How to hire a technical team lead

How to hire a technical team lead, step by step

Here's a step-by-step technical team lead hiring guide:

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

What does a technical team lead do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a technical team lead, 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 technical team lead 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 technical team lead salaries for various roles:

   Type of Technical Team Lead	Description	Hourly rate
   Technical Team Lead	Computer support specialists provide help and advice to people and organizations using computer software or equipment. Some, called computer network support specialists, support information technology (IT) employees within their organization... Show more	$31-58
   Team Lead And Developer	A team lead and developer is a person who handles a group of employees in a particular section, geared to accomplish daily specific goals. The team lead and developer ensures that the team works cohesively and efficiently to achieve its goals... Show more	$23-73
   Lead Technician	Lead technicians are technicians who oversee the technical needs of a specific project or department. They are usually tenured employees, and their familiarity with the company's technical and technological processes, software, and hardware would be a great advantage in succeeding in their role... Show more	$32-58

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Customer Service
   • Patients
   • Java
   • Project Management
   • Troubleshoot
   • C++
   • Architecture
   • Management System
   • Web Services
   • Quality Standards
   • SQL Server
   • QA
   • Production Environment
   • JavaScript

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage on-shore and off-shore resources to design, develop, review, test, and implement Java base application development.
   • Coordinate and oversee relevant JAVA development work perform offshore in India and manage offshore consultant relationships.
   • Develop interfaces to manage the framework using windows services; develop web-applications to manage the process (including starting/stopping/pausing activities).
   • Use of JavaScript for client side validations, CSS files for UI design and styling.
   • Ensure team members are properly train on Microsoft coding standards, XML, HTML, JS & policies and style guidelines.
   • Install, troubleshot, track and log pc installations.

   More technical team lead duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the technical team lead job description is a good way to get more applicants. A technical team lead salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a technical team lead in Idaho may be lower than in California, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level technical team lead. Additionally, a technical team lead with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average technical team lead salary

   $90,219yearly

   $43.37 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level technical team lead salary

   $66,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 16, 2025

   Average technical team lead salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$124,108	$60
   2	New York	$105,956	$51
   3	District of Columbia	$100,187	$48
   4	Michigan	$96,097	$46
   5	Delaware	$96,008	$46
   6	New Jersey	$94,450	$45
   7	Massachusetts	$93,648	$45
   8	Ohio	$92,571	$45
   9	Virginia	$89,034	$43
   10	Connecticut	$87,340	$42
   11	Pennsylvania	$86,619	$42
   12	North Carolina	$86,469	$42
   13	Texas	$86,132	$41
   14	Minnesota	$85,012	$41
   15	Louisiana	$84,908	$41
   16	Illinois	$84,469	$41
   17	Indiana	$84,386	$41
   18	Georgia	$82,111	$39
   19	Arizona	$81,877	$39
   20	Florida	$78,989	$38

   Average technical team lead salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Google	$184,148	$88.53	325
   2	Atlassian	$162,539	$78.14	3
   3	Microsoft	$157,761	$75.85	516
   4	Apple	$155,637	$74.83	147
   5	Waymo	$152,679	$73.40	62
   6	Bloomberg	$146,810	$70.58	206
   7	Citi	$143,279	$68.88	43
   8	Chevron	$136,438	$65.60	3
   9	Barclays	$134,349	$64.59	2
   10	Anomali	$133,682	$64.27	5
   11	Western Digital	$132,792	$63.84	12
   12	Shutterstock	$132,602	$63.75
   13	Datadog	$132,281	$63.60	34
   14	Beasley Media Group	$132,048	$63.48
   15	Mayo Clinic	$130,721	$62.85	33
   16	Invesco	$130,117	$62.56	2
   17	Greenhouse Software	$128,075	$61.57
   18	Aramco Services Company	$127,735	$61.41
   19	Nordstrom	$127,047	$61.08	1
   20	JPMorgan Chase & Co.	$126,706	$60.92	397

4. Writing a technical team lead job description

   A good technical team lead 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 technical team lead job description:

   Technical team lead job description example

   7a-5:30 pm, call and holidays required, laser safety officer certification required within 90 days, responsible for regulatory compliance, staff education on all shifts, Required to scrub multiple specialties
   
   Provides leadership as clinical expert and coordinates all aspects of the assigned service line. Includes collaboration between staff, physicians and management on procedural issues and ensures the presence and proper arrangement of surgical equipment and supplies in the operating room prior to each operation. Coordinates equipment, supplies, and staff to assist with trial studies and research efforts. Provides staff development and orientation programs. Consults with vendors and provides clinical and/or product consultative services. Participates in capital submission process and preference card maintenance. Collaborates with Sterile Processing to research and create instrument sets and preference cards for new surgeons. Coordinates special projects.
   * Requires High School Diploma/GED. Associates Degree preferred.
   * Requires 3-5 years of experience.
   * Requires certification as a Certified Surgical Technologist obtained from the NBSTSA.
   * Requires Basic Life Support Certification.
   * Able to resource advanced technology. Example: Ability to run several types of lasers, participate in robotic surgery and operate stealth equipment.
   * Requires documentation of 25 Contact Hours of Continuing Education.
   * Requires successful completion of Perioperative Services Preceptor class and/or completion of 4 Precepting eLMS modules; as demonstrated by documentation from Educator and Preceptor Evaluations.
   * Requires involvement in the organization wide committee, Surgical Technologist training program or in the organization recruitment initiatives.
   * Requires knowledge of various surgical procedures in order to anticipate the needs of the surgeon and to recognize the problems encountered by the surgeon.
   * Requires knowledge of name and function of surgical equipment and instrumentation.
   * Requires strict adherence to policies and regulations regarding maintenance of sterile field.
   
   Safeguarding our patients and each other is an important part of how we deliver the best care possible to the communities we serve. As a condition of employment, IU Health requires all new hires to receive various vaccinations, including the influenza and COVID-19 vaccines, barring an approved exemption. New hires will also be provided the option to submit proof of previous vaccination.
   
   We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity and inclusion at IU Health. IU Health does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, national origin, gender identity and/or expression, marital status or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right technical team lead 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 technical team leads they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit technical team leads 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 technical team lead job on Zippia to find and recruit technical team lead candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting technical team leads 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.

   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.

   While interviews are great, you will only sometimes learn enough from a conversation with a technical team lead 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 technical team lead

   Once you've selected the best technical team lead candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   To prepare for the new technical team lead 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 technical team lead?