How to Hire an Employee

Quick Links

New employee selection is an important supervisory job skill and provides a foundation for achieving departmental goals and objectives through people. Your attention to all aspects of best practices related to selecting staff will not only provide you with excellent talent, but serve to minimize disruptions caused by a poor job match between an employee and PSU. The Office of Human Resources offers professional consultation and guidance to aid our hiring managers. The following are important steps to follow as you launch the recruiting and selection of staff.



Academic Units: Search Process - .50+ Faculty & Administrators

Note that Portland State's required search elements are in bold. All other items on this page are supplemental tools, worksheets, or information. Please contact Christina Kraus for assistance throughout your search and email suggestions for improving these tools to Maria Eldred.

Step 1: Planning Well

Step 2: Complete Permission to Recruit

Complete the Permission to Recruit form and attach the following are required documents:

  1. Advertising Draft (short ad for cost-driven print advertising)
  3. Position Announcement (detailed announcement for web posting, listserves, etc not limited by length)
  5. Position Description or for Academic Professionals a Position Analysis form.
  6. OAA Pre-approval Questions (OAA depts only)
  7. Copy of resignation or statement of intent to retire (if refilling a position)

When the Permission to Recruit package is approved, Human Resources will email a .PDF copy to the appropriate contacts.

Step 3: Email your final Position Announcement

Email your final position announcement for posting on the PSU Human Resources website.

Step 4: Conduct your search

Note that search materials must be retained for three years beyond the selected candidate's start date.

Step 5: Proposal to Appoint (When Candidate Selected or Making Direct Appointment)

When the candidate accepts the verbal offer or you have received permission to directly appoint and individual without conducting a search, complete the Proposal to Appoint. Do not extend an official Letter of Offer to the employee until the Proposal to Appoint has completed the approval process.

The following are required to be attached to the Proposal to Appoint:

  1. Draft Letter of Offer (also include the Supplemental Letter for Tenure Related Faculty)
  2. Position Description or for Academic Professionals a Position Analysis form.
  3. Affirmative Action Hiring Report or Direct Appointment Waiver (bypassing Steps 1 through 3 of the recruitment process)
  4. Resume

When the Proposal to Appoint package is approved, Human Resources will email a PDF copy to the department.

Step 6: Extend Official Letter of Offer

The department may extend the official letter of offer to the employee for signature after the Proposal to Appoint is approved and the employee has cleared their background check, if one was required.

Step 7: Send Final Documents to Human Resources

Forward accepted letter and position description to Human Resources. Note that if this is a grant-related position, first send the accepted letter and position description to Research Accounting.

Step 8: Onboarding & Orientation

Assist the new employee in a smooth transition through the steps in the On-boarding & Orientation guide and the New Employee Toolbox webpage.

Step 9: Ensure the New Employee Completes Required Paperwork

Have employee go to HR to complete required New Employee Paperwork and attend a New Employee Briefing.

Contact your Human Resources Unclassified Representatives for further information or assistance.

Non-Academic Units: Search Process - Fast Track Recruit & Hire Process

This process is required for permission to recruit for full-time unclassified positions in non-academic units: President's Office, University Relations, Athletics, and Finance and Administration.

Step 1: Submit - Fast Track Recruiting & Hiring Form

  1. Approval routing & actions
    • Department Manager & creation of PTR & required attachments (see form)
    • Executive Director/equivalent & review, modification, & approval of all attachments
    • Budget Office & verify funding sources identified, approval
    • Vice President Office & review, modification, & approval
    • Human Resources & review, modification and approval
  3. When routing/approval is complete you can begin your search:
    • HR will email a PDF version to all signatories plus AFM with changes and action items highlighted in email text including important AFM web links.
    • Affirmative Action will send a search folder and prepare to receive applicant data forms.

Step 2: Recruit and Select your Candidate (see Unclassified Search Toolkit)

  1. Follow the Unclassified Search Toolkit steps to find a great candidate.
  2. Send Search & Screen Report to AFM for comparison with returned applicant data forms before beginning interviews.
    • Potential inclusion of underrepresented applicants if they meet minimum requirements but not currently included in "To-be-interviewed" subset identified on the Search & Screen Report.
  4. Interview (phone & onsite) & conduct reference checks.

Step 3: Submit Hiring Report to Affirmative Action for approval

  1. This report contains the reasons for choosing your top candidate & reasons for not choosing all others listed as "to-be-interviewed" on the Search & Screen Report.
  2. If AFM guidelines are met, AFM will send an email stating approval to the hiring manager & HR.

Option A: Fast Track Appointment details within approved recruitment limits & additional approvals are NOT necessary.

  1. Give official letter of offer and position description to your selected candidate.
  2. If subject to a background check, contingency language must be included in the letter of offer.
  3. Send accepted offer letter, final position description, & resume to HR for payroll processing.
  4. HR completes "HR only" section of Fast Track form with candidate information and emails final information to hiring manager, director, BUD & AFM in PDF format.

Option B: Appointment details exceed the approved recruitment limits & additional approvals ARE necessary.

  1. Submit proposed appointment changes by email to Christina Kraus; an HR representative will obtain the additional appropriate approvals for the appointment.
  2. Ex: proposed salary exceeds approved salary range; HR obtains BUD approval for new rate
  3. When approval is received for the modification an email will be sent to the hiring manager.
  4. Extend the official letter of offer and position description to the candidate.
  5. If subject to a background check, contingency language must be included in the letter of offer and a background check release form signed by the final candidate sent to HR for processing.
  6. Dept submits the accepted offer letter, position description, & resume to HR for payroll processing.
  7. HR completes "HR only" section of Fast Track form with candidate information and emails final appointment information to hiring manager, director, BUD, & AFM in PDF format.

Non-Academic Units: Direct Appointment Process

Step 1: Proposal to Appoint

Do not extend an official Letter of Offer to the employee until the Proposal to Appoint has completed the approval process.

The following are required to be attached to the Proposal to Appoint:

  1. Draft Letter of Offer
  2. Position Description
  3. Direct Appointment Waiver/Memo to Affirmative Action with reasons for bypassing the recruitment process.
  4. Resume

When the Proposal to Appoint package is approved, Human Resources will email a PDF copy to the department.

Step 2: Extend Official Letter of Offer

The department may extend the official letter of offer to the employee for signature after the Proposal to Appoint is approved and the employee has cleared their background check, if one was required.

Step 3: Send Final Documents to Human Resources

Forward accepted letter and position description to Human Resources. Note that if this is a grant-related position, first send the accepted letter and position description to Research Accounting.

Step 4: Onboarding & Orientation

Assist the new employee in a smooth transition through the steps in the On-boarding & Orientation guide.

Step 5: Ensure the New Employee Completes Required Paperwork

Have employee go to HR to complete required New Employee Paperwork and attend a New Employee Briefing.

Contact your Human Resources Unclassified Representatives for further information or assistance.