other, our customers, investors and our communities.
   
   Disclaimer:
   
   This information has been designed to indicate the general nature and level of work performed by employees in this role. It is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities and qualifications.
   
   Comcast is an EOE/Veterans/Disabled/LGBT employer.
   
   We believe that benefits should connect you to the support you need when it matters most, and should help you care for those who matter most. That's why we provide an array of options, expert guidance and always-on tools that are personalized to meet the needs of your reality-to help support you physically, financially and emotionally through the big milestones and in your everyday life.
   Please visit the benefits summary on our careers site for more details.
   
   Education
   Bachelor's Degree
   
   While possessing the stated degree is preferred, Comcast also may consider applicants who hold some combination of coursework and experience, or who have extensive related professional experience.
   
   Certifications (if applicable)
   
   Relative Work Experience
   7-10 Years
   
   Comcast is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. We will consider all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, or any other basis protected by applicable law.

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5. Post your job

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

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with operations specialist candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of 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 operations specialist

   Once you've selected the best operations specialist 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 operations specialist. 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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