“Behind every great sales team is a great sales manager.”
Okay, that’s not how the quote goes, but it’s true—finding the right sales manager to guide your sales team and keep their finger on the pulse that is your customers is vital to the long-term success of your company. You’re after a candidate who’s great at goal-setting, team-leading and mentoring, strategizing, and empathy. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg!
Can you hear the sweet sound of sales cover letters and sales manager resumes flooding your inbox? No? Don’t fret! We feel your pain and have prepared the way for you with three sales manager job description samples and tips to help you share your company story and onboard the right talent.
Write a Stellar Sales Manager Job Description
Have you ever been flipping through TV channels and randomly landed on a movie that looks promising but started 45 minutes ago? It’s probably hard to get a good idea about the main characters, the conflict, or even what’s going on.
That same feeling of disorientation is what your potential applicants might feel if you don’t take the time to write an unforgettable sales manager job description. It might not seem that difficult to do, but it could be harder than you think!
For example, in our research, we came across dozens of job descriptions listing nothing more than the responsibilities or qualifications necessary, with no information about the company! Cryptic, much?
Perhaps even worse, you’d be surprised how many job descriptions’ “About Us” sections were nothing more than corporate jargon and empty buzzwords. (No, saying that you’re an “innovative company transforming how we use technology” is not a substitute for telling the readers who you are).
From qualification sections so long you could print them out on a double-sided A4 to companies forgetting to tell readers what’s in it for them, there are a lot of ways you can alienate great talent before they even give you a chance. We’re here to make sure that doesn’t happen.
Tell job seekers who you’re looking for and why
All good stories make sure their characters have a motivation or a drive. There needs to be a reason the characters do what they do, no matter how emotional or illogical. In that same line of thinking, you need to clarify to your potential applicants why you need a new sales manager.
Are you expanding to new regions? Do you need to unify your sales team and have someone provide focus as you continue to grow? Tell your readers what pain point they can solve from the get-go, so they can instantly assess if the opening is a good match for them.
Research shows that it’s important to write your job description to convey the values, skills, or attitudes you want your new sales manager to have. That way, you can ensure your vacancy text is resonating with the right people. For example:
- You want your new hire to be passionate about your product or service. Are you conveying that same level of enthusiasm? How are you showing them why your offering is the best on the market?
- You don’t want your new hire to underestimate the work they have cut out for them. Have you made it clear that you have ambitious (but realistic!) growth targets? Are you offering commensurate compensation and perks to make it worth their while?
- You want your new sales manager to best lead the new team they’ll need to recruit, setting the sales team and company up for success. Are you leading in a clear direction and instilling confidence by showing the steps your organization has taken to reach its current level of success?
By taking a few minutes to answer these kinds of questions, you can convey a solid message to attract the right people for your vacancy.
Condense and revise for a polished sales manager job ad
Remember that double-sided A4 sheet of qualifications we mentioned earlier? You don’t want to have that, trust us. When listing requirements, it’s important to stick to the essentials.
Ideally, sales managers are further along in their career and likely have picked up on various hard and soft skills, so there is no need to list them all. Instead, ask yourself what’s a must-have and what’s a nice-to-have. If it’s essential, write it down. You can probably skip it if it can be learned on the job.
That said, it’s okay to include some preferred skills. These aren’t necessary but may help you quickly determine who could be a standout candidate. The aim is to avoid writing a lengthy job description that’ll put off potential candidates.
Once you’ve finished with your draft, make sure you revise it once and then again! Keep an eye out for grammar, spelling, tone, and consistency. Is there enough info? Is it not too long? (We’d say try to keep it under 500-600 words).
After you’ve gone through the job description multiple times, have another pair of eyes look at it, like someone from the sales team. After that, preview the final version before it goes out, and then hit submit! Voila, you’re done!
Outline Your Sales Manager Job Description for a Jumpstart
Procrastinating on your job description because you don’t know how to start? Here’s an outline you can easily follow to get the best sales manager resumes pouring in.
Job details
Consider this your 30-second pitch. This is where you need to provide a high-level overview about quite a few things, all in a paragraph or two. Use this section to introduce the reader to your company, what the role involves, and why you’re on the hunt for a sales manager.
This section should allow readers to make a snap decision on whether or not the vacancy is right for them. If it’s not clear, you’ll need to rewrite it. While this is an important section, make sure to keep it concise. Consider it a teaser: if people want more, they can keep reading or look you up.
About the company
It’s easy to wax poetic about the product or service your new sales manager will be working with, but don’t forget to give them some insight into who you are as a company. Keep it short and sweet, though.
Use this section to clue them in on your company’s personality or values, as opposed to a long-winded written history about all of your organization’s achievements. Creativity and brevity are key!
