SOP example: Hire for an open role
One of ten examples from our library of 150+ pre-made SOPs. Copy it, change it to how your company works, and give it an owner.
Scope
This SOP covers filling an open role at your company, from the approved request to hire through the signed offer and handoff to onboarding. It starts when the owner or a team lead requests a hire. It ends when the new hire has accepted in writing and the people file is complete. Pay, legal and posting rules differ by state, so check your state.
Roles
- Owner: Approves the role, the job post text, the offer text and the final hiring decision.
- Hiring manager: Defines what the role needs, interviews finalists and recommends who to hire.
- People lead: Runs the process, checks it against the rules for your state, keeps the people file and sends approved messages.
- The Hiring agent: Drafts the job post, screens applicants, books interviews and tracks every candidate to a yes or a no.
- The SOP writer agent: Keeps this SOP current and updates it when the steps change.
The steps
- The hiring manager writes down what the role does, what it needs and who it reports to.
- The owner approves the role and its pay range.
- The People lead checks the pay range and posting rules for your state.
- The People lead drafts the job post and the owner approves the exact text before it is posted.
- The People lead posts the approved job post.
- The People lead screens applicants against the written needs and shortlists them.
- The People lead books interviews with the hiring manager.
- The hiring manager interviews the shortlist and recommends one person in writing.
- The People lead checks references, with the candidate's permission, and drafts the offer.
- The owner approves the exact offer text, then the People lead sends it, records the answer in the people file and tells every other candidate the outcome.
KPIs
- Time to hire: Count days from the owner's approval of the role to the written acceptance, using dates in the people file. Target: set per business.
- Candidates answered: Share of applicants who got a final yes or no, counted from the Hiring agent's candidate tracking. Target: set per business.
- Offer acceptance: Offers accepted divided by offers sent, from the people file. Target: set per business.
- New hire retention: Share of new hires still with your company at the end of the first review period, from the people file. Target: set per business.
The AI-first version
- The hiring manager states the need and the People lead confirms it is complete (judgment)
- The Hiring agent drafts the job post from the need; the People lead checks it against your state's rules and the owner approves the exact text (assisted)
- The Hiring agent posts the approved text and nothing else (machine)
- The Hiring agent screens every applicant against the written needs and sends the People lead a shortlist with reasons (assisted)
- The Hiring agent books interviews with the shortlisted candidates and the hiring manager (machine)
- The hiring manager interviews and recommends one candidate in writing (judgment)
- The Hiring agent drafts the decline messages and the People lead and owner approve the exact text before anything is sent (assisted)
- The owner decides on the hire, and the Hiring agent drafts the offer for the owner to approve as exact text (judgment)
- The candidate accepts or declines the offer (external)
- The Hiring agent updates the people file and the People lead hands over to onboarding (assisted)
How to use this SOP
Run it for a month as written, then fix what didn't match reality. In the AI-first version, machine steps go to an agent, assisted steps are drafted by an agent and checked by a person, and judgment steps stay with a person.