Sales managers do the important work of reaching their revenue goals while managing teams of sales associates. Communication abilities, business knowledge, and an understanding of the market are some of the skills that can help an individual succeed as a sales manager.
Sales managers oversee the sale of everything from digital services to consumer products of all kinds, and they work across sectors, including in retail, healthcare, manufacturing, finance, and technology.
Learn more about what a career as a sales manager looks like, the salary and job outlook for sales managers, and what educational background and experience it takes to become one.
What Does a Sales Manager Do?
Sales managers oversee activities across different internal teams — including sales, marketing, and product teams — to help maximize their company’s revenue. In addition to being able to analyze market trends and identify key areas of opportunity, sales managers must also be skilled at managing and motivating teams of people to achieve their sales goals.
Sales Manager Daily Duties
The core job responsibility of sales managers is to supervise the sales activities related to certain products or services. Their specific duties can vary depending on the size of their organization and their industry.
The day-to-day duties of sales managers can include:
- Creating training programs for sales staff
- Communicating revenue goals to sales staff
- Developing strategies to identify, solicit, and maintain new customers
- Preparing budgets to ensure sales goals are achievable
- Assessing the competitive landscape
- Analyzing sales data to identify growth opportunities
- Addressing customer complaints and identifying areas for improvement
- Collaborating with marketing, product, and human resources teams
Sales managers are sometimes required to travel and meet with prospects, which can entail creating travel plans and setting up meetings.
What Skills Does a Sales Manager Need to Have?
Successful sales managers have a combination of technical, strategic planning and people management competencies. They need skills in areas that include:
- Customer relationship management (CRM) software platforms such as Salesforce
- Sales forecasting, commission tracking and financial modeling using data analytics
- Workload distribution and employee management
- Leadership and communication
Increasingly, employers expect sales managers to know how to use artificial intelligence (AI) tools like RegioGO and Clay to streamline sales processes and generate leads. Research from Salesforce shows that, in 2026, sales teams named AI investment as their number-one growth tactic.
Where Does a Sales Manager Work?
Sales managers are responsible for sales teams that sell either to businesses, wholesale or retail, or to consumers. They work in a range of sectors across the economy.
For example, in healthcare, they manage teams selling pharmaceuticals, medical devices and equipment, and clinical services. In technology, they are responsible for teams that sell enterprise software, information technology (IT) services, and hardware. Sales managers in finance focus on selling consumer and enterprise products, such as accounting software.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that 21 percent of sales managers worked in the wholesale trade in 2025, with 16 percent in the retail trade and 13 percent in professional, scientific and technical services.
Sales Manager Education and Experience Requirements
Sales managers typically have at least a bachelor’s degree in a field such as business administration or marketing. While not required, earning a graduate degree such as a Master of Business Administration (MBA) can help applicants stand out in a competitive field, and enable them to gain a solid foundation in modern business principles.
MBA coursework covers subjects such as managerial finance and strategic decision-making, and offers deep explorations of topics that are highly relevant in today’s sales management landscape, such as data science and analytics. MBA programs can also offer individuals opportunities to work with faculty mentors who have direct experience in the field.
Sales managers are also usually required to have three to five years of direct sales experience in a role like sales representative or account executive. Experience in a related field such as organizational leadership, consumer research, customer affairs, business analysis, brand development or sales promotion can all help sales managers excel.
Sales Manager Job Outlook and Salary
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), positions for sales managers are projected to increase 4 percent between 2025 and 2035, with an average of 47,300 job openings each year. Sales managers had a median annual salary of $148,270 in 2025, the BLS reports, which is far higher than the national average. This growth and opportunity mean that jobs in sales management are popular with professionals interested in pursuing a business administration career.
Begin Your Career as a Sales Manager
A career as a sales manager can be fulfilling, challenging, and lucrative. However, a person’s success can depend on them having the right educational foundation and skills.
SEMO Online’s General Master of Business Administration program helps professionals build the expertise and skills they need to become strong sales managers through a unique program that doesn’t require an undergraduate degree in business or GRE or GMAT scores. With 8-week courses and five different start dates throughout the year, the program offers you the flexibility to learn on your own terms.
Southeast Missouri State University also offers specialized on-campus and online MBA degree programs in areas that include healthcare, marketing, accounting and human resource management.
Act now to take the next step in your business career with SEMO Online.
Recommended Readings
What Can You Do with a Bachelor of Science in Administration (BSBA)?
Communications vs. Business Degree: Which Is Right for You?
What Should I Major in if I Want to Start My Own Business?
Sources:
ACBSP, “National Sales Manager Overview”
Leadium, “How to Become a Sales Manager: Education and Experience”
Salesforce, “40 Sales Statistics That Reveal How Teams Can Succeed in 2026”
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Sales Managers
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Sales Managers: What Sales Managers Do