How To Become A Dept Manager: What It Is and Career Path

What is a dept manager and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Is taking constant orders not your cup of tea? Why not pursue an authoritative career of leading others to achieve specific goals? Try imagining your career as Dept. Manager, where you will be asked to monitor ongoing operations of an assigned department. Your core job will be to optimize your staff's performance by allocating deliverables to maximize the productivity of your department.

Do you know what it takes to increase the profitability of your department? Lots of financial knowledge to handle a budget, allocating resources, and looking deeply into auditorial procedures. That is why people in this career come from financial, business or marketing backgrounds. But how much education do you require? Well, at least a High school Diploma to justify your $35 per hour salary.

Whether it's coordinating with partners, clients, and customers or dealing with your staff, you should possess good leadership qualities. Moreover, obtain strong interpersonal skills to fulfill assigned job responsibilities.

ScoreDept ManagerUS Average

Salary

3.9

Avg. Salary $50,222

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

9.4

Growth rate 6%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

8.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.66%

Asian 6.75%

Black or African American 9.17%

Hispanic or Latino 17.24%

Unknown 4.69%

White 61.49%

Gender

female 47.48%

male 52.52%

Age - 42

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 - 42

Stress level

9.4

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

5.2

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.6

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a dept manager

Explore dept manager education requirements

Most common dept manager degrees

Bachelor's

32.0 %

High School Diploma

30.0 %

Associate

21.8 %

Start to develop specific dept manager skills

Skills	Percentages
Customer Service	32.95%
Sales Floor	8.85%
Pallet Jack	8.63%
Inventory Control	6.48%
Product Knowledge	6.16%

Complete relevant dept manager training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New dept 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 dept manager based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real dept manager resumes.

Gain additional dept manager certifications

Dept manager certifications can show employers you have a baseline of knowledge expected for the position. Certifications can also make you a more competitive candidate. Even if employers don't require a specific dept manager certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for dept managers include Certified Management Accountant (CMA) and Food Safety Manager Certification.

More About Certifications

Research dept manager duties and responsibilities

Manage application process and hiring of employees for seasonal photography business.
Implement inventory management system to effectively manage on-hands, assist with correct replenishment and maintain an acceptable level of over-stock.
Experience with photography including DSLR formats and small to large format film processes.
Process merchandise information through store computer system, POS register system and complete all require paperwork.

Prepare your dept manager resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your dept 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 dept 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 dept manager resume templates

Build a professional dept 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 dept manager resume.