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The differences between directors of sales and heads of sales can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-8 years to become both a director of sales and a head of sales. Additionally, a head of sales has an average salary of $166,100, which is higher than the $111,068 average annual salary of a director of sales.
The top three skills for a director of sales include sales process, customer service and customer satisfaction. The most important skills for a head of sales are CRM, sales strategy, and sales organization.
| Director Of Sales | Head Of Sales | |
| Yearly salary | $111,068 | $166,100 |
| Hourly rate | $53.40 | $79.86 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 91,891 | 112,592 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 77% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Years of experience | 8 | 8 |
A sales director is responsible for managing the sales operation of the team, ensuring that members comply with the sales strategies and procedures in meeting sales goals. Sales directors' duties include maintaining consistency of sales targets, providing reports and important updates for sales improvement, managing customers' inquiries and resolving complaints, launching new services to expand product offers, researching the current market trends, and improving sales plans. A sales director must have excellent leadership and decision-making skills to support and acknowledge the team's best efforts.
The head of sales is primarily responsible for overseeing the sales performance of a company and devising strategies to optimize practices. Their responsibilities typically revolve around monitoring the progress of every sales effort, setting objectives and deadlines, performing research and analysis to identify sales opportunities, and coordinating with different departments to improve procedures and reach sales targets. Furthermore, as the head of sales, it is essential to lead and encourage the workforce, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Directors of sales and heads of sales have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Director Of Sales | Head Of Sales | |
| Average salary | $111,068 | $166,100 |
| Salary range | Between $73,000 And $168,000 | Between $110,000 And $248,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Portland, OR |
| Highest paying state | New York | Vermont |
| Best paying company | Mayo Clinic | Flexport |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Technology |
There are a few differences between a director of sales and a head of sales in terms of educational background:
| Director Of Sales | Head Of Sales | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 77% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Southern California | University of Southern California |
Here are the differences between directors of sales' and heads of sales' demographics:
| Director Of Sales | Head Of Sales | |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 69.4% Female, 30.6% | Male, 66.5% Female, 33.5% |
| Race ratio | 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% | 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 | 7% | 7% |