Reports: Carly Fiorina is hiring staff members for a presidential campaign

The National Journal reports that Republican Carly Fiorina is hiring staff members for an "imminent" presidential campaign, citing three sources with "direct knowledge of the situation."

Sources told the Journal that Fiorina's campaign "could launch as early as next month." Fiorina's inner circle is said to be interviewing candidates for top positions like political and communications directors. Earlier this year, Fiorina told the Journal that "it would be great" if the GOP had female presidential candidates.

Fiorina, former CEO of Hewlett-Packard, ran for U.S. Senate in 2010, losing to incumbent Sen. Barbara Boxer (D) of California. She also was an adviser for Sen. John McCain's 2008 presidential run and chaired an RNC fundraising initiative. Fiorina was named one of Newsmax's 25 most influential women in the GOP in 2013.

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Fiorina isn't a household name, and in a race packed with Republican rising stars, her odds aren't good. In fact, some of the Journal's sources think a presidential run could have an ulterior motive: getting the nod for vice president. "If Hillary Clinton's the nominee, Republicans need a woman front and center — probably on the ticket," Jason Cabel Roe, a Republican consultant based in California, told the Journal. "And Carly knows that."