How to hire a software development manager

How to hire a software development manager, step by step

Here's a step-by-step software development 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 software development manager job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new software development manager
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a software development manager do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the software development manager you need to hire. Certain software development manager 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

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a software development manager to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a software development manager that fits the bill.

   The following list breaks down different types of software development managers and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Software Development Manager	Description	Hourly rate
   Software Development Manager		$48-86
   Manager Applications Development	An applications development manager is responsible for keeping businesses running smoothly and effectively through planning, coordinating, and overseeing all activities related to software applications. You will oversee the maintenance, upgrade, and support of existing applications and systems required for the smooth day-to-day operations of the business... Show more	$46-75
   Principal Software Engineer	A Principal Software Engineer is responsible for the technical aspects of an organization's projects. They diagnose, document, and troubleshoot systems to resolve problems identified through testing, as well as implement strategies to improve integration and efficiency.	$47-87

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Java
   • AWS
   • Architecture
   • Project Management
   • Database
   • Cloud Computing
   • Web Services
   • Amazon Web Services
   • Scrum
   • Product Development
   • Software Applications
   • C
   • C++
   • Debugging

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Plan and manage release schedules, upgrades and patches, maintenance windows.
   • Justify, evaluate, hire, and manage offshore contractors to supplement staff for a large HTML form coding project.
   • Manage workflow of projects through JIRA, ensuring that all necessary reviews are perform and projects are successfully release to production.
   • Manage all phases of application design--from requirements gathering, coding and prototyping through system testing, integration and deployment.
   • Manage many infrastructure upgrade projects nationwide.
   • Manage resource allocation for Lawson ERP implementation project.

   More software development manager duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your software development manager job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A software development manager 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 software development manager in Arkansas may be lower than in Alaska, and an entry-level software development manager usually earns less than a senior-level software development manager. Additionally, a software development manager 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 software development manager salary

   $134,747yearly

   $64.78 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level software development manager salary

   $100,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 19, 2026

   Average software development manager salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$167,421	$80
   2	Washington	$149,646	$72
   3	Oregon	$139,366	$67
   4	Nevada	$127,438	$61
   5	New York	$124,682	$60
   6	Virginia	$120,492	$58
   7	Arizona	$118,572	$57
   8	Massachusetts	$116,023	$56
   9	New Jersey	$115,899	$56
   10	Utah	$113,984	$55
   11	Texas	$113,343	$54
   12	Pennsylvania	$110,836	$53
   13	Rhode Island	$107,399	$52
   14	Illinois	$105,821	$51
   15	Minnesota	$104,033	$50
   16	Georgia	$103,906	$50
   17	Colorado	$103,071	$50
   18	North Carolina	$102,718	$49
   19	Indiana	$102,316	$49
   20	Nebraska	$100,176	$48

   Average software development manager salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Meta	$212,607	$102.21	1,248
   2	Grubhub	$200,093	$96.20
   3	eBay	$198,125	$95.25	24
   4	StubHub	$195,288	$93.89	120
   5	Apple	$190,804	$91.73	511
   6	Etsy	$184,728	$88.81	6
   7	NVIDIA	$184,621	$88.76	338
   8	PayPal	$183,381	$88.16	61
   9	Box	$183,371	$88.16	6
   10	Rivian	$182,714	$87.84	26
   11	The Walt Disney Company	$181,814	$87.41	206
   12	Microsoft	$179,851	$86.47	714
   13	Harley-Davidson	$179,480	$86.29	3
   14	F5	$178,911	$86.01	24
   15	Discovery	$178,726	$85.93
   16	Okta	$178,492	$85.81	29
   17	Adobe	$178,455	$85.80	107
   18	ServiceNow	$177,620	$85.39	55
   19	Chewy	$174,411	$83.85	5
   20	SugarCRM	$174,094	$83.70

4. Writing a software development manager job description

   A job description for a software development manager 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 software development manager job description:

   Software development manager job description example

   MathWorks has a hybrid work model that enables staff members to split their time between office and home. The hybrid model provides the advantage of having both in-person time with colleagues and flexible at-home life optimizations. Learn More:
   
   Are you passionate about managing an experienced development team, while staying hands-on with designing? Do you love crafting robust software used by millions of people?
   
   In this role, you will lead an agile Scrum team developing software for licensing our products. Our Licensing team is responsible for crafting robust software that protects our IP while providing a transparent experience to enable millions of users to use the software they are entitled to, seamlessly.
   
   MathWorks nurtures growth, appreciates diversity, encourages initiative, values teamwork, shares success, and rewards excellence.
   You will be responsible for:
   
   Management: Managing a team of experienced software engineers working towards business critical and strategic projects Career development with your direct reports, training plans, continuous feedback during regular 1:1s, and annual performance reviews Hiring and growing your team Partnering with Technical Marketing, Quality Engineering, Technical Support, Senior Management to align the team with area goals and strategy
   
   Technical: Helping define the technical vision for your area, preparing roadmaps Planning projects and prioritization of deliverables Hands-on architecture and design Partnering with Quality Engineering on test strategies and test automation Continuous process improvement with the team's Scrum and other company-related processes Experience with C++ Strong communication and collaboration skills Prior experience managing or mentoring other engineers Nice to Have: Experience with Scrum or other agile methodologies Cloud computing Web Services A bachelor's degree and 7 years of professional work experience (or a master's degree and 5 years of professional work experience, or a PhD degree, or equivalent experience) is required.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right software development manager for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

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

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with software development manager 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.

   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.

   If your interviews with software development manager applicants aren't enough to make a decision, you should also consider including a test project. These are often the best, most straightforward, and least bias-prone ways of determining who will likely succeed in the role. If you don't know how to design an appropriate test, you can ask someone else on the team to create it or take a look at these websites to get a few ideas:

   • TestDome
   • CodeSignal
   • Testlify
   • BarRaiser
   • Coderbyte

   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 software development manager

   Once you've found the software development manager candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new software development manager 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 software development manager?