Sales managers require resilience in order to lead their teams through challenging times and keep them motivated on an ongoing basis. Resilience can be developed through engaging in healthy competition and adopting a servant leadership mentality.

They must also be adept at wearing multiple hats by delegating tasks to team members, creating environments of connection and psychological safety as well as possessing knowledge in business administration, marketing and sales strategies.

Skills

IT sales managers require strong business and sales skills in order to be effective leaders. From creating sales projections, renegotiating contracts or training team members – strong management capabilities are required in this role.

IT sales managers must have excellent verbal and written communication skills. This will be essential when working with both marketing and customer support teams as well as reporting quarterly sales performance to top management.

IT sales managers must also know how to effectively manage their own time. Prioritize tasks and avoid multitasking as it takes up to 40% more effort for switching between two tasks than one at once; time management such as this helps deliver higher productivity on the field and prevent burnout among sales managers.

Knowledge

Information technology sales managers require in-depth product knowledge of computer hardware, software and IT services; marketing and sales strategies used in their particular industry; as well as experience with various sales management roles within retail – making the position distinct yet still demanding of skills similar to retail sales management positions such as creating sales projections or initiating initiatives designed to increase brand recognition.

Field reps who spend their days travelling between meetings are forced to record data in real-time – which often results in inaccurate forecasting or no information at all. IT sales software allows for accurate data collection so every email, call, or deal is recorded immediately instead of having to be remembered at the end of a day or week – making a tremendous difference both to quality of information as well as decisions you can make based on it.

Education

Bachelor’s degrees are often necessary for sales manager jobs. An ideal program would offer courses in business management, marketing and sales; other important areas include math, information technology and professional communication.

Arizona State University and the College of Business at University of Colorado Denver both offer online bachelor’s programs for aspiring sales managers, with admission requirements consisting of competitive high school grades, personal statements and letters of recommendation as admission criteria.

Some sales managers opt to pursue professional certification to bolster their resumes and demonstrate expertise in leading a team of sales professionals. Certification programs offered through numerous professional societies and peer review are popular choices; for instance, the American Institute of Professional Selling provides the Certified Professional Sales Leader (CPSL) course to sales professionals already managing or seeking to manage. In this program, participants learn to lead global sales teams towards strategic goals with efficiency.