What does a channel sales director do?
A channel sales director oversees an organization's channel sales and marketing operations, ensuring efficiency and client satisfaction. Part of their job is to establish roadmaps, set guidelines and timelines, liaise with internal and external parties, gather and analyze reports from different teams, develop strategies to increase profit and strengthen client relationships, and address issues and concerns, solving them promptly and effectively. Moreover, as a channel sales director, it is essential to lead and encourage the workforce to reach goals while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Channel sales director responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real channel sales director resumes:
- Develop and execute various marketing campaigns, progress leads and conduct post-program ROI analysis to gauge effectiveness.
- Develop co-marketing business plans resulting in YoY growth with several manage partners.
- Develop sales process, CRM processes and business rules for all distribution and channel partner sales.
- Implement streamline CRM process and marketing automation platform.
- Lead sales initiatives for region, driving SMB sales to retail locations consistently over the years.
- Set new SAAS channel go-to-market strategies, vertical market-selling solutions for enterprise customers design to double first YOY growth.
- Deliver exceptional client ROI results through metrics-base results and focuse scorecards.
- Launch sales initiative for start-up company with unique delivery method for continuing medical education programs targeting physicians and other healthcare professionals.
- Generate sales by outsourcing Telecom which increase bottom-line results.
Channel sales director skills and personality traits
We calculated that 17% of Channel Sales Directors are proficient in Cloud, Lead Generation, and Digital Marketing. They’re also known for soft skills such as Customer-service skills, Leadership skills, and Analytical skills.
We break down the percentage of Channel Sales Directors that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Cloud, 17%
Established Partner Channel and Program for start-up Cloud Data Encryption firm; Managed relationships with Microsoft Office365 US Business Partners.
- Lead Generation, 11%
Developed and managed strategic channel marketing campaigns to support lead generation and increase product and company awareness.
- Digital Marketing, 8%
Evaluated and developed new digital marketing channels.
- Channel Sales, 7%
Provided sales support to 13 branch offices, achieved the highest sales target among the product channel sales team in 2010.
- Account Management, 4%
Reason for quitting: to gain more experience in digital advertising and account management.
- Enterprise Sales, 4%
Doubled enterprise sales and revenue through these partner programs within 1 year.
Common skills that a channel sales director uses to do their job include "cloud," "lead generation," and "digital marketing." You can find details on the most important channel sales director responsibilities below.
Customer-service skills. One of the key soft skills for a channel sales director to have is customer-service skills. You can see how this relates to what channel sales directors do because "when helping to make a sale, sales managers must listen and respond to the customer’s needs." Additionally, a channel sales director resume shows how channel sales directors use customer-service skills: "developed 5 new customers that resulted in companys1st direct sales order valued at over $500,000. "
Leadership skills. Another essential skill to perform channel sales director duties is leadership skills. Channel sales directors responsibilities require that "sales managers must be able to evaluate how their sales staff performs and must develop strategies for meeting sales goals." Channel sales directors also use leadership skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "collaborated closely with vice president of sales in providing high-level leadership to direct sales channel with $15 million in revenue. "
Analytical skills. channel sales directors are also known for analytical skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to channel sales director responsibilities, because "sales managers must collect and interpret complex data to target the most promising geographic areas and demographic groups, and determine the most effective sales strategies." A channel sales director resume example shows how analytical skills is used in the workplace: "developed and maintained channel sales partners in domestic and european markets for fidelity's corporate action alert and data service. "
Communication skills. A big part of what channel sales directors do relies on "communication skills." You can see how essential it is to channel sales director responsibilities because "sales managers need to work with colleagues and customers, so they must be able to communicate clearly." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical channel sales director tasks: "secured nationwide distributor with 30,000 dealers/resellers to sell the company's wireless plug & play multi handset unified communications solution. "
The three companies that hire the most channel sales directors are:
- Highmark51 channel sales directors jobs
- Zeta Global19 channel sales directors jobs
- Deloitte10 channel sales directors jobs
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Compare different channel sales directors
Channel sales director vs. Director of sales & business development
A director of sales & business development is responsible for monitoring the business and project plans, ensuring that the sales targets are met, according to project requirements and specifications. Directors of sales & business development perform data analysis to track business performance and identify opportunities to grow revenues and profits. They also coordinate with the clients and maintain healthy business relationships by enhancing their brand image on various platforms and reach the target audience. A director of sales & business development works closely with the marketing and sales team for public relations and marketing campaigns placement.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, channel sales director responsibilities require skills like "lead generation," "digital marketing," "emerging markets," and "channel sales." Meanwhile a typical director of sales & business development has skills in areas such as "value proposition," "sales cycle," "leveraged," and "lead qualification." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Directors of sales & business development really shine in the technology industry with an average salary of $127,443. Comparatively, channel sales directors tend to make the most money in the technology industry with an average salary of $135,612.The education levels that directors of sales & business development earn slightly differ from channel sales directors. In particular, directors of sales & business development are 0.0% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a channel sales director. Additionally, they're 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Channel sales director vs. Director of sales and operations
Directors of Sales and Operations are executives who oversee the performance of the company. They set the strategic direction for the company's sales force. They also ensure that company operations run efficiently. Directors of Sales and operations are in charge of analyzing the sales data of the company. They identify areas for improvement and create strategies that will address these challenges. They would then ensure that the strategies are effective. In case the initial strategies did not produce the desired results, they are expected to change course and continue trying. They are also in charge of managing the operations of the company. They ensure that the company is properly equipped with the right tools to get the best value for their products and services.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, channel sales director responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "cloud," "digital marketing," "channel sales," and "sales targets." Meanwhile, a director of sales and operations has duties that require skills in areas such as "sales operations," "analytics," "salesforce," and "business operations." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Directors of sales and operations may earn a higher salary than channel sales directors, but directors of sales and operations earn the most pay in the professional industry with an average salary of $140,719. On the other hand, channel sales directors receive higher pay in the technology industry, where they earn an average salary of $135,612.directors of sales and operations earn similar levels of education than channel sales directors in general. They're 0.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for channel sales directors in the next 3-5 years?
Bill Thorne
Executive Director of the NRF Foundation and Senior Vice President of Communication and Public Affairs of NRF, National Retail Federation
Channel sales director vs. Director of sales and marketing
A director of sales and marketing's responsibilities revolve around overseeing the sales, budgets, and all programs related to marketing. They must implement budget goals and revenue targets, evaluate the progress of the various teams, participate in securing sales and reaching out to high profile clients, and even negotiate contracts. Furthermore, they have the discretion to assign pricing and discounts, strategize ways to build a more substantial client base, and lead a team of skilled professionals to boost sales and improve client satisfaction.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, channel sales directors are more likely to have skills like "cloud," "lead generation," "digital marketing," and "emerging markets." But a director of sales and marketing is more likely to have skills like "customer service," "product development," "strategic sales," and "lead management."
Directors of sales and marketing earn the highest salary when working in the manufacturing industry, where they receive an average salary of $137,526. Comparatively, channel sales directors have the highest earning potential in the technology industry, with an average salary of $135,612.directors of sales and marketing typically earn similar educational levels compared to channel sales directors. Specifically, they're 1.7% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Channel sales director vs. Director, national accounts
A director of national accounts is in charge of spearheading the efforts in expanding client relationships at wide locations. Their responsibilities typically revolve around setting goals and objectives, managing budgets and schedules, developing projects and clients for customer satisfaction, and devising strategies to find new business opportunities. They also develop ways to optimize business procedures, ensuring efficiency and profit growth. Furthermore, as a director, it is essential to lead and encourage the workforce to reach goals, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Even though a few skill sets overlap between channel sales directors and directors, national accounts, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a channel sales director might have more use for skills like "cloud," "lead generation," "digital marketing," and "emerging markets." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of directors, national accounts require skills like "national accounts," "healthcare," "pharmaceutical industry," and "gpo. "
Directors, national accounts reach similar levels of education compared to channel sales directors, in general. The difference is that they're 0.8% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.4% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Types of channel sales director
Updated January 8, 2025
