How to hire a public relations/communications manager

How to hire a public relations/communications manager, step by step

Here's a step-by-step public relations/communications manager hiring guide:

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

What does a public relations/communications manager do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The public relations/communications manager 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?

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   Hiring the perfect public relations/communications manager 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.

   Here's a comparison of public relations/communications manager salaries for various roles:

   Type of Public Relations/Communications Manager	Description	Hourly rate
   Public Relations/Communications Manager	Public relations managers plan and direct the creation of material that will maintain or enhance the public image of their employer or client. Fundraising managers coordinate campaigns that bring in donations for their organization.	$26-57
   Director, Customer Relations	Director of Customer Relations is responsible for leading the design and improvement of an organization's overall customer service experience. Their duties include developing customer service budget, driving customer service process improvements, implementing customer service agents, managing email and telephony customer service routing, and creating training programs for customer service staff... Show more	$43-94
   Community Relations Director	A community relations director is a professional who is responsible for managing positive relationships with community members, nonprofit organizations, and fellow employees surrounding an organization. Community relations directors must plan, organize, and manage activities to help the organization achieve its public relations goal... Show more	$29-73

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Press Releases
   • External Communications
   • Web Content
   • Blog Posts
   • Crisis Communications
   • Facebook
   • Spokesperson
   • Product Launches
   • Instagram
   • Corporate Communications
   • Brand Awareness
   • Event Planning
   • Pr Campaigns
   • Digital Marketing

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Maintain strong working relationships across all departments to manage successful on-site opportunities, content and multimedia asset development and spokesperson requests.
   • Create a website and Facebook page.
   • Establish online marketing and Facebook ad campaigns.
   • Maintain strong working relationships across all departments to manage successful on-site opportunities, content and multimedia asset development and spokesperson requests.
   • Direct editorial content, style and tone for all publish and internal communications, including conferences and webcasts.
   • Guide text and design for the annual report and alumni magazine; also launch school-wide and alumni HTML e-newsletters.

   More public relations/communications manager duties

3. Make a budget

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

   Average public relations/communications manager salary

   $82,261yearly

   $39.55 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level public relations/communications manager salary

   $56,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 19, 2025

   Average public relations/communications manager salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$108,521	$52
   2	New York	$100,991	$49
   3	New Jersey	$100,895	$49
   4	District of Columbia	$99,281	$48
   5	Connecticut	$98,655	$47
   6	Michigan	$94,648	$46
   7	Massachusetts	$93,050	$45
   8	Georgia	$84,554	$41
   9	Virginia	$82,016	$39
   10	Texas	$81,264	$39
   11	Washington	$79,128	$38
   12	Indiana	$78,907	$38
   13	Maryland	$77,276	$37
   14	Iowa	$76,803	$37
   15	Colorado	$75,242	$36
   16	Pennsylvania	$74,583	$36
   17	Arizona	$71,575	$34
   18	Ohio	$70,969	$34
   19	Utah	$70,922	$34
   20	North Carolina	$70,784	$34

   Average public relations/communications manager salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Linklaters	$176,144	$84.68
   2	SoulCycle Holdings, LLC	$143,180	$68.84
   3	Cisco	$140,523	$67.56	2
   4	Amazon	$137,778	$66.24	93
   5	Natera	$132,289	$63.60
   6	Tallgrass Energy	$119,816	$57.60
   7	BGC Partners	$118,102	$56.78
   8	American Express	$111,437	$53.58	2
   9	U.S. Bank	$105,102	$50.53	1
   10	Salesforce	$103,679	$49.85	5
   11	Reno, NV	$103,038	$49.54
   12	Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts	$99,667	$47.92	7
   13	Hormel Foods	$99,469	$47.82	9
   14	JTV	$98,469	$47.34
   15	Anova	$93,552	$44.98
   16	Fortive	$92,196	$44.33	4
   17	Hewlett Packard Enterprise	$92,134	$44.30	7
   18	Riskified	$91,750	$44.11
   19	Panasonic	$91,190	$43.84	2
   20	Colorado State Express	$90,835	$43.67

4. Writing a public relations/communications manager job description

   A public relations/communications manager 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 a public relations/communications manager job description:

   Public relations/communications manager job description example

   “The public is the only critic whose opinion is worth anything at all.” As the Communications Manager at Diablo/Freud Tools, you drive positive messaging in the market, implementing internal and external communications strategies that generate positive media coverage and further position us as an industry leader. This highly impactful manager works alongside marketing leadership in developing strategies, campaigns, messaging, etc. You'll manage a dynamic team of communications and community engagement professionals. You'll identify media placement opportunities that drive the image of the organization as a world class solutions provider in power tool accessories! More specifically:
   
   Collaborate with leadership on designing and executing internal and external communications concepts, strategies and tactics.
   Inspire, mentor and lead a cross-functional team.
   
   Nurture strong relationships with key internal stakeholders, key contacts within the national media, community organizations, trade associations and end-user groups to deliver positive PR messaging.
   
   In coordination with marketing leadership and cross-functional teams, you'll manage and coordinate responses from media inquiries and corporate communication requests.
   
   Draft media materials - press releases, product bulletins, fact sheets, media kits, content for branded websites and internal portals, message briefings, key messages and talking points.
   
   Partner with marketing leadership to develop guardrails that protect and enhance the reputation of the company in the press.
   
   Use your storytelling skills to invoke emotion and inspiration - innovative ways to proactively pitch media stories and conduct outreach that generates positive media coverage.
   
   Implement your direct experience in social media management to inspire team of creators in developing content that creates excitement and drives engagements/conversions; you'll also provide guidance in how to effective build partnerships with content creators and influencers.
   
   Use your previous experience with event management to coordinate key events, which includes but is not limited to: media invites, event press coverage, media kit creation/distribution, booth/room setup, and working with third party vendors to coordinate A/V, lighting, catering, etc.
   
   Develop and maintain a robust archival system of media clippings and social media posts.
   
   Track and report on media coverage (press and social media) that includes in-depth performance analysis and detailed reporting on KPIs.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find public relations/communications managers for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any public relations/communications managers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level public relations/communications managers with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your public relations/communications manager job on Zippia to find and recruit public relations/communications manager candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites such as pr news job board, pr council, prsa job center, hoojobs.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit public relations/communications managers, 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 public relations/communications manager

   Once you have selected a candidate for the public relations/communications manager 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.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   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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