How to hire a strategic project manager

How to hire a strategic project manager, step by step

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

What does a strategic project manager do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a strategic project manager, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or 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 strategic project 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.

   This list shows salaries for various types of strategic project managers.

   Type of Strategic Project Manager	Description	Hourly rate
   Strategic Project Manager		$35-72
   Manager, Strategy	A strategy manager is a professional who reviews a company's objectives for growth and works with executives to formulate actionable plans to achieve these objectives. To make comprehensive recommendations, strategy managers must conduct data analysis of the organization as well as the overall industry... Show more	$37-73
   Project Director	A project director is a professional responsible for supervising workers from various departments given specific tasks to complete a given project. They create a budget to complete a job while monitoring the amount of money spent to ensure that overspending is avoided... Show more	$33-77

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Project Management
   • Strategic Projects
   • Project Scope
   • Portfolio
   • Strong Project Management
   • Process Improvement
   • Continuous Improvement
   • Business Development
   • Sigma
   • Data Analysis
   • Financial Analysis
   • Risk Management
   • Project Documentation
   • Lean Six Sigma

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage HVAC, electrical and plumbing.
   • Manage 8 proposal developers responding to approximately 300 RFP's per year.
   • Manage rollouts of CRM enhancements using effective implementation planning, change mgmt and training.
   • Help VZB's competitive advantage by adopting technologies and methods that can reduce costs, increase ROI, and increase uptime.
   • Streamline and centralize usage of project management tools to manage dependencies and transparent delivery milestones for highly complex SaaS platforms
   • Create processes to ensure the integrity of information disseminate to portfolio and risk management systems.

   More strategic project manager duties

3. Make a budget

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

   • Location. For example, strategic project managers' average salary in hawaii is 39% less than in washington.
   • Seniority. Entry-level strategic project managers earn 52% less than senior-level strategic project managers.
   • Certifications. A strategic project 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 strategic project manager's salary.

   Average strategic project manager salary

   $105,238yearly

   $50.60 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level strategic project manager salary

   $73,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 18, 2025

   Average strategic project manager salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$136,517	$66
   2	Washington	$136,350	$66
   3	Michigan	$120,216	$58
   4	Virginia	$119,288	$57
   5	Massachusetts	$115,888	$56
   6	New York	$114,944	$55
   7	Georgia	$112,840	$54
   8	Missouri	$112,030	$54
   9	Nevada	$111,548	$54
   10	New Jersey	$111,351	$54
   11	Illinois	$107,516	$52
   12	Minnesota	$105,780	$51
   13	Wisconsin	$104,799	$50
   14	Texas	$103,576	$50
   15	Connecticut	$103,278	$50
   16	North Carolina	$101,722	$49
   17	Pennsylvania	$99,769	$48
   18	Louisiana	$98,028	$47
   19	Maryland	$96,388	$46
   20	Florida	$95,387	$46

   Average strategic project manager salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	McKinsey & Company Inc	$163,234	$78.48	7
   2	Accenture	$142,628	$68.57	1,342
   3	Ernst & Young	$133,169	$64.02	542
   4	Hitachi Vantara	$131,114	$63.04
   5	AstraZeneca	$128,000	$61.54	1
   6	GLG	$127,246	$61.18	1
   7	TASER Self-Defense	$127,006	$61.06	56
   8	Varian Medical Systems	$124,782	$59.99
   9	Goldman Sachs	$122,479	$58.88	1
   10	Procore Technologies	$121,605	$58.46	4
   11	CVS Health	$120,922	$58.14	413
   12	Amazon	$120,670	$58.01	887
   13	AbbVie	$120,168	$57.77	105
   14	Alere	$119,463	$57.43
   15	Waystar	$116,338	$55.93	7
   16	Uber Technologies	$116,179	$55.86	2
   17	Citi	$116,102	$55.82	18
   18	Faraday Technology	$115,974	$55.76
   19	Lucid Motors	$114,283	$54.94	37
   20	The Home Depot	$111,598	$53.65	14

4. Writing a strategic project manager job description

   A job description for a strategic project 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 strategic project manager job description:

   Strategic project manager job description example

   Work type: Full Time
   School/Department: Earth Institute Grade: Grade 15 Categories: General Administration Job Type: Officer of Administration Bargaining Unit: Regular/Temporary: Regular End Date if Temporary: Hours Per Week: 35 Salary Range: Position Summary
   
   The Senior Strategic Project Manager will provide key project management support for Education Curriculum initiatives for the Climate School. Reporting to the Vice Dean of K12 and Continuing Education, the Senior Strategic Project Manager, is responsible for supporting strategic and operational work in the Climate School. The Senior Strategic Project Manager will manage and communicate regularly on the project management status of initiatives and priorities, as well as coordinate stakeholder engagement across projects.This is an opportunity for a strategic, organized individual with exceptional project management and communication skills to be a part of creating the Climate School.
   
   Responsibilities
   Develops and executes project plans to achieve goals, identify and mitigate risks, and embed sustainability strategies under the direction of the Executive Director of Project Management. Develop a strong, consultative partnership with staff across the Climate School clearly communicating the school's goals and objectives. Develops and oversees project timelines, milestones, and deliverables with internal and external stakeholders. Facilitates working group sessions with key stakeholders to ensure end-user design process. Leads critical strategic initiatives assigned by the Executive Director of Project Management. Makes recommendations to the Executive Director on the development of internal policies and procedures to bring alignment to the larger Columbia University. Works within and across offices to raise policy issues and identify areas in need of improvement regarding operational and organizational alignment. Assists the Executive Director of Project Management on the development of department-wide strategy related to long-term policies, budget planning, and operations. Under the direction of the Vice Dean of K12 and Continuing Education, leads and supports project management across teams, including: assisting in the compilation of data in relation to strategic priorities and emerging issues; ensuring that project teams are delivering value, quality, and efficiency; helping to create and deliver presentations that effectively communicate key project findings and recommendations to various audiences; and initiating projects and preparing results for presentation. Performs other tasks, duties, and responsibilities as assigned Minimum Qualifications
   BA required plus 7 years' related project management work experience. Strategic project management skills, including assessment, gap analysis, planning and implementing. Strong organizational abilities including planning, delegating, program development and task facilitation. Ability to convey a vision of the Climate School's strategic future to staff and partners. Knowledge of operational strategies and processes in relation to finance, human capital, facilities, and strategic priorities. Exceptional interpersonal, organizational, and oral and written communication skills required. Strong written and oral communications skills. Strong public speaking ability. Preferred Qualifications
   Type preferred qualifications Other Requirements
   Type other requirements and/or special indicators if CUIMC Equal Opportunity Employer / Disability / Veteran
   
   Columbia University is committed to the hiring of qualified local residents.
   
   Applications open: Sep 15 2022Eastern Daylight Time
   Applications close:

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5. Post your job

   To find the right strategic project manager for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with strategic project managers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit strategic project managers who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

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

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting strategic project managers requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   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 strategic project manager

   Once you have selected a candidate for the strategic project manager 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.

   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.

   To prepare for the new strategic project 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 strategic project manager?