How to hire a production scheduler

How to hire a production scheduler, step by step

Here's a step-by-step production scheduler hiring guide:

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

What does a production scheduler do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the production scheduler you need to hire. Certain production scheduler 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

   Hiring the perfect production scheduler 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 production schedulers and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Production Scheduler	Description	Hourly rate
   Production Scheduler	Material recording clerks track product information in order to keep businesses and supply chains on schedule. They ensure proper scheduling, recordkeeping, and inventory control.	$15-34
   Material Coordinator	A material coordinator is in charge of processing requisitions and ensuring that all departments receive necessary goods and materials within a company. Aside from this, they must maintain positive engagements with vendors, suppliers, and business partners, negotiate contracts, manage schedules of deliveries, and prioritize cost-efficient goods... Show more	$14-25
   Materials Planner	Usually working in a manufacturing setting, a materials planner's role is to manage the supply flow and inventory of materials. Their responsibilities revolve around liaising with vendors and other external agencies, processing purchase orders, monitoring the quality of supplies to ensure it is according to the standards, and coordinating with various teams to learn their needs... Show more	$21-35

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Customer Service
   • MRP
   • Continuous Improvement
   • ERP
   • Production Planning
   • Lean Manufacturing
   • Material Availability
   • Production Control
   • Customer Orders
   • Inventory Control
   • Customer Demand
   • Production Orders
   • WIP
   • Production Lines

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Lead a Kaizen to improve efficiency and reduce non-value add work in the scheduling department.
   • Manage and purchase all MRO material inventory supplies for the production of automotive safety products.
   • Design, develop, and manage process of ordering and maintaining materials not migrate into ERP system.
   • Supervise NPI chip fulfillment process - manage wafer starts to meet internal qualification and board level build plan.
   • Generate prioritize schedules by manufacturing work centers base on MRP requirements, material availability, and capacity constraints.
   • Inventory reduction, JIT, OTD ,

   More production scheduler duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your production scheduler job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A production scheduler 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 a production scheduler in Oklahoma may be lower than in Virginia, and an entry-level production scheduler usually earns less than a senior-level production scheduler. Additionally, a production scheduler 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 production scheduler salary

   $49,367yearly

   $23.73 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level production scheduler salary

   $33,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 31, 2025

   Average production scheduler salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Virginia	$65,308	$31
   2	California	$57,746	$28
   3	Georgia	$52,085	$25
   4	Ohio	$51,343	$25
   5	Colorado	$49,259	$24
   6	Wisconsin	$48,508	$23
   7	Oregon	$45,794	$22
   8	Minnesota	$45,532	$22
   9	Missouri	$42,309	$20
   10	Texas	$41,293	$20
   11	Kentucky	$40,811	$20
   12	North Carolina	$40,676	$20
   13	New Mexico	$40,515	$19
   14	Iowa	$40,437	$19
   15	Washington	$40,402	$19
   16	Alabama	$40,005	$19
   17	Tennessee	$37,946	$18
   18	Nevada	$37,913	$18

   Average production scheduler salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Amphenol	$79,283	$38.12	5
   2	FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies	$78,327	$37.66	3
   3	Vishay	$76,931	$36.99	5
   4	Bloom Energy	$69,034	$33.19
   5	Eastman	$68,770	$33.06
   6	Rivian	$68,215	$32.80	12
   7	Meggitt PLC	$67,837	$32.61
   8	Cummins	$66,034	$31.75	13
   9	Teva Pharmaceuticals	$65,508	$31.49	4
   10	ABB	$65,466	$31.47	35
   11	Stewart & Stevenson	$63,901	$30.72
   12	Activision Blizzard	$63,226	$30.40
   13	Johnson Controls	$62,887	$30.23	7
   14	Plascore	$62,823	$30.20
   15	Sanmina	$62,288	$29.95	12
   16	Eaton	$62,154	$29.88	57
   17	Sasol Chemicals (USA) LLC	$61,433	$29.54
   18	Reser's Fine Foods	$61,400	$29.52	5
   19	National Beverage	$61,066	$29.36	13
   20	Nexteer Automotive	$60,987	$29.32	2

4. Writing a production scheduler job description

   A job description for a production scheduler 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 production scheduler job description:

   Production scheduler job description example

   
   Saratoga Springs, NY
   
   Plans, prepares, issues and controls production schedules and coordinates with material requirements to ensure a controlled flow of approved materials timed to meet production requirements. Advises management of the status of work in progress, material availability, and potential production problems to ensure that personnel, equipment, materials and services are provided as needed.
   Schedules equipment and personnel, confirms material supply and demands, prepares work orders or purchase requests for the production or purchase of components or parts based on a master production schedule, shop load and inventory requirements. Coordinates interdepartmental activity
   with quality assurance, manufacturing, purchasing, engineering, inventory control, traffic, etc.;
   schedules and expedites the movement of parts by means of move orders, stock transfers and requests for shipping orders.
   
   Minimum Qualifications

   • Bachelor's Degree in related field and 6 years experience OR Master's degree and 4 year of relevant professional experience.

   Certification Equivalency: PMP, CPIM and AICP Special Requirements:

   • Primavera P6
   • Scoping / Estimating
   • SAP Work Package development
   • Position is held in New York
   • Remote work is not an option. Resource will need to be onsite 100%.
   • Network Scheduling experience is required (Primavera P6 is preferred. Proficiency with other scheduling software (i.e. MS Project) will be considered.
   • Our client requires that candidates must have an active/current DoD Confidential Personnel Clearance (PCL) to start, for which the U.S. Government requires U.S. Citizenship.

   
   
   JOB DESCRIPTION EEO Statement Apollo Professional Solutions, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer. We provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, marital status, age, national origin, ancestry, disability status, medical condition, pregnancy, genetic information, protected veteran status, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other status or characteristic protected under federal, state, or local law.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right production scheduler 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 production schedulers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit production schedulers 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 production scheduler job on Zippia to find and recruit production scheduler candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit production schedulers, 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 production scheduler

   Once you have selected a candidate for the production scheduler 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 also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is 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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How much does it cost to hire a production scheduler?