Sales Manager
Sales managers lead a team of salespeople, setting the targets and coaching the staff whose calls and deals bring in a business's revenue.
- Median salary
- $139,200
4.0%vs last year, before tax
- People employed
- 118,500
1.5%vs last year
- Projected growth
- +17.5%
to 2035
- AI exposure*
- Moderate
- automation risk
- Average hours
- 44/wk
+4h vs all jobs
- Shortage status
- Not in shortage
national
Sales managers run a sales team rather than a single patch, splitting their time between coaching staff, reviewing pipeline and revenue data, and stepping in on the largest or trickiest client deals. The role sits above individual selling jobs such as account manager or business development manager, whose focus is their own clients rather than a team's results. Most work in wholesale trade, professional services or retail, industries where relationships and repeat business drive most of the revenue.
How much do sales managers earn?
The median full-time salary for a sales manager is $139,200 per annum, before tax, up $29,000 since 2018.
Pay at this level is usually a base salary plus commission or a bonus tied to team results, so how the mix is structured matters as much as the base figure. Industry, the size of the team and territory, and whether the employer runs an enterprise agreement all move earnings. A manager carrying a large target can earn well above the base in a good year and closer to it in a poor one.
What does a sales manager do day to day?
The list below is what fills most weeks; the exact mix shifts with seniority and whatever stage the current work is at.
- Setting sales targets and monitoring team performance against them
- Recruiting, training and coaching sales staff on product knowledge and selling technique
- Analysing CRM and sales data to spot trends and where the team is losing deals
- Handling the largest client accounts personally, including contract and pricing negotiations
- Reworking sales strategy as budgets, stock levels or market conditions change
What skills do sales managers need?
Employers look for selling and negotiation, account and relationship management, financial analysis and modelling, backed by CRM software (Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics) fluency and strong people leadership.
Specialist skills
- Selling and negotiation
- Account and relationship management
- Financial analysis and modelling
- Strategy development
- Data analysis
Software and tools
- CRM software (Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics)
- Excel and business intelligence dashboards
- Forecasting and pipeline management tools
General skills
- People leadership
- Presenting and data storytelling
- Problem solving
Is the job growing?
About 118,500 people work as sales managers in Australia, and employment is projected to grow 17.5% over the decade to 2035. That's healthy, above-average growth, and the role should stay in solid demand.
How do you become a sales manager?
Here's the path most sales managers take, step by step.
- 1Start in a selling role
Most sales managers begin as a sales representative, account manager or business development manager, where they learn the product, the pipeline and how deals actually close. A certificate or diploma in business or marketing helps at this stage, but a record of hitting targets matters more.
- 2Take on coaching or team leadership
Team leader or assistant manager roles give you a small team to run alongside your own accounts, which is where employers look for evidence that you can lift other people's numbers rather than only your own.
- 3Add formal study if you want larger employers
A diploma or bachelor degree in business, commerce or marketing opens up bigger firms and higher-level roles. Among sales managers now working, Bachelor degree is the most common qualification, held by 36% of them.
- 4Move into a sales manager role
Applications are judged on team results, forecasting accuracy and how you have developed staff. Be ready to talk through a target you missed and what you changed afterwards.
- 5Keep building commercial and analytical skills
Short courses in CRM analytics, negotiation or leadership help at this point, because the role increasingly involves reading data and defending forecasts to senior management.
Ready to apply as a sales manager?
Whether you're working toward becoming a sales manager or already are one and want a hand with the next step (sharpening your resume for ATS screening, tightening your cover letter, or knowing what you'll actually be asked at interview), here are examples grounded in this specific role, not generic templates.
What jobs can a sales manager move to?
Moving into Chief Executive Officer typically comes with the biggest pay rise, worth $42,800 a year more on average.
| Move to | Typical pay change | Overlap | Retraining |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chief Executive Officer Sales managers bring commercial leadership and customer focus to executive roles, though broader governance and strategy require further study.Known move | +$42,800 | 31% | reskill |
| General Manager Sales managers bring revenue targets and team leadership into broader general management, where they need strategic and financial oversight.Known move | +$9,000 | 32% | reskill |
| Business Development Manager Sales managers can move into business development management with minimal retraining, applying their pipeline and client relationship skills. | −$35,000 | 89% | minimal |
| Digital Marketing Specialist Sales managers carry customer insight and commercial goals into digital marketing, but need campaign and analytics skills to specialise.Known move | −$37,400 | 38% | reskill |
Moves are chosen from Jobs and Skills Australia's Data on Occupation Mobility, which follows income tax records between 2011-12 and 2020-21, together with entry requirements and skill overlap. A known move is one people were seen making in that data. Pay change compares median full-time pay for the two roles.
Who works as a sales manager?
The typical sales manager is 42 years old; 58% are men, 87% work full-time, and full-timers average 44 hours a week.
- 42
- Median age
- 42%
- Female share
- 87%
- Full-time
- +4h
- vs all-jobs avg
What's it like being a sales manager?
Sales management runs on a cycle: monthly and quarterly targets set the rhythm, with pipeline reviews early and a push for signatures near the end. Much of the week goes to other people's deals, through coaching, deal reviews and clearing obstacles, so the results depend on work you are not doing yourself. It suits people who like a visible scoreboard and are comfortable letting a representative take the credit for a close.
What people like
- You win through other people. Coaching a junior rep through a difficult negotiation and watching them land it is a different satisfaction from closing the deal yourself, and it repeats more often.
- The scoreboard is visible. Revenue, pipeline and conversion rates are measured continuously, so you usually know where the team stands rather than waiting for an annual review.
- You stay in the big conversations. Sales managers generally keep the largest accounts and the hardest pricing discussions, which keeps the commercial skills sharp.
- The week changes shape. Coaching, forecasting, client meetings and planning rarely fall on the same day, and the mix shifts with the sales cycle.
What people find hard
- You carry a number you don't fully control. The target belongs to the team, but you are answerable for it, and a resignation or a slow quarter can put the forecast out of reach through no fault of your own.
- Quarter end bunches up. Pipeline reviews, revised forecasts and last-minute deal pushes land in the same fortnight, which usually means long days and difficult conversations about discounts.
- Administration comes with the job. Forecast accuracy, CRM records and reporting to senior management take real time each week, and the quality of that paperwork is often how your performance is judged.
- Managing former peers. Moving from colleague to manager changes friendships, and setting targets or giving hard feedback to people you used to sit beside takes deliberate effort.
Based on our synthesis of professional-body surveys and public accounts of the role, not first-person verified reviews.
Which industries employ sales managers?
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services employs the largest share of sales managers, followed by Wholesale Trade.
Top employing industries
- 1Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
- 2Wholesale Trade
- 3Retail Trade
Ranked by employment share; the source doesn't publish an exact percentage per industry.
| Bachelor degree | 36% | |
|---|---|---|
| Year 12 or below | 20.2% | |
| Postgraduate | 15.5% | |
| Diploma / Advanced Diploma | 14% | |
| Certificate III/IV | 11% |
Will AI replace sales managers?
AI and automation reach into the analytical half of this job rather than the human half. CRM platforms now score leads, forecast pipeline and flag accounts at risk, which saves a sales manager hours of spreadsheet work but does not replace the reading of a team or a client. The coaching, the negotiation and the decision about where to spend the quarter remain with the person.
Share of typical working time by exposure level
- Coaching and developing salespeopleListening to a call recording and then working through a better approach with a rep is a conversation about a person, and tools can supply the recording but not the coaching.30%low
- Pipeline reviews and forecastingForecasting tools now weight each deal by stage and history, so the manager's job shifts to questioning the numbers and explaining the gaps to senior management.25%high
- Client negotiation and major accountsPricing discussions with a long-standing customer mix commercial calculation with reading the room, which is still done in person or on a call.25%low
- Territory planning, target setting and reportingDashboards assemble the territory and performance data automatically, but deciding how to split accounts and how much of a stretch a target should be stays a judgement call.20%moderate
Moves least exposed to AI
These career moves from sales manager work are rated low for AI exposure:
- Chief Executive Officer
Some skill overlap (31%), reskill to get there, and a low automation-risk profile.
Common questions about becoming a sales manager
Straight answers to the questions people ask most.
How much do sales managers earn?
Sales managers earn a median of $139,200 per year before tax. Total pay usually includes commission or a bonus on top of the base, so it rises and falls with how the team performs against target. Treat the median as a guide rather than a fixed rate, since industry and team size change the mix considerably.
How do you become a sales manager?
The usual route is several years in a selling role, then a team leader or assistant manager position where you coach others as well as carry your own targets. Employers look for a record of meeting targets and of developing staff. A diploma or degree in business or marketing helps with larger employers but is not always required.
Are sales managers in demand?
Sales managers are currently not in shortage, and employment is projected to grow 17.5% over the decade to 2035 over the decade to 2035. Growth in this role follows business revenue rather than a single industry, so the openings are spread across professional services, wholesale trade and retail. Checking current listings in your own industry is the quickest way to see how the demand looks where you are.
Will AI replace sales managers?
AI has taken over much of the reporting and forecasting work, with CRM tools now scoring leads, predicting pipeline and flagging deals that have gone quiet. The coaching, the difficult pricing conversation and the judgement about which deals to chase still sit with the manager. The role is changing rather than disappearing, and the managers who use these tools well spend more of their week on people.
What can sales managers move into?
Sales managers often move into general management, where pay is $9,000 more and the work widens to strategy, budgets and functions beyond sales. Business development management is a close sideways move, with pay $35,000 less and heavily overlapping skills in pipeline and client relationships. A move into digital marketing is possible too, though pay is $37,400 less and campaign and analytics skills have to be learned.
How many hours do sales managers work?
Full-time sales managers average 44 hours a week, and about 87% work full time. The hours are uneven rather than consistently long, with end of month and end of quarter the busiest stretches, and customer meetings or travel adding to the total. Some employers offer time in lieu or a bonus tied to results rather than paid overtime.
Related roles
- General Manager
- Digital Marketing Specialist
- Chief Executive Officer
- Business Development Manager
- Sales Representative
- Business Development Manager
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