What does a field sales engineer do?
Usually, a field sales engineer prepares and delivers technical representations explaining a company's products or services to clients. Field sales engineers confer with engineers and customers for the assessment of the necessary equipment and in the identification of the required system. They conduct research and report the status of engineering projects. It is the duty of the field engineers to ensure everything in the field works efficiently and smoothly and that the engineering designs are followed.
Field sales engineer responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real field sales engineer resumes:
- Manage merchandising and POS materials at the retail store level ensuring meticulous compliance with all current corporate initiative regulations.
- Assign Vlans on different IP subnets.
- Test storage configurations utilizing iSCSI over IP in HDS test labs.
- Work directly with large OEM accounts (agriculture, marine, automotive, mobile off-highway, medical, etc . )
- Develop account relationships at all levels including procurement, technical and senior management level within the OEM and distributor channels.
- Consult, repair and troubleshoot electrical/electronic control circuits.
- Install, integrate, troubleshoot and perform preventive maintenance of telecommunication and networking hardware/software.
- Develop and implement marketing programs for distributors and retailers, including co-op advertising plans, promotional events, and merchandising techniques.
- Develop working relationships with cardiovascular surgeons, cardiac anesthesiologists, perfusionists, IDN's.
Field sales engineer skills and personality traits
We calculated that 5% of Field Sales Engineers are proficient in HVAC, Customer Satisfaction, and Technical Support. They’re also known for soft skills such as Problem-solving skills, Technological skills, and Interpersonal skills.
We break down the percentage of Field Sales Engineers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- HVAC, 5%
Serviced water/wastewater, building automation (HVAC), and dust collection markets.
- Customer Satisfaction, 5%
Followed up with customers to ensure customer satisfaction with products and/or services provided attended and participated in trade shows
- Technical Support, 5%
Support sales growth throughout all territories through technical support, problem solving and identification & implementation of customer benefit opportunities.
- Product Line, 5%
Supervised on-site territory managers involved in installation of product line.
- Trade Shows, 5%
Developed and educated technical certification training classes, attending trade shows/conferences.
- Semiconductor, 4%
Spearheaded wireless semiconductor design-in activity for mobile handset applications.
Common skills that a field sales engineer uses to do their job include "hvac," "customer satisfaction," and "technical support." You can find details on the most important field sales engineer responsibilities below.
Problem-solving skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a field sales engineer to have is problem-solving skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "sales engineers must be able to listen to the customer’s desires and concerns, and then recommend solutions, such as customizing a product for the customer." Field sales engineers often use problem-solving skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "interfaced with production managers and customer support personnel to ensure timely resolution of customer issues. "
Technological skills. Another essential skill to perform field sales engineer duties is technological skills. Field sales engineers responsibilities require that "sales engineers must have extensive knowledge of the technologically sophisticated products they sell in order to explain their advantages and answer questions." Field sales engineers also use technological skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "trained fae and business marketing team on voice over internet technological topics. "
Interpersonal skills. field sales engineers are also known for interpersonal skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to field sales engineer responsibