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Associate manager skills for your resume and career

Updated January 8, 2025

6 min read

Quoted experts

Dr. Timothy Edwards,

Bruce Heiman Ph.D.

Below we've compiled a list of the most critical associate manager skills. We ranked the top skills for associate managers based on the percentage of resumes they appeared on. For example, 41.8% of associate manager resumes contained pet as a skill. Continue reading to find out what skills an associate manager needs to be successful in the workplace.

15 associate manager skills for your resume and career

1. PET

Here's how associate managers use pet:

Worked with other team members maintaining the daily operations of a Pet Retail establishment.
Developed innovative marketing materials and created free weekly seminars in basic pet discipline development skills to increase training program enrollment.

2. POS

POS is an abbreviation of "Point of Sale" which is the time and place where a customer completes a transaction. It can either be a physical shop that consists of POS terminals or a virtual shop. A POS system helps simplify the retail functions and track important sales data.

Here's how associate managers use pos:

Maintained Inventory and POS software to ensure effective operations and financial reporting
Supervised the management of the POS system and approves all cash wrap management, cash auditing, and tip reporting.

3. Sales Floor

The sales floor is the area in a company or a business that is specified for retail activities or is designated as the selling area of the shop. A car showroom can be considered a sales floor, as it has cars in its display which are to be sold. A sales floor is generally crowded with sales assistants who are there to help you out while you can search and check out the products. Generally a sales floor has free access to the public and they can observe, view and get information about the product that is being sold.

Here's how associate managers use sales floor:

Maintained accountability for sales floor leadership, using keys and overrides and financial indicators to monitor individual and team progress.
Monitored personnel and sales floor to ensure ultimate customer service and satisfaction.

4. Product Knowledge

Product knowledge is the skill of having better information and knowledge about the product you are selling. Product knowledge is essential for the employees of the companies so they can communicate and inform the customers about the product. Having great product knowledge is essential for a better sales pitch and to give the customer a better and complete idea of the product that will influence him to buy the product eventually.

Here's how associate managers use product knowledge:

Created and facilitated training classes in Brand Equity, Product Knowledge, Goal Setting, Coaching, Counseling and Leadership Training.
Answered phones and responded to customer inquiries, in addition to maintaining product knowledge for successful storage and storage product rental/sales.

5. Payroll

Payroll is the sum of all the compensation that an organization has to pay to employees at a specified time. Payroll is managed by the finance or HR department while small business owners may handle it themselves. Payroll isn't fixed as it varies every month due to sick leaves, overtime, etc.

Here's how associate managers use payroll:

Managed payroll interface and processed including researching payroll issues and enforcing adherence to audit and department guidelines; developed fit/gap analysis.
Monitored daily operations, which resulted in successfully lowering and maintaining food and payroll cost below company policy.

6. Human Resources

Human resources is a set of people in a business or a corporation that are designated to locate, interview, and recruit new employees into the company. They are also responsible to maintain the integrity of the employees and help them sort their problems out. They try to introduce and manage employee-benefit programs.

Here's how associate managers use human resources:

Plan and execute human resources initiatives including identifying staffing needs and executing recruitment, orientation, training and development programs.
Applied previous human resources experience to ensure associates were coached appropriately and company interests were protected.

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7. Loss Prevention

The steps taken by a business to prevent theft is called loss prevention. There are multiple methods for loss prevention for example usage of automated cash handling, secure physical location, product security staff buy-in, and attentive customer service.

Here's how associate managers use loss prevention:

Reported loss prevention issues observed with associates, resulting in termination for multiple dishonest associates.
Supplied exemplary administration over all accounting, client relations, loss prevention and quality assurance.

8. Store Opening

Here's how associate managers use store opening:

Store opening and closing procedures including deposits.
Coordinated new store opening including floor plans, new merchandise processing, floor sets, visual set ups, and staffing.

9. Switches

Here's how associate managers use switches:

Result: Converted entire facility to new cabling, switches, and IP addresses in a single weekend without business interruption.

10. Customer Service

Customer service is the process of offering assistance to all the current and potential customers -- answering questions, fixing problems, and providing excellent service. The main goal of customer service is to build a strong relationship with the customers so that they keep coming back for more business.

Here's how associate managers use customer service:

Assisted store manager and associates in the achievement of a favorable customer shopping experience and associate interest in customer service/relations.
Achieved advancement from Lead Sales to Assistant Manager to General Manager by demonstrating superior customer service and business management talents.

11. PowerPoint

Here's how associate managers use powerpoint:

Created/modified PowerPoint presentations for intern training and conferences.
Created and edited PowerPoint presentations and plan highlights for over 50 complex retirement plans.

12. Digital Marketing

Here's how associate managers use digital marketing:

Collaborated with media relations, internal communications, digital marketing, and firm-wide resources to develop integrated marketing programs.
Developed and maintained digital marketing collateral for new products.

13. Excellent Interpersonal

Here's how associate managers use excellent interpersonal:

Delivered exceptional guest satisfaction by utilizing my excellent interpersonal skills, building a customer focused team through sales and promotions.
Trained in and maintained excellent interpersonal and communication skills that complement proven creative problem solving capabilities.

14. Bank Deposits

Any money that a customer chooses to leave with their bank account is a deposit. Deposits can vary in amounts and different banks have limits on the deposits their customers can have as a minimum. Banks charge customers for deposits especially when a teller is used by the customer to deposit money into their account.

Here's how associate managers use bank deposits:

Manage Associates Bank Deposits Operate Register Resolve Conflicts Customer Service Order Inventory Price Analysis Merchandising
Assumed responsibility for opening/closing procedures including safe funds and bank deposits.

15. Sales Associates

Here's how associate managers use sales associates:

Trained and educated sales associates to ensure that they were prepared for relaying product information and delivering exceptional customer service.
Conducted interviews and orientation of new and prospective staff while actively recruited sales associates and management.

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What skills help Associate Managers find jobs?

Tell us what job you are looking for, we’ll show you what skills employers want.

What skills stand out on associate manager resumes?

Dr. Timothy Edwards

Professor, Interim Director, University of Arkansas at Little Rock

Writing and research skills. Analytical and critical thinking skills. Technical skills such as web design, graphic design, audio and video production skills. Employers are interested in potential employees knowledge, intelligence and skills.

What hard/technical skills are most important for associate managers?

Bruce Heiman Ph.D.

Professor of International Business, San Francisco State University

-Analytical skills (ability to gather data, clean it, analyze it, write-up results and present on what the meaning of the analysis suggests for action (the last one is most important--"what does it really mean?"

-Some experience and skills with coding in any language (at the moment, Python or C++ are preferred, though Ruby on Rails is also good)

-Deep spreadsheet skills (pivot tables and macros, as examples).

-Relational database skills, including programming (e.g., MySQL)

-Data mining

-AI/Machine Learning experience

What soft skills should all associate managers possess?

Bruce Heiman Ph.D.

Professor of International Business, San Francisco State University

-Languages beyond English (fluency in written and oral)

-Ability to work collegially in a diverse cultural setting

-Ability to identify good problems on which to work in a competent manner

-Ability/flexibility to interact/work productively with people who have serious constraints on their time owing to other work or personal commitments/issues

-Some of my answers to Q1 above would also apply here

What associate manager skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?

Steve Wages Ph.D.

Director, Cloverdale Center for Youth and Family, Faulkner University

I recommend they use this time to fill in the gaps, no pun intended, in their program of studies by expanding their knowledge base. All educational programs have gaps in the training, content areas which are not addressed adequately. For example, my counseling program was highly regarded, yet I had little to no content related to aging studies, parenting, or personal finances, etc. Further, the content of counseling programs is problem-centered or remedial, conceptually focused on tertiary prevention.

Consequently, graduates are not exposed to a large body of research and literature related to human development, individual wellness, and family strengths which would greatly inform and enhance their assessment and intervention strategies employed in counseling. I believe the more we can do to strengthen our understanding of healthy individual and family wellness, the better equipped we will be to address unhealthy relationships and family dynamics. Put another way, being well grounded in primary and secondary prevention will further equip the pastoral counselor's efforts at intervention. Again, use this time to acquire relevant knowledge and content that most counseling programs do not address extensively.

What type of skills will young associate managers need?

Dr. Barbara Davis

William J. Atkins Dean, Centenary College of Louisiana

Analysis - Graduates will need to analyze situations, identify the best choices, and seek solutions with the highest benefit to the organization.

Creativity - Graduates will need to possess critical and creative thinking skills.

Flexibility - Graduates must remain flexible to succeed in a highly changing environment.

What technical skills for an associate manager stand out to employers?

Kerem Cakirer Ph.D.

Senior Lecturer, Indiana University Bloomington

The labor market is not so different than any market with demand and supply. The demand from employers will shift towards more technical (software, coding, computer language programming) and analytical (problem solving on your own) skills than social skills overall. Being capable of writing or/and understanding computer languages will be a must have skill in the very near future. Communication skills over online platforms or social media platforms will play a huge role when employers are making a hiring decision. The data supports that businesses are using more online platforms than ever. I am projecting that there won't be any business travels or on-site client meetings in the near future. Exceling in different types of software, and being able to learn a new one easily, will become more important than people skills in businesses. Employers will seek for candidates, who are capable of achieving tasks in a more off-site (outside the office) environment through a deadline, and who can utilize multiple different softwares at their hand to solve business problems. As far as how the hiring process would go, we might see employers using artificial intelligence to make hiring decisions over some online platform soon. Essentially, this means that the candidates will be assessed with a more quantitative measure than ever. An evaluation measure by the AI, which will take soft and digital skills more into account.My final words are: The pandemic is still a burden to the humankind but the world will prevail. This year could be the inception of a new era in terms of how businesses run.

Do you want to know more?

List of associate manager skills to add to your resume

The most important skills for an associate manager resume and required skills for an associate manager to have include:

PET
POS
Sales Floor
Product Knowledge
Payroll
Human Resources
Loss Prevention
Store Opening
Switches
Customer Service
PowerPoint
Digital Marketing
Excellent Interpersonal
Bank Deposits
Sales Associates

Client Facing
Performance Management
Customer Satisfaction
Risk Management
Direct Reports
Store Management
Highlighted
Financial Statements
Guest Satisfaction
Store Operations
FDA
Guest Service
Develop Strong Relationships
Inventory Control
QA

Visual Standards
Performance Reviews
Customer Complaints
Store Sales
Inventory Management
Retail Store
Customer Relations
Conflict Resolution
B Testing
Stakeholder Relationships
Gross Profit
Brand Marketing
Performance Evaluations
Store Associates
Sales Reports

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Updated January 8, 2025

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