How to hire a product manager lead

How to hire a product manager lead, step by step

Here's a step-by-step product manager lead hiring guide:

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

What does a product manager lead do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The product manager lead 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

   A product manager lead's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, product managers lead 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 product manager lead salaries for various positions.

   Type of Product Manager Lead	Description	Hourly rate
   Product Manager Lead	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.	$47-92
   Marketing Manager/Project Manager	A marketing manager/project manager oversees a company's marketing programs and projects, aiming to attract more customers and increase the brand value of a business, product, or service. They primarily perform market research and assessments to identify marketing trends and opportunities, gather and analyze data to generate business leads, study the consumer and competitors in the industry, and identify the weaknesses and strengths of existing marketing projects, utilizing information to enhance operations... Show more	$26-52
   Social Media Manager	Social media managers are responsible for representing the company's business through social media channels. They help the company grow by enhancing its presence via social networks... Show more	$24-47

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Architecture
   • QA
   • Product Management
   • Product Strategy
   • Regression
   • Lifecycle Management
   • Product Roadmap
   • B Testing
   • Market Research
   • User Stories
   • A/B
   • Product Vision
   • User Experience
   • Project Management

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage horizontal UX prototyping resource needs, implementing effective collaborative expectations and cross-product timeline allocation strategies.
   • Work alongside a team of 24 frontend and backend engineers, designers and QA engineers.
   • Develop overall market and product requirements for WiMAX smart antenna base stations, customer premise equipment and wireless management infrastructure.
   • Used source codes for tracking programs against marketing costs for ROI analysis.
   • Manage horizontal UX prototyping resource needs, implementing effective collaborative expectations and cross-product timeline allocation strategies.

   More product manager lead duties

3. Make a budget

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

   Average product manager lead salary

   $138,531yearly

   $66.60 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level product manager lead salary

   $99,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 5, 2025

   Average product manager lead salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$171,876	$83
   2	Oregon	$160,008	$77
   3	Washington	$155,228	$75
   4	District of Columbia	$144,533	$69
   5	Massachusetts	$128,705	$62
   6	Arizona	$124,063	$60
   7	New York	$123,020	$59
   8	Pennsylvania	$121,345	$58
   9	New Jersey	$120,814	$58
   10	North Carolina	$119,688	$58
   11	Texas	$116,564	$56
   12	Maine	$111,556	$54
   13	Illinois	$110,830	$53
   14	Minnesota	$110,566	$53
   15	Ohio	$105,087	$51
   16	Colorado	$103,782	$50
   17	Wisconsin	$99,708	$48
   18	Indiana	$98,144	$47
   19	Missouri	$97,323	$47
   20	Georgia	$97,226	$47

   Average product manager lead salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	The Walt Disney Company	$197,027	$94.72	94
   2	Yelp	$195,339	$93.91
   3	Course Hero	$194,136	$93.33
   4	Google	$194,086	$93.31	324
   5	eBay	$185,625	$89.24	34
   6	TripActions	$179,689	$86.39
   7	Grubhub	$176,014	$84.62	17
   8	PayPal	$174,007	$83.66	29
   9	Microsoft	$169,813	$81.64	111
   10	Quantcast	$166,498	$80.05
   11	MongoDB	$165,935	$79.78	42
   12	Creative Artists Agency	$164,917	$79.29	2
   13	Square	$164,513	$79.09
   14	Über	$164,401	$79.04	118
   15	Cadre	$162,530	$78.14	3
   16	Chime	$162,170	$77.97	14
   17	Cohesity	$162,161	$77.96	8
   18	AppLovin	$161,942	$77.86
   19	SeatGeek	$160,876	$77.34	2
   20	Celtra	$159,843	$76.85	1

4. Writing a product manager lead job description

   A product manager lead 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 product manager lead job description:

   Product manager lead job description example

   The primary responsibility of the Lead Product Manager is to lead the product development of live online casino games. This position is a foundational part of a rapidly growing team and plays a key leadership role in the end-to-end product development process. This senior level position will lead, manage, and mentor a team of junior to senior-level product managers.
   
   All duties are to be performed in accordance with departmental and Las Vegas Sands Corp.'s policies, practices, and procedures. All Las Vegas Sands Corp. Team Members are expected to conduct and carry themselves in a professional manner at all times. Team Members are required to observe the Company's standards, work requirements and rules of conduct.
   Essential Duties & Responsibilities
   Lead, manage, and mentor a team of junior to senior-level product managers to ensure live online games are development timely and meet the best-in-class standards of the Company. Product development of ancillary games, including scoping of requirements of the game, math models of game and basic flow of game method. Develop math model concepts for ancillary games. Partner with Senior Math Engineers to ensure validity of product design. Create user stories for new game concepts that will allow other development teams to accurately portray new concept ideas. Research market to ensure that product roadmap of new ancillary games will satisfy regional acceptance standards. Create presentations to support new games that include financial projections, math modeling explanations and process flow explanations of new game concept. Manage a team of product managers including hiring, organizing work and adherence to policies, and monitoring and evaluating performance. Perform all job responsibilities at a senior level with limited direct supervision. Perform job duties in a safe manner. Attend work as scheduled on a consistent and regular basis. Perform other related duties as assigned.
   
   Minimum Qualifications
   5+ years of experience in a senior product management role, preferably at a management level position with direct reports. Experience leading the development and delivery of casino or gaming products. At least 21 years of age. Proof of authorization to work in the United States. High school diploma or equivalent or equivalent work experience. Must be able to obtain and maintain any certification or license, as required by law or policy. Experience in the gaming and technical industries preferred. Experience with AV in an NDI environment preferred. Experience in Jira preferred. Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to communicate effectively and interact appropriately with management, other Team Members and outside contacts of different backgrounds and levels of experience.
   Physical Requirements
   
   Must be able to:
   Physically access assigned workspace areas with or without reasonable accommodation. Work remotely as necessary. Work indoors and be exposed to various environmental factors such as, but not limited to, CRT, noise, and dust. Utilize laptop and standard keyboard to perform essential functions of the job.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right product manager lead for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with product managers lead they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit product managers lead who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your product manager lead job on Zippia to find and recruit product manager lead candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with product manager lead 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 product manager lead

   Once you've decided on a perfect product manager lead candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your 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.

   To prepare for the new product manager lead first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

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 product manager lead?