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What is a customer relationship manager and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
Quoted expert
Yeqiang Lin Ph.D.
introduction image

Customer relationship managers are responsible for involving key customers by building and preserving trusting relationships. They will continuously identify opportunities to grow the customer base and develop positive relationships with new clients. They will be responsible for building and managing a profitable relationship with customers and resolving their complaints quickly and efficiently.

It would be best to have a bachelor's degree in administration or related fields plus a minimum of three years of work experience. They should also have excellent communication knowledge or skill and should maintain the core values of the organization. It would help if they were strategic and analytical when finding solutions to problems to ensure maximum client satisfaction.

In the context of the United States, the average salary for a customer relationship manager is $87,771 per year or $42.2 per hour.

What general advice would you give to a customer relationship manager?

Yeqiang Lin Ph.D.Yeqiang Lin Ph.D. LinkedIn profile

Interim Department Head & Associate Professor, California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo

For a graduate beginning their career in the experience industry, it's crucial to be adaptable and proactive. The field highly values those who can anticipate customer needs and trends, create memorable experiences, and manage projects efficiently. Emphasize building strong interpersonal and digital communication skills, as these will be essential in networking and in managing diverse teams and clients.
ScoreCustomer Relationship ManagerUS Average
Salary
6.2

Avg. Salary $78,814

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level
8.0

Growth rate 5%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity
4.3
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.63%

Asian 5.19%

Black or African American 10.82%

Hispanic or Latino 18.34%

Unknown 4.72%

White 60.31%

Gender

female 58.56%

male 41.44%

Age - 48
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 48
Stress level
8.0

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level
8.7

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance
6.2

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Customer relationship manager career paths

Key steps to become a customer relationship manager

  1. Explore customer relationship manager education requirements

    Most common customer relationship manager degrees

    Bachelor's

    59.4 %

    Associate

    15.2 %

    Master's

    10.3 %
  2. Start to develop specific customer relationship manager skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Customer Service23.58%
    Customer Relationships16.38%
    CRM13.45%
    Customer Satisfaction5.64%
    Lieu4.24%
  3. Complete relevant customer relationship manager training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New customer relationship managers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a customer relationship manager based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real customer relationship manager resumes.
  4. Research customer relationship manager duties and responsibilities

    • Exceed commercial loan and swap origination goals while simultaneously managing rehabilitation strategies for criticize bank assets.
    • Determine borrower eligibility for assistance / repayment plans (monthly income / NPV calculations).
    • Assist borrowers on default with repayment plans, modifications, short sale or DIL process.
    • default, loan modifications, document validation, NPV modeling, and second mortgage modifications).
  5. Prepare your customer relationship manager resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your customer relationship manager resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a customer relationship manager resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose from 10+ customizable customer relationship manager resume templates

    Build a professional customer relationship manager resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your customer relationship manager resume.
    Customer Relationship Manager Resume
    Customer Relationship Manager Resume
    Customer Relationship Manager Resume
    Customer Relationship Manager Resume
    Customer Relationship Manager Resume
    Customer Relationship Manager Resume
    Customer Relationship Manager Resume
    Customer Relationship Manager Resume
    Customer Relationship Manager Resume
  6. Apply for customer relationship manager jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a customer relationship manager job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first customer relationship manager job

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Average customer relationship manager salary

The average customer relationship manager salary in the United States is $78,814 per year or $38 per hour. Customer relationship manager salaries range between $54,000 and $113,000 per year.

Average customer relationship manager salary
$78,814 Yearly
$37.89 hourly

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Customer relationship manager reviews

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A zippia user wrote a review on Aug 2020
Pros

Being able to motivate administrative personnel to do their jobs well and meet deadlines.


profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Oct 2019
Pros

diverse responsibilities, interfacing with all levels of professionals


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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
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.

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