How to hire a risk management specialist

How to hire a risk management specialist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step risk management specialist hiring guide:

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

What does a risk management specialist do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The risk management 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

   A risk management specialist's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, risk management 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 risk management specialists.

   Type of Risk Management Specialist	Description	Hourly rate
   Risk Management Specialist		$19-57
   Risk Manager	A risk manager is responsible for analyzing potential risks that may affect the organization's operations, reputation, and market credibility. Risk managers identify risk controls and discuss business contingency plans for unforeseen circumstances to prevent delays in operational services... Show more	$40-76
   Global Risk Management Director	A global risk management director is responsible for the development and administration of risk management programs. They organize and develop programs that cut across their whole organization for risk-free services... Show more	$50-96

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Risk Assessments
   • PowerPoint
   • Patient Safety
   • Enterprise Risk Management
   • Cash Management
   • Treasury
   • ISO
   • Data Analysis
   • Operational Risk
   • Financial Institutions
   • Derivative
   • Insurance Policies
   • Insurance Coverage
   • Incident Reports

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Lead SOX project planning and implementation, successfully implement the corporate governance policies and internal control framework.
   • Handle HIPAA compliant requests for medical records.
   • Provide SAS programming assistance to non-technical members of the team.
   • Programme with SAS to monitor hedging program and recommend hedging strategy.
   • Generate scripts from SQL server 2005 and port databases to SQL server 2008 R2.
   • Upgrade reports and packages as well as applications to SQL server 2008 R2 from 2005.

   More risk management specialist duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your risk management specialist job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A risk management 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 a risk management specialist in Nebraska may be lower than in New Jersey, and an entry-level risk management specialist usually earns less than a senior-level risk management specialist. Additionally, a risk management 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 risk management specialist salary

   $69,819yearly

   $33.57 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level risk management specialist salary

   $40,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 15, 2025

   Average risk management specialist salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	New Jersey	$106,947	$51
   2	New York	$103,836	$50
   3	District of Columbia	$103,290	$50
   4	Massachusetts	$98,010	$47
   5	Connecticut	$97,584	$47
   6	Pennsylvania	$89,425	$43
   7	Maryland	$88,645	$43
   8	Virginia	$88,382	$42
   9	Ohio	$84,851	$41
   10	Tennessee	$84,066	$40
   11	California	$83,338	$40
   12	North Carolina	$80,064	$38
   13	Wisconsin	$76,312	$37
   14	Washington	$73,875	$36
   15	Illinois	$72,188	$35
   16	Georgia	$70,076	$34
   17	Arizona	$69,775	$34
   18	Missouri	$69,618	$33
   19	Texas	$67,066	$32
   20	Minnesota	$65,572	$32

   Average risk management specialist salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	PayPal	$130,419	$62.70	16
   2	eBay	$115,460	$55.51	8
   3	Zeta	$114,497	$55.05	1
   4	Cisco	$113,650	$54.64	17
   5	SAP	$111,968	$53.83	22
   6	Huntington Hospital	$110,321	$53.04
   7	Citi	$105,353	$50.65	22
   8	W. R. Berkley	$103,573	$49.79	6
   9	Federal Reserve Bank	$100,407	$48.27	4
   10	BNY Mellon	$100,320	$48.23	31
   11	Barclays	$97,518	$46.88	2
   12	Sun West Mortgage Company	$97,152	$46.71
   13	Federal Reserve	$96,299	$46.30	4
   14	Goldman Sachs	$95,613	$45.97	54
   15	Peabody Energy	$95,462	$45.90
   16	Eaton	$94,945	$45.65	2
   17	CIBC World Markets	$94,681	$45.52	1
   18	Nasdaq	$93,254	$44.83	3
   19	CTC	$90,814	$43.66
   20	AmerisourceBergen	$89,341	$42.95

4. Writing a risk management specialist job description

   A job description for a risk management 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 a risk management specialist job description:

   Risk management specialist job description example

   ASRC Federal NetCentric is a premier provider of systems engineering, software engineering, system integration and product support services for Army C5ISR mission-critical systems.
   We are seeking a Junior Risk Management Specialist to support Project Manager, Positioning Navigation and Timing (PM PNT) Systems Engineering and Technical Assistance (SETA) Support Services by providing administrative, business management, programmatic, contracting, information technology (IT), program management, engineering, logistics, test and evaluation (T E), training, operations, security, technology protection, foreign military sales, and acquisition and strategic planning services.
   
   Roles/Responsibilities:
   
   The Junior Risk Management Specialist will be responsible for performing the following:
   
   Developing, updating and managing the PM PNT Risk Management products utilizing a provided risk management tool. Modifying the PM PNT risk management plan IAW IPT and leadership decisions. Managing and leading PM PNT product Risk IPTs at which risks will be identified and documented. Documenting the status of all PM PNT product risks and providing risk-related information to incorporate into product acquisition documentation. Preparing risk materials, attending, and briefing risk status at all PM PNT product meetings including: PMRs, IPRs, and reviews leading up to and including milestone decision reviews.
   
   Requirements
   
   Bachelor's degree in related field and 3 years of experience in Department of Defense (DoD) risk management OR a master's degree with 1 year of experience in DoD risk management OR 7 years of experience in DoD risk management. Current Secret clearance.
   
   **COVID-19 Vaccination Requirement Statement
   
   The COVID-19 vaccination requirement in Executive Order 14042 and FAR 52.223-99 is currently not effective. But please note that if those or other related requirements become effective, positions will require successful candidates to obtain and show proof of COVID-19 vaccination(s). ASRC Federal is an equal opportunity employer and will provide reasonable accommodation to those individuals who are unable to be vaccinated consistent with federal, state, and local law.
   
   EEO Statement
   
   ASRC Federal and its Subsidiaries are Equal Opportunity / Affirmative Action employers. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, gender, color, age, sexual orientation, gender identification, national origin, religion, marital status, ancestry, citizenship, disability, protected veteran status, or any other factor prohibited by applicable law.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find risk management specialists 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 risk management specialists they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level risk management specialists 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.

   To find risk management specialist candidates, you can consider the following options:

   • Post your job opening on Zippia or other job search websites.
   • Use niche websites that focus on engineering and technology jobs, such as efinancialcareers, financialjobsweb.com, careerbank, financial job bank.
   • Post your job on free job posting websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit risk management specialists, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   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 risk management specialist

   Once you've decided on a perfect risk management specialist 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.

   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.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new risk management 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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How much does it cost to hire a risk management specialist?