Department lead vs department sales manager

The differences between department leads and department sales managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a department lead, becoming a department sales manager takes usually requires 6-8 years. Additionally, a department sales manager has an average salary of $57,136, which is higher than the $42,113 average annual salary of a department lead.

The top three skills for a department lead include cleanliness, safety procedures and customer service. The most important skills for a department sales manager are sales floor, strong customer service, and store operations.

Department lead vs department sales manager overview

	Department Lead	Department Sales Manager
Yearly salary	$42,113	$57,136
Hourly rate	$20.25	$27.47
Growth rate	-	5%
Number of jobs	204,534	297,625
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 39%	Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Average age	43	46
Years of experience	6	8

What does a department lead do?

A department lead's responsibilities will vary in an organization or company. It will, most of the time, revolve around overseeing the progress of work in a particular area and evaluating department staff's performance. Other responsibilities include setting goals and implementing the company's policies and guidelines. They may also carry out administrative tasks such as approving and signing paperwork, producing reports and presentations, and crafting guidelines and strategies to help reach goals. Furthermore, as a department head, it is important to encourage staff and shape them into valuable company members.

What does a department sales manager do?

The department sales manager is a person in charge of working with a company's marketing, advertising, and sales department. The service's sales manager ensures that the company receives better marketing. This person works alongside the sales team to determine the right strategy to sustain a profit in the company's products or services. The service sales manager also monitors and evaluates product performance and provides suggestions on how the product or service can be improved and improved.

Department lead vs department sales manager salary

Department leads and department sales managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Department Lead	Department Sales Manager
Average salary	$42,113	$57,136
Salary range	Between $22,000 And $79,000	Between $41,000 And $78,000
Highest paying City	New Haven, CT	-
Highest paying state	Rhode Island	-
Best paying company	Tufts Medical Center	-
Best paying industry	Manufacturing	-

Differences between department lead and department sales manager education

There are a few differences between a department lead and a department sales manager in terms of educational background:

	Department Lead	Department Sales Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 39%	Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	SUNY College of Technology at Delhi	University of Southern California

Department lead vs department sales manager demographics

Here are the differences between department leads' and department sales managers' demographics:

	Department Lead	Department Sales Manager
Average age	43	46
Gender ratio	Male, 54.7% Female, 45.3%	Male, 59.3% Female, 40.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.4% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 17.8% Asian, 6.9% White, 61.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 3.2% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 4.1% White, 78.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	9%	7%

Differences between department lead and department sales manager duties and responsibilities

Department lead example responsibilities.

Implement inventory management system to effectively manage on-hands, assist with correct replenishment and maintain an acceptable level of over-stock.
Operate POS system, and receive payment by cash, check, credit cards, vouchers, or automatic debit.
Oversee the completion of all POS transactions, maintain cash office records and assistant in training of all new cashiers.
Conduct geotechnical and geological investigations and mineral resource evaluations for commercial, industrial and governmental clients using the above-mentioned drilling techniques.
Develop unique SQL, cloudbase, and ADHOC telephony query techniques resulting in the identification of previously undiscovered nefarious networks.

Department sales manager example responsibilities.

Implement inventory management system to effectively manage on-hands, assist with correct replenishment and maintain an acceptable level of over-stock.
Take corrective actions for sales and inventory errors at all point of sales (POS) systems.
Process merchandise information through store computer system, POS register system and complete all associate paperwork according to company policy.
Utilize information technology expertise to develop and maintain web presence, create marketing opportunities, CRM management, and increase productivity.
Conduct geotechnical and geological investigations and mineral resource evaluations for commercial, industrial and governmental clients using the above-mentioned drilling techniques.

Department lead vs department sales manager skills

Common department lead skills

Cleanliness, 12%
Safety Procedures, 11%
Customer Service, 10%
Store Management, 8%
Inventory Management, 7%
Sales Floor, 6%

Common department sales manager skills

Sales Floor, 18%
Strong Customer Service, 11%
Store Operations, 10%
Retail Sales, 8%
Cycle Counts, 7%
Customer Service, 7%

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Department Lead
Department Lead vs Department Sales Manager

Updated January 8, 2025

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