Sales managers devise and deploy targeted business development strategies, steer sales operations, and provide motivational leadership to their teams to meet objectives. They actively monitor sales performance, contribute to product and service development activities, and focus on achieving a competitive edge to drive sales growth. If you’re looking for a sales management role, having a strong resume that showcases your successful career is critical. Check out our resume example and step-by-step guide to show employers that you will excel as their next sales manager.
To advance your career in sales management, you need a compelling resume that highlights your leadership, customer service, analytical, and communication skills. Sales managers are always in demand and can work across diverse sectors, so there are plenty of opportunities if this is your chosen career path.
Creating a compelling resume from scratch or tweaking your existing resume to highlight your skills and experience the right way can be tricky to do yourself. We can help! Use our sales manager resume example and writing guide to stand out above the sea of candidates.
Your sales manager resume will be more successful if you can showcase the skills employers want. This could include creating high-impact strategies or campaigns that deliver rapid sales growth, developing strong relationships with key decision makers, and establishing top-performing sales teams via mentoring and coaching.
Check sales manager descriptions for keywords that you can use throughout the resume, primarily in the professional summary, areas of expertise, and work experience sections. This will target your resume to specific job opportunities and make it more impactful.
Your professional summary is placed at the top and is basically a snapshot of your skills, experience, and achievements in sales management. Keep your summary direct and impactful, focusing on your sales experience, client rapport, and team leadership skills. If you have a great sales achievement you want to share, then include this in your professional summary because this is the first section a hiring manager will read.
In your work experience section, start with your most recent experience and work back to earlier roles, covering no more than 15 years of your work history. Use powerful action verbs and back up the skills and experience being put forward with specific achievements. Showcasing your wins in a sales resume is vital, so include as many facts and figures as you can.
Make sure you include a key skills section in your resume. This section usually follows your professional profile, and we recommend including nine to 12 keywords to highlight sales management skills.
The job description is the best reference point for keywords for your sales management resume. Look out for terms that are repeated or emphasized as important skills and experience. Here are some hard and soft skills you can include:
Strategic planning & forecasting
Consultative sales
Direct marketing
Business development
Client relations
Project management
Market analyses
Key account management
Conflict resolution
Motivational leadership
Training & development
Cross-functional collaboration
Summary example
Entrepreneurial, innovative executive with extensive sales and business development experience credited with revenue and profit growth in the financial services, business-to-business and retail sales industries. Analytical strategist skilled at developing sales plans and forecasts that successfully identify new opportunities and target industries offering the greatest profit potential. Collaborative communicator continually focused on building customer and community relationships and building top-performing teams to drive positive change and comprehensive business approaches to enhance profitability.
Employment history example
Sales Manager at MARKET DELI & CONVENIENCE, Tulsa
2014 - Present
Direct and monitor progress towards meeting and exceeding sales plans and forecasts for the Central Oklahoma region with up to 40 customers ranging in size from small sandwich shops to large supermarket chains with annual sales last year of $1.4M and projected to hit $2.2M in 2023. Develop sales strategies, forecasts, and market analyses to identify new business opportunities and ensure effective planning for current and potential customers. Conduct sales calls, training samplers in supermarkets for tastings, product education for clients and a sales team of three,
Key Accomplishments:
Developed five new accounts with the potential for $1.1M of new business.
Improved planning and forecasting activities by collaborating with dealers to understand the pull-thru strategies for marketing.
Built and maintain a large network of customers and key industry opinion leaders to assist with lead generation for banking product and business lending needs.
Sales Manager at BANK OF THE WEST, Southern Oklahoma
2012 - 2015
Provided oversight for four branches and up to 20 employees assisting branch managers with employee development, sales calls, and prospecting. Coached and mentored branch managers on lead generation, sales calls, and lending opportunities ensuring the daily sales plan was being followed in each branch. Assisted branches with onboarding commercial lending applications, acting as liaison between client and underwriter to negotiate rates, terms and loan amounts. Sourced commercial lending opportunities specializing in manufacturing, transportation, and professional services industries maintaining a diversified loan portfolio. Completed credit analysis, debt service coverage ratio analysis, and prudent underwriting activities to determine credit worthiness and minimize risk.
Key Accomplishments:
Generated over $1M in corporate credit cards in 2014, exceeding the $150K sales goal.
Increased commercial lending from $3.5M in 2013 to $5.9M in 2014.
Developed large referral network of centers of influence, business owners and leaders for lead generation purposes.
Education example
Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration, University of Oklahoma
Skills
Strategic Planning & Forecasting
Business Development
Sales Planning & Marketing
Relationship Building
Revenue & Profit Growth
Project Management
Problem Resolution