What you’ll be doing
It’s essential to include this section. While it seems like a no-brainer, it’s not unusual to see companies gloss over the day-to-day requirements. Yes, there’s some overlap in what sales managers do, but this is where you make it unique, so readers see what’s special about your particular role.
- Recruit and build an inside sales team, coaching them in hard and soft inside sales development skills (cold calling, understanding personas, relationship building, etc.)
- Create a framework to set, measure, and report on KPIs for sales effectiveness and adjust strategies based on data
- Work cross-functionally with Marketing, Product Development, UX, and People to finesse our pipeline and improve our brand image to bolster our portfolio
Qualifications
Not everyone’s the right fit for the job. The qualifications let applicants know what hard and soft skills are needed to land an interview, like CRM experience or strong verbal negotiation skills. Don’t list every qualification that comes to mind; just put down the essentials. After all, a lot can be learned on the job.
- Bachelor’s degree in Business/Management/related field
- Proficient in Microsoft apps and IT business systems (Salesforce, BW, etc.)
- 4+ years of extensive sales management experience and prior experience in sales (ideally in a high-growth or HR company)
- Strong communication skills
Benefits
At the end of the day, it’s essential to answer a question on your future sales managers’ minds: “What’s in it for me?” Use this section to provide any company perks and a salary range. Even if it’s broad, it’s good to promote transparency and offer readers a ballpark range of what they could earn, saving both parties valuable time.
Roles and Responsibilities of Your Sales Manager
A great sales manager wears many hats. There’s a little bit of marketing, product development, customer service, and coaching thrown in there, to name a few. Not only do they need to help steer the direction of your company’s (product/service) growth, they often have a team of direct reports to manage. It can be a sizable undertaking, but the right candidate can handle it.
Below, we’ve provided some of the most common functions a sales manager might fulfill. Of course, they may not have to deal with them all, but they’ll likely have to juggle at least a few.
Data Analyst
- Many companies won’t have a clear picture of realistic growth. Even if they do, they’ll need someone to manage it. It’ll be up to the sales manager to create and execute a strategic growth or sales plan, complete with KPIs to track.
- Using a data-driven approach, track, report, and analyze key metrics and trends, making adjustments to the strategy as required
- The role will require a working knowledge of Power BI or HubSpot Sales and critical thinking and strategy skills.
Recruiter
- It’s not uncommon for a sales manager to need to build a team of sales associates or account executives from scratch. While HR will often assist, it’s up to the sales manager to determine who could be the best fit, given that they’ll have intimate knowledge of the company’s growth strategy and what it’ll take to achieve it.
- Recruit a team of up to 8 account executives that can meet our ambitious quotas and will support you in executing our 5-year growth strategy
- This role requires strong interpersonal communication skills, excellent negotiation and persuasion tactics, emotional intelligence, and a keen understanding of our product and the pain points it solves.
Mentor/Coach
- A great sales manager realizes that a good sales associate does more than hit immediate quotas. Focusing on the long-term picture is critical for sustainable growth, and training and mentoring associates will pay dividends.
- Recruit and build an inside sales team, coaching them in both hard and soft inside sales development skills (cold calling, understanding personas, relationship building, etc.), identifying top performers for career progression opportunities
- The role requires expert verbal communication, team leading, and interpersonal skills. Candidates should also be strong in active listening, relationship building, and inspiring others.
Negotiator
- While a sales manager won’t do most of the actual client outreach, they’ll likely assist high-profile or significant prospects in ensuring the deal is closed. If an account executive has difficulty closing a sale, it will probably be escalated to a sales manager to ensure a profitable outcome is reached. This will likely involve expert negotiation skills with C-suite-level clients. Sales managers will also need to negotiate when onboarding sales associates as part of their team, making this a crucial role to fulfill.
- Assist in driving new business by taking ownership of accounts, nurturing relationships, and helping teams with significant closes
- The role requires verbal communication and active listening skills, the ability to work under pressure, a deep understanding of our product, and high emotional intelligence.
Researcher
- Creating and executing a sales or growth strategy doesn’t happen overnight—it requires a lot of research. From desk to field research, a sales manager can expect to spend ample research time bringing a strategy (or sale) to fruition. Without these skills, your organization could be shooting into the dark without a clear sense of focus or the data to prove your strategy is working.
- Conduct market research to create our 2-year growth strategy and build on our current sales techniques. Analyze KPIs and translate the data to adjust sales approaches and identify new opportunities
- The role involves reasonable computer literacy (Excel knowledge required); experience with analyzing syndicated data and using it for forecasting; strong planning, time management, and critical thinking skills; and excellent financial acumen.
