How to hire a recovery associate

How to hire a recovery associate, step by step

Here's a step-by-step recovery associate hiring guide:

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

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The recovery associate 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 recovery associate's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, recovery associates 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 recovery associate salaries for various roles:

   Type of Recovery Associate	Description	Hourly rate
   Recovery Associate	Retail sales workers include both those who sell retail merchandise, such as clothing, furniture, and automobiles, (called retail salespersons) and those who sell spare and replacement parts and equipment, especially car parts (called parts salespersons). Both types of workers help customers find the products they want and process customers’ payments.	$10-20

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Sales Floor
   • Customer Service
   • Store Merchandise
   • Credit Card
   • Outbound Calls
   • Product Knowledge
   • Inbound Calls
   • Sales Associates
   • FDCPA
   • Customer Assistance
   • Seasonal Position
   • POS
   • Stock Room
   • Loss Prevention

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage large portfolios and follows FDCPA guidelines.
   • Manage teal (register), maintain cleanliness and appearance of the outside lawn & garden area.
   • Possess knowledge of the FDCPA laws and light skip tracing
   • Ring customers out at a POS station and ensure the will be repeat patrons
   • Exercise acute negotiation and communication skills when dealing with debtors.
   • Work closely with account owners by developing oral negotiation and connections.

3. Make a budget

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

   • Location. For example, recovery associates' average salary in oklahoma is 46% less than in massachusetts.
   • Seniority. Entry-level recovery associates earn 49% less than senior-level recovery associates.
   • Certifications. A recovery associate 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 recovery associate's salary.

   Average recovery associate salary

   $15.14hourly

   $31,496 yearly

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   Entry-level recovery associate salary

   $22,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 17, 2025

4. Writing a recovery associate job description

   A good recovery associate job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a recovery associate job description:

   Recovery associate job description example

   Hagerty Consulting, Inc. (Hagerty) is the nation's leading emergency management and homeland security consulting firm. Known for its public spirit, innovative thinking, problem-solving, and exceptional people, Hagerty is sought after to work on some of the largest and most complex crisis and emergency management issues. We serve our clients across the nation to enhance their preparedness programs; create more resilient and sustainable communities; provide innovative solutions to enhance their response; and obtain and manage grants and loans to support their recovery.
   
   Hagerty is currently seeking a team of junior analysts and project support professionals to support local government recovery work in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian in Lee County, Florida. Support will be provided to our clients on-site. Candidates for Disaster Recovery Associate, Recovery Division will be considered for full-time positions. Recent graduates are encouraged to apply, provided they meet the minimum qualifications.
   In this position, the Disaster Recovery Associate, Recovery Division will:
   
   * Work with a large disaster recovery team in support of local government clients in their recovery from Hurricane Ian as they navigate federal grant programs.
   * Track data, create databases, and analyze trends to guide client recovery.
   * Support project management by tracking documentation and supporting team leaders in coordination and administrative capacity.
   * Review and organize information to submit to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) alongside our FEMA policy experts.
   * Provide administrative, analytical, and finance/accounting support to the client and our internal project teams.
   
   Candidates for the Disaster Recovery Associate, Recovery Division must possess the following qualifications:
   
   * A bachelors degree.
   * Prior professional experience, which can include academic positions, internships, work-study, and part-time jobs.
   * Strong skills in Microsoft Excel, including the understanding of advanced features including VLOOKUP and Pivot Tables.
   * Analytical and critical thinking skills.
   
   Candidates for the Disaster Recovery Associate, Recovery Division may also have the following qualifications:
   
   * A master's degree in a related field, such as finance, accounting, business, emergency management, or disaster recovery.
   * One (1) year of full-time work experience in finance, documentation, analytics, technology, accounting, or a mixture of these declines.
   * Additional exposure to data analytics tools or software other than Excel.
   * Past exposure to the FEMA Public Assistance (PA) Program.
   
   Equal Opportunity Employer Veterans/Disabled

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find recovery associates 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 recovery associates they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level recovery associates 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 recovery associate job on Zippia to find and attract quality recovery associate candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as salesjobs, salesheads, allretailjobs.com, sales trax.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit recovery associates, 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 to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to 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 recovery associate

   Once you have selected a candidate for the recovery associate 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.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new recovery associate. 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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