Responsible for overseeing the sales department within a company or organization. Sets local and regional sales quotas, manages sales support staff and representatives, and advises company about sales performance.

Tasks:

1. Recruiting and training sales staff
2. Allocating areas to sales representatives
3. Developing sales strategies and setting sales targets
4. Monitoring the team’s performance and motivating them to reach targets
5. Providing feedback and coaching to team members
6. Compiling and analysing sales figures
7. Dealing with some customer accounts
8. Collecting customer feedback and market research
9. Reporting back to senior managers
10. Keeping up to date with products and competitors

Key skills for sales manager:

• Sales and negotiation skills
• Good business sense
• The ability to motivate and lead a team
• Coaching and mentoring skills
• Initiative and enthusiasm
• Communication and 'people skills'
• Planning and organisational skills
• The ability to work calmly under pressure
• Good IT, budget and report writing skills

Average salary:

The United Kingdom: £38,177 per year
The United States of America: $74,698 per year
Australia: AU$87,431 per year

Qualifications and training required:

Bachelor's degree in business administration with an emphasis in marketing and some prefer the candidate to have a master's degree. Candidates who have an abundance of experience as sales representatives might not need as many educational requirements as candidates who don't have as much experience. Aspiring sales managers may also earn degrees in a specific area relevant to their industry, like technology, which prepares them for jobs with specialized companies.