How to hire a software product manager

How to hire a software product manager, step by step

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

What does a software product manager do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your software product 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 product 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

   A software product manager's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, software product managers 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 software product managers.

   Type of Software Product Manager	Description	Hourly rate
   Software Product Manager	Advertising, promotions, and marketing managers plan programs to generate interest in products or services. They work with art directors, sales agents, and financial staff members.	$37-74
   Media Manager	Media managers oversee the department that works on the different communication needs of the company. They execute the communications strategies of the company... Show more	$31-67
   Product Lead	A product lead is responsible for monitoring the development of new products and services of an organization, starting from brand conceptualization to official market release and distribution. Product leads identify effective product management by conducting data analysis and evaluating market statistics of customer demands... Show more	$41-78

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Product Management
   • Software Products
   • Software Development
   • Scrum
   • User Stories
   • Product Development
   • Lifecycle Management
   • Product Roadmap
   • Product Vision
   • Project Management
   • Market Research
   • User Experience
   • Architecture
   • Saas

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage a cross functional team including UX/UI, Java, QA counterparts.
   • Manage multiple aspects of product design and end user analysis for Java base medical practice management & HIPAA compliance tools.
   • Manage implementation of divisional intranet and CRM software.
   • Manage deployment and integration of industry leading SaaS billing and e-commerce processing systems.
   • Manage horizontal UX prototyping resource needs, implementing effective collaborative expectations and cross-product timeline allocation strategies.
   • Act as a scrum master for the project.

   More software product manager duties

3. Make a budget

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

   • Location. For example, software product managers' average salary in kansas is 43% less than in california.
   • Seniority. Entry-level software product managers earn 50% less than senior-level software product managers.
   • Certifications. A software product 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 product manager's salary.

   Average software product manager salary

   $110,785yearly

   $53.26 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level software product manager salary

   $78,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 17, 2025

   Average software product manager salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$147,228	$71
   2	New Jersey	$118,258	$57
   3	New York	$115,897	$56
   4	Pennsylvania	$113,916	$55
   5	Massachusetts	$110,633	$53
   6	Washington	$105,765	$51
   7	Nevada	$105,190	$51
   8	Arizona	$103,009	$50
   9	Delaware	$102,653	$49
   10	North Carolina	$102,094	$49
   11	Oregon	$101,092	$49
   12	Texas	$100,512	$48
   13	Virginia	$97,276	$47
   14	New Mexico	$96,723	$47
   15	Michigan	$96,388	$46
   16	North Dakota	$93,071	$45
   17	Illinois	$92,845	$45
   18	Mississippi	$92,342	$44
   19	Connecticut	$90,086	$43
   20	Iowa	$90,078	$43

   Average software product manager salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Meta	$176,242	$84.73	1,472
   2	Apple	$168,019	$80.78	83
   3	Netflix	$166,902	$80.24	48
   4	NVIDIA	$166,516	$80.06	54
   5	Acronis	$160,199	$77.02
   6	Amazon	$159,005	$76.44	748
   7	SeatGeek	$151,859	$73.01	2
   8	Arista Networks	$149,675	$71.96
   9	Logitech	$148,718	$71.50	6
   10	Amd	$144,414	$69.43	46
   11	Square	$144,078	$69.27
   12	Seres	$143,228	$68.86
   13	Applied Materials	$141,202	$67.89	25
   14	Lam Research	$140,369	$67.49	11
   15	Kyocera Mobile	$140,153	$67.38	1
   16	Kronos Incorporated	$139,251	$66.95
   17	Cisco	$139,113	$66.88	226
   18	Tesla	$137,823	$66.26	13
   19	Topcon Positioning Systems	$136,118	$65.44
   20	Mettler-Toledo International	$136,020	$65.39

4. Writing a software product manager job description

   A software product 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. Below, you can find an example of a software product manager job description:

   Software product manager job description example

   Veeva is a mission-driven organization that aspires to help our customers in Life Sciences and Regulated industries bring their products to market, faster. We are shaped by our values: Do the Right Thing, Customer Success, Employee Success, and Speed. Our teams develop transformative cloud software, services, consulting, and data to make our customers more efficient and effective in everything they do. Veeva is a work anywhere company. You can work at home, at a customer site, or in an office on any given day. As a Public Benefit Corporation, you will also work for a company focused on making a positive impact on its customers, employees, and communities.
   The Role
   
   As Product Manager, you will contribute to the success of a market-leading data intelligence product that improves Research and Patient Outcomes. You will own a web application product enabling lean data capturing processes, which is used by thousands of data curators all over the world. You will be responsible for bringing the new product features to life, delivering high-quality software, and making product decisions in alignment with the long-term vision and business needs.
   What You'll DoDefine long-term Product vision and execute towards it Own Product Backlog and its prioritization Work closely with Engineering, Product Managers, and Data Operations teams to design new features and optimizations Translate business requirements into workable User StoriesOrchestrate software development process Ensure timely, high-quality software releases
   Requirements5+ years of work experience in Product Owner, Technical Product Manager, or similar roles, building customer-facing software products Outstanding analytical skills allowing to translate business needs into complete software requirements Ability to manage Product Backlog and prioritize new features while facing multiple StakeholdersProduct-oriented mindset and critical thinking Proven ability to organize and drive work of an agile engineering team Outstanding spoken and written communication skills in EnglishAgile mindset and ability to work in a fast-paced environment Located in Germany or Spain
   Nice to HaveExperience in designing and optimizing process workflows Practical experience in working with large data sets using SQL and NoSQL databases
   #RemoteGermany
   
   Veeva's headquarters is located in the San Francisco Bay Area with offices in more than 15 countries around the world.
   
   Veeva is committed to fostering a culture of inclusion and growing a diverse workforce. Diversity makes us stronger. It comes in many forms. Gender, race, ethnicity, religion, politics, sexual orientation, age, disability and life experience shape us all into unique individuals. We value people for the individuals they are and the contributions they can bring to our teams.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find software product 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 product manager job on Zippia to find and recruit software product 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 product 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.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates 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 software product manager

   Once you've decided on a perfect software product 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 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 software product 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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How much does it cost to hire a software product manager?