A Sales Manager is someone who is responsible for leading and guiding a team of sales people in an organization. They set sales goals & quotas, build a sales plan, analyze data, assign sales training and sales territories, mentor the members of his/her sales team and are involved in the hiring and firing process.
Sales managers’ responsibilities vary with the size of the organization they work for. 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.
In some cases, sales managers recruit, hire, and train new members of the sales staff. They advise sales representatives on ways to improve their sales performance. In large multi-product 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 that their staff gathers, both 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. 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. Because sales managers monitor customers’ preferences and stores’ and organizations’ inventory needs, they work closely with research and design departments and warehousing departments.
Sales managers must collect and interpret complex data to target the most promising areas and determine the most effective sales strategies. They need to work with people in other departments and with customers, so they must be able to communicate clearly. When helping to make a sale, sales managers must listen and respond to the customer’s needs. Sales managers must be able to evaluate how sales staff perform and develop ways for struggling members to improve.
Sales managers work in close proximity to the offices of upper management. Managers will not be able avoid stress since deadlines must be met while schedules will change and difficulties will arise.
Managers might have to travel extensively since attending sponsored meetings by industries or associations is often required. Sales managers travel to local, regional, and national offices and a variety of distributors and dealers. Promotions and advertising managers could travel to visit media representatives. Sometimes, public relations managers travel to visit government representatives or lobbyist groups. Also, sales managers often transfer between regional offices and headquarters.
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.
A person working as a Sales Manager in Kenya typically earns around KSH252,000 per month. Salaries range from KSH124,000 (lowest) to KSH393,000 (highest).
This is the average monthly salary including housing, transport, and other benefits. Sales Manager salaries vary drastically based on experience, skills, or location.
Certain employers prefer marketing, sales, and promotions managers to hold a bachelors or master’s degree in Business Administration with a marketing emphasis, while taking courses in statistics, mathematics, finance, accounting, economics, management and business law can be advantageous to potential candidates. Moreover, candidates are encouraged to complete an internship while in school. Potential candidates in highly technical industries, for example, computers and electronics, should earn a bachelor’s degree in science or engineering in conjunction with a master’s degree in business administration.
Employers seeking advertising managers prefer candidates with a bachelor’s degree in journalism or advertising while taking courses in photography, art history, visual arts, communication, technology, sales, market research, consumer behavior, and marketing is recommended.
Certain employers seeking public relations managers prefer candidates with bachelor or master’s degrees in journalism or public relations while taking courses in creative and technical writing, political science, public speaking, public affairs, business administration, and advertising is recommended.
Firms fill most advertising, marketing, promotions, public relations, and sales management positions by promoting experienced and skilled employees or related professional individuals. Many current managers worked as former sales representatives, public relations, promotions, buyers, product, or advertising specialists, and purchasing agents. At smaller firms with limited positions, promotion to management takes longer; whereas, larger firms promote managers more frequently.
