Sales Manager

Plan, direct, or coordinate the actual distribution or movement of a product or service to the customer. Coordinate sales distribution by establishing sales territories, quotas, and goals and establish training programs for sales representatives. Analyze sales statistics gathered by staff to determine sales potential and inventory requirements and monitor the preferences of customers.

On the job, you would:

Direct and coordinate activities involving sales of manufactured products, services, commodities, real estate, or other subjects of sale.
Resolve customer complaints regarding sales and service.
Review operational records and reports to project sales and determine profitability.

Important Qualities

Analytical skills. Sales managers must collect and interpret complex data to target the most promising geographic areas and demographic groups, and determine the most effective sales strategies.

Communication skills. Sales managers need to work with colleagues and customers, so they must be able to communicate clearly.

Customer-service skills. When helping to make a sale, sales managers must listen and respond to the customer’s needs.

Leadership skills. Sales managers must be able to evaluate how their sales staff performs and must develop strategies for meeting sales goals.

Personality

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Characteristics of this Career
		95%	Initiative - Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
		91%	Integrity - Job requires being honest and ethical.
		89%	Leadership - Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
		89%	Adaptability/Flexibility - Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
		89%	Dependability - Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
		88%	Stress Tolerance - Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high-stress situations.
		87%	Persistence - Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
		84%	Achievement/Effort - Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
		84%	Cooperation - Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
		83%	Self-Control - Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
		83%	Independence - Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.
		78%	Analytical Thinking - Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
		78%	Innovation - Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems.
		77%	Attention to Detail - Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
		71%	Social Orientation - Job requires preferring to work with others rather than alone, and being personally connected with others on the job.
		69%	Concern for Others - Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Strengths
		100%	Enterprising - Work involves managing, negotiating, marketing, or selling, typically in a business setting, or leading or advising people in political and legal situations. Enterprising occupations are often associated with business initiatives, sales, marketing/advertising, finance, management/administration, professional advising, public speaking, politics, or law.
		61%	Conventional - Work involves following procedures and regulations to organize information or data, typically in a business setting. Conventional occupations are often associated with office work, accounting, mathematics/statistics, information technology, finance, or human resources.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Values of the Work Environment
		78%	Independence - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy.
		75%	Working Conditions - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions.
		72%	Achievement - Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.
		72%	Support - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees. Corresponding needs are Company Policies, Supervision: Human Relations and Supervision: Technical.
		61%	Recognition - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer advancement, potential for leadership, and are often considered prestigious. Corresponding needs are Advancement, Authority, Recognition and Social Status.

Aptitude

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Abilities \| Cognitive, Physical, Personality
		75%	Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
		75%	Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
		75%	Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
		72%	Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
		72%	Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
		72%	Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
		72%	Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
		69%	Fluency of Ideas - The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
		69%	Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
		69%	Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
		66%	Originality - The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.
		60%	Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
		56%	Category Flexibility - The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
		56%	Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
		53%	Mathematical Reasoning - The ability to choose the right mathematical methods or formulas to solve a problem.
		53%	Number Facility - The ability to add, subtract, multiply, or divide quickly and correctly.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Skills \| Cognitive, Physical, Personality
		68%	Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
		63%	Persuasion - Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
		59%	Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
		59%	Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
		59%	Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
		57%	Management of Personnel Resources - Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
		57%	Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
		57%	Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
		57%	Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
		57%	Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
		57%	Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
		55%	Negotiation - Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
		55%	Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
		55%	Systems Evaluation - Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
		55%	Time Management - Managing one's own time and the time of others.
		55%	Active Learning - Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
		55%	Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.
		54%	Systems Analysis - Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
		54%	Learning Strategies - Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
		52%	Instructing - Teaching others how to do something.
		52%	Management of Financial Resources - Determining how money will be spent to get the work done, and accounting for these expenditures.

Job Details

Responsibilities

Resolve customer complaints or problems.

Represent the organization in external relations.

Evaluate employee performance.

Manage human resources activities.

Establish interpersonal business relationships to facilitate work activities.

Advise customers on technical or procedural issues.

Supervise employees.

Direct sales, marketing, or customer service activities.

Evaluate potential of products, technologies, or resources.

Conduct opinion surveys or needs assessments.

Direct sales, marketing, or customer service activities.

Determine pricing or monetary policies.

Analyze financial records or reports to determine state of operations.

Direct sales, marketing, or customer service activities.

Confer with organizational members to accomplish work activities.

Advise others on business or operational matters.

Approve expenditures.

Prepare operational budgets.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Attributes & Percentage of Time Spent
		100%	Electronic Mail - How often do you use electronic mail in this job?
		100%	Telephone - How often do you have telephone conversations in this job?
		96%	Contact With Others - How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it?
		84%	Work With Work Group or Team - How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job?
		83%	Face-to-Face Discussions - How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job?
		82%	Deal With External Customers - How important is it to work with external customers or the public in this job?
		81%	Letters and Memos - How often does the job require written letters and memos?
		78%	Level of Competition - To what extent does this job require the worker to compete or to be aware of competitive pressures?
		78%	Freedom to Make Decisions - How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer?
		77%	Structured versus Unstructured Work - To what extent is this job structured for the worker, rather than allowing the worker to determine tasks, priorities, and goals?
		72%	Coordinate or Lead Others - How important is it to coordinate or lead others in accomplishing work activities in this job?
		68%	Importance of Being Exact or Accurate - How important is being very exact or highly accurate in performing this job?
		68%	Time Pressure - How often does this job require the worker to meet strict deadlines?
		68%	Responsibility for Outcomes and Results - How responsible is the worker for work outcomes and results of other workers?
		66%	Spend Time Sitting - How much does this job require sitting?
		66%	Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results - What results do your decisions usually have on other people or the image or reputation or financial resources of your employer?
		66%	Frequency of Decision Making - How frequently is the worker required to make decisions that affect other people, the financial resources, and/or the image and reputation of the organization?
		63%	Indoors, Environmentally Controlled - How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions?
		58%	In an Enclosed Vehicle or Equipment - How often does this job require working in a closed vehicle or equipment (e.g., car)?
		56%	Deal With Unpleasant or Angry People - How frequently does the worker have to deal with unpleasant, angry, or discourteous individuals as part of the job requirements?
		56%	Frequency of Conflict Situations - How often are there conflict situations the employee has to face in this job?
		91%	Duration of Typical Work Week - Number of hours typically worked in one week.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Tasks & Values
		93%	Selling or Influencing Others - Convincing others to buy merchandise/goods or to otherwise change their minds or actions.
		84%	Thinking Creatively - Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
		84%	Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates - Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
		84%	Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships - Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
		83%	Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work - Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
		83%	Coaching and Developing Others - Identifying the developmental needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or otherwise helping others to improve their knowledge or skills.
		82%	Working with Computers - Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.
		81%	Developing and Building Teams - Encouraging and building mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.
		81%	Training and Teaching Others - Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
		80%	Communicating with People Outside the Organization - Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.
		78%	Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates - Providing guidance and direction to subordinates, including setting performance standards and monitoring performance.
		78%	Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others - Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
		77%	Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others - Handling complaints, settling disputes, and resolving grievances and conflicts, or otherwise negotiating with others.
		77%	Developing Objectives and Strategies - Establishing long-range objectives and specifying the strategies and actions to achieve them.
		77%	Making Decisions and Solving Problems - Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
		76%	Providing Consultation and Advice to Others - Providing guidance and expert advice to management or other groups on technical, systems-, or process-related topics.
		74%	Getting Information - Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
		73%	Analyzing Data or Information - Identifying the underlying principles, reasons, or facts of information by breaking down information or data into separate parts.
		71%	Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge - Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
		69%	Scheduling Work and Activities - Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.
		68%	Performing for or Working Directly with the Public - Performing for people or dealing directly with the public. This includes serving customers in restaurants and stores, and receiving clients or guests.
		66%	Processing Information - Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data.
		66%	Monitoring and Controlling Resources - Monitoring and controlling resources and overseeing the spending of money.
		65%	Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others - Translating or explaining what information means and how it can be used.
		59%	Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events - Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
		59%	Staffing Organizational Units - Recruiting, interviewing, selecting, hiring, and promoting employees in an organization.
		57%	Judging the Qualities of Objects, Services, or People - Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people.
		56%	Documenting/Recording Information - Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
		54%	Estimating the Quantifiable Characteristics of Products, Events, or Information - Estimating sizes, distances, and quantities; or determining time, costs, resources, or materials needed to perform a work activity.
		52%	Performing Administrative Activities - Performing day-to-day administrative tasks such as maintaining information files and processing paperwork.

What Sales Managers Do

Sales managers recruit, hire, and train new members of the sales staff.

Sales managers direct organizations' sales teams. They set sales goals, analyze data, and develop training programs for organizations’ sales representatives.

Duties

Sales managers typically do the following:

Resolve customer complaints regarding sales and service
Prepare budgets and approve expenditures
Monitor customer preferences to determine the focus of sales efforts
Analyze sales statistics
Project sales and determine the profitability of products and services
Determine discount rates or special pricing plans
Develop plans to acquire new customers or clients through direct sales techniques, cold calling, and business-to-business marketing visits
Assign sales territories and set sales quotas
Plan and coordinate training programs for sales staff

Sales managers’ responsibilities vary with the size of their organizations. However, most sales managers direct the distribution of goods and services by assigning sales territories, setting sales goals, and establishing training programs for the organization’s sales representatives.

Sales managers recruit, hire, and train new members of the sales staff, including retail sales workers and wholesale and manufacturing sales representatives.

Sales managers advise sales representatives on ways to improve their sales performance. In large multiproduct organizations, they oversee regional and local sales managers and their staffs.

Sales managers also stay in contact with dealers and distributors. They analyze sales statistics generated from their staff to determine the sales potential and inventory requirements of products and stores and to monitor customers' preferences.

Sales managers work closely with managers from other departments in the organization. For example, the marketing department identifies new customers that the sales department can target. The relationship between these two departments is critical to helping an organization expand its client base. Sales managers also work closely with research and design departments because they know customers’ preferences, and with warehousing departments because they know inventory needs.

Sales managers are increasingly using data on customer shopping habits to identify potential customers more effectively. This allows them more time to facilitate sales through customized sales pitches to individual customers.

The following are examples of types of sales managers:

Business to business (B2B) sales managers oversee sales from one business to another. These managers may work for a manufacturer selling to a wholesaler, or a wholesaler selling to a retailer. Examples of these workers include sales managers overseeing sales of software to business firms, and sales managers overseeing wholesale food sales to grocery stores.

Business to consumer (B2C) sales managers oversee direct sales between businesses and individual consumers. These managers typically work in retail settings. Examples of these workers include sales managers of automobile dealerships and department stores.

Work Environment

Sales managers held about 554,700 jobs in 2022. The largest employers of sales managers were as follows:

Wholesale trade	20%
Retail trade	18
Professional, scientific, and technical services	13
Manufacturing	10
Finance and insurance	10

Sales managers have a lot of responsibility, and the position can be stressful. Many sales managers travel to national, regional, and local offices and to dealers’ and distributors’ offices.

Work Schedules

Most sales managers work full time, and they often have to work additional hours on evenings and weekends.

Getting Started

Education:

65%

Bachelor's Degree

13%

Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree)

How to Become a Sales Manager

Most sales managers have a bachelor’s degree and previous work experience as a sales representative.

Most sales managers have a bachelor’s degree and work experience as a sales representative.

Education

Sales managers are typically required to have a bachelor’s degree, although some positions may only require a high school diploma. Courses in business law, management, economics, accounting, finance, mathematics, marketing, and statistics are advantageous.

Work Experience in a Related Occupation

Work experience is typically required for someone to become a sales manager. The preferred duration varies, but employers usually seek candidates who have at least 1 to 5 years of experience in sales.

Sales managers typically enter the occupation from other sales and related occupations, such as retail sales workers, wholesale and manufacturing sales representatives, or purchasing agents. In small organizations, the number of sales manager positions often is limited, so advancement for sales workers usually comes slowly. In large organizations, promotion may occur more quickly.

Job Outlook

Employment of sales managers is projected to grow 4 percent from 2022 to 2032, about as fast as the average for all occupations.

About 43,200 openings for sales managers are projected each year, on average, over the decade. Many of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.

Employment

Employment growth of these managers will depend primarily on growth or contraction in the industries that employ them.

An effective sales team remains crucial for profitability. As the economy grows, organizations will focus on generating new sales and will look to their sales strategy as a way to increase competitiveness.

Online shopping is expected to continue to increase, meaning more sales will be completed without a sales worker involved in the transaction. However, brick-and-mortar retail stores also are expected to increase their emphasis on customer service as a way to compete with online sellers. Because sales managers will be needed to direct and navigate this mix between online and brick-and-mortar sales, sustained demand is expected for these workers.

Contacts for More Information

For more information about sales managers, visit

Sales Management Association

Similar Occupations

This table shows a list of occupations with job duties that are similar to those of sales managers.

Occupation	Job Duties	Entry-Level Education	Median Annual Pay, May 2022
Advertising, Promotions, and Marketing Managers	Advertising, promotions, and marketing managers plan programs to generate interest in products or services.	Bachelor's degree	$138,730
Advertising Sales Agents	Advertising sales agents sell advertising space to businesses and individuals.	High school diploma or equivalent	$58,450
Market Research Analysts	Market research analysts study consumer preferences, business conditions, and other factors to assess potential sales of a product or service.	Bachelor's degree	$68,230
Retail Sales Workers	Retail sales workers help customers find products they want and process customers’ payments.	No formal educational credential	$30,750
Sales Engineers	Sales engineers sell complex scientific and technological products or services to businesses.	Bachelor's degree	$108,530
Wholesale and Manufacturing Sales Representatives	Wholesale and manufacturing sales representatives sell goods for wholesalers or manufacturers to businesses, government agencies, and other organizations.	See How to Become One	$67,750
Public Relations and Fundraising Managers	Public relations managers direct the creation of materials that will enhance the public image of their employer or client. Fundraising managers coordinate campaigns that bring in donations for their organization.	Bachelor's degree	$125,620
Public Relations Specialists	Public relations specialists create and maintain a positive public image for the clients they represent.	Bachelor's degree	$67,440
Purchasing Managers, Buyers, and Purchasing Agents	Buyers and purchasing agents buy products and services for organizations. Purchasing managers oversee the work of buyers and purchasing agents.	Bachelor's degree	$75,120
Insurance Sales Agents	Insurance sales agents contact potential customers and sell one or more types of insurance.	High school diploma or equivalent	$57,860

Sales Manager

What they do:

On the job, you would:

Important Qualities

Personality

Characteristics of this Career

Strengths

Values of the Work Environment

Aptitude

Abilities | Cognitive, Physical, Personality

Skills | Cognitive, Physical, Personality

Job Details

Attributes & Percentage of Time Spent

Tasks & Values

What Sales Managers Do

Duties

Work Environment

Work Schedules

Getting Started

How to Become a Sales Manager

Education

Work Experience in a Related Occupation

Job Outlook

Employment

Contacts for More Information

Similar Occupations