Disciplines / Clinical Director
Clinical Director (Clinical Director)
Clinical directors own quality, compliance and clinical outcomes across a site, region or service line, usually while carrying a reduced caseload.
- Advertised pay
- $105k – $165k
- Credential
- Senior clinical licensure or certification (BCBA, LCSW, psychologist, SLP) plus leadership experience
- Live roles
- None open today
What is a Clinical Director (Clinical Director), and what does the role pay?
What the role does
- Own clinical quality standards and outcome reporting
- Lead and develop supervisors and clinicians
- Manage payer compliance and audit readiness
- Drive utilization, staffing and retention
- Partner with operations on growth and new sites
Credential and route in
Senior clinical licensure or certification (BCBA, LCSW, psychologist, SLP) plus leadership experience · Varies by discipline
- 1Established clinical licensure or certification
- 2Supervisory experience with documented outcomes
- 3Operational exposure: staffing models, payer mix, utilization
Advertised pay
| Career stage | Advertised pay | What typically sits behind it |
|---|---|---|
| Entry | $105k | Newly credentialed, supervised caseload |
| Mid-career | $130k | Full caseload, independent, some supervision of others |
| Senior | $165k | Lead or multi-site scope, clinical quality ownership |
Ranges reflect what we typically see advertised on roles we recruit for in the US. They are a market guide, not a survey, and vary by setting, caseload and experience. Last reviewed August 2026.
Full Clinical Director salary guideWhere Clinical Directors work
Multi-site ABA providers · Community mental health organizations · Pediatric therapy groups · Residential programs
Specialties
- ABA and autism servicesCenter-based, in-home and hybrid applied behavior analysis for autistic children and adults, from single-site clinics to national multi-site providers.
- Community mental healthMedicaid-funded outpatient and community programs delivering therapy, prescribing, case management and crisis services.
- Inpatient and residentialPsychiatric hospitals, residential treatment centers and PHP programs treating high-acuity mental health presentations.
- Pediatric therapyOutpatient pediatric speech, occupational and physical therapy clinics, frequently multidisciplinary alongside ABA.
Demand right now
Growing fast as private-equity-backed and multi-site providers professionalize. The hardest part is finding clinicians who can lead without losing clinical credibility.
Hiring Clinical Directors?
These are retained-style searches: small candidate pool, high confidentiality, and a real cost to getting it wrong.
Submit a roleLive Clinical Director roles
No live Clinical Director roles today. Join the talent network and we will contact you when one opens in your state.
Join the talent networkRelated roles
- Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA)BCBAs design, supervise and adjust applied behavior analysis programs. They own clinical quality across a caseload of clients and the behavior technicians delivering the hours.$75k – $115k
- Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW)LCSWs provide diagnosis and psychotherapy across community mental health, integrated care, schools and private outpatient settings.$62k – $95k
- Clinical Psychologist (PhD / PsyD)Psychologists carry the assessment and complex-case load: diagnostic evaluations, autism and ADHD assessment, psychological testing and specialist therapy.$92k – $145k