How to hire a software engineering manager

How to hire a software engineering manager, step by step

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

What does a software engineering manager do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your software engineering manager job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a software engineering manager for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   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 software engineering 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 software engineering manager salaries for various roles:

   Type of Software Engineering Manager	Description	Hourly rate
   Software Engineering Manager	Software developers are the creative minds behind computer programs. Some develop the applications that allow people to do specific tasks on a computer or another device... Show more	$48-95
   Director Of Software Development	A director of software development is primarily in charge of overseeing the workflow and the workforce involved in the entire software development process. Their responsibilities also include creating strategies for optimal performance, coordinating with different teams and departments to identify strengths and weaknesses, implementing training and workshop programs, and liaising with external agencies, including key clients... Show more	$52-109
   Software Architect	A Software Architect develops new programs for a variety of technological devices for businesses, computer games, mobile networks, and/or operating systems. They ensure architectural integrity and consistency across the entire product and work closely with executives to explain the benefits of the software.	$39-75

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Java
   • Software Development
   • Software Engineering
   • Emerging Technologies
   • Cloud
   • Python
   • Object Oriented Programming
   • JavaScript
   • Spring Boot
   • Project Management
   • Cloud Computing
   • Career Development
   • Database
   • Technical Leadership

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage plan of record (POR) and executive governance meetings.
   • Manage a horizontal team composes of senior system, middleware, and python engineers.
   • Manage all reporting to PMO office and senior management for monthly project status reporting.
   • Help write and review ISO procedures and are a key participant in INDUS achieving ISO certification.
   • Introduce Jenkins to the lab to automate aws commands, and integrate automate testing into QA process.
   • Manage 3rd party development contractors for an iphone app, android app, and embeddable flash widget.

   More software engineering manager duties

3. Make a budget

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

   • Location. For example, software engineering managers' average salary in oklahoma is 41% less than in washington.
   • Seniority. Entry-level software engineering managers earn 49% less than senior-level software engineering managers.
   • Certifications. A software engineering manager 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 software engineering manager's salary.

   Average software engineering manager salary

   $140,929yearly

   $67.75 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level software engineering manager salary

   $100,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 15, 2025

   Average software engineering manager salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$170,480	$82
   2	Washington	$164,503	$79
   3	New York	$131,484	$63
   4	Massachusetts	$123,924	$60
   5	Arizona	$120,758	$58
   6	District of Columbia	$119,275	$57
   7	New Jersey	$118,729	$57
   8	Connecticut	$116,821	$56
   9	Pennsylvania	$115,199	$55
   10	Virginia	$112,074	$54
   11	Delaware	$111,223	$53
   12	North Carolina	$110,446	$53
   13	Illinois	$108,243	$52
   14	Texas	$107,298	$52
   15	Georgia	$105,482	$51
   16	Ohio	$105,089	$51
   17	Minnesota	$104,498	$50
   18	Utah	$103,806	$50
   19	Florida	$99,470	$48
   20	Indiana	$99,316	$48

   Average software engineering manager salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Meta	$236,608	$113.75	3,519
   2	Google	$232,788	$111.92	801
   3	Lyft	$225,083	$108.21	12
   4	Upstart Network	$221,979	$106.72
   5	ICE Mortgage Technology	$220,277	$105.90
   6	Roku	$218,333	$104.97	17
   7	Pure Storage	$217,471	$104.55	24
   8	Twitter	$215,291	$103.51	3
   9	DoorDash	$214,132	$102.95	138
   10	eBay	$213,468	$102.63	44
   11	Anaplan	$213,034	$102.42	2
   12	Instacart	$212,519	$102.17	26
   13	NerdWallet	$211,915	$101.88	4
   14	Addepar	$210,678	$101.29	3
   15	Grubhub	$209,175	$100.56	7
   16	Integral Ad Science	$207,609	$99.81	10
   17	NVIDIA	$205,092	$98.60	241
   18	TinyCo	$203,782	$97.97
   19	Sony Interactive Entertainment America	$203,759	$97.96
   20	Walmart	$202,845	$97.52	611

4. Writing a software engineering manager job description

   A good software engineering manager 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 software engineering manager job description:

   Software engineering manager job description example

   Minimum qualifications:
   
   + Bachelor's degree or equivalent practical experience.
   
   + 5 years of experience with software development in one or more programming languages (e.g., Python, C, C++, Java, or JavaScript).
   
   + 3 years of experience in a technical leadership role with experience in people management and team leadership.
   
   + Experience with Android platform software.
   
   Preferred qualifications:
   
   + Master's degree or PhD in Computer Science or related technical field.
   
   + 3 years of experience with embedded operating systems.
   
   + 3 years of experience working in a complex, matrixed organization.
   
   + Experience with Android framework development and mobile platforms.
   
   + Experience with Experience with Platform and/or SoC bring-up.
   
   + Experience with Audio, Video, Graphics or Camera software for Android.
   
   Like Google's own ambitions, the work of a Software Engineer (SWE) goes way beyond just Search. SWE Managers have not only the technical expertise to take on and provide technical leadership to major projects, but also manage a team of engineers. You not only optimize your own code but make sure engineers are able to optimize theirs. As a SWE Manager you manage your project goals, contribute to product strategy and help develop your team. SWE teams work all across the company, in areas such as information retrieval, artificial intelligence, natural language processing, distributed computing, large-scale system design, networking, security, data compression, user interface design; the list goes on and is growing every day. Operating with scale and speed, our exceptional software engineers are just getting started -- and as a manager, you guide the way.
   
   With technical and leadership expertise, you manage engineers across multiple teams and locations, a large product budget and oversee the deployment of large-scale projects across multiple sites internationally.
   
   In this role, you will lead the Multimedia (e.g., Audio, Video, Graphics, and Camera) software team focused on enabling Android experiences on Google's custom "Tensor" SoC. This team of engineers will have good knowledge of multimedia hardware and Android software.
   
   Google's mission is to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful. Our team combines the best of Google AI, Software, and Hardware to create radically helpful experiences. We research, design, and develop new technologies and hardware to make computing faster, seamless, and more powerful. We aim to make people's lives better through technology.
   
   + Lead the bring up of the SoC platform with the new version of Android OS.
   
   + Drive improvements on performance and battery life of the Platform and Device while enhancing product architecture and resiliency.
   
   + Provide feedback on use-cases and work closely with Architecture and Implementation teams to improve future generations of hardware.
   
   + Recruit and manage a team of software engineers while providing task planning, code reviews, and technical leadership in an innovative and fast-paced environment.
   
   + Work cross-functionally with customers within Google to launch products.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find software engineering managers for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your software engineering manager job on Zippia to find and recruit software engineering manager candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites such as dice, engineering.com, stack overflow, it job pro.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit software engineering 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.

   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.

   While interviews are great, you will only sometimes learn enough from a conversation with a software engineering manager applicant. In those cases, having candidates complete a test project can go a long way in figuring out who's the most likely to succeed in the role. If you aren't a technical person and 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 engineering manager

   Once you've decided on a perfect software engineering manager 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.

   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.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new software engineering manager. 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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