Basics

• District sales managers are responsible for making sure each branch within their district appropriately executes the corporate office's sales policies. They must understand the products that are being sold, as well as their company's overall mission. Sales managers also need to be passionate about the services and products and have an idea of how to relay those goals to each manager in every district. They work in a wide array of industries from retail to wholesale to manufacturing.
  
  

Skills

• Strong organization and communication skills are musts for district sales managers. They should be confident, outgoing, motivated and adept at delegating and getting employees to perform their best. And because district sales managers must regularly brief the manager of each location on what should be accomplished, the sales manager should be personable, feel comfortable providing direction and possess good problem-solving skills.
  
  

Qualifications

• The types of industries that hire district sales managers are wide ranging, so there is no specific set of criteria required to hold the position. Most employers prefer candidates who have a college education, with an emphasis on courses involving business, marketing, communications and finance. More importantly, district sales managers must understand their company and its market. In some cases, district sales managers begin as entry-level employees who work their way up through the company.
  
  

Prospects

• More than 1.6 million workers were employed as operations managers in May 2008, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Nearly every industry has companies with more than one branch that employ someone who acts as a district sales manager. According to the BLS, jobs for sales managers are expected to grow by 5 percent during the 2008-18 decade.
  
  

Earnings

• PayScale estimated the salaries of district sales managers to be between $61,000 and more than $118,000 per year in March 2010, depending on location and experience. It should be noted that many district sales managers receive a base salary along with a commission, or a percentage of what has been sold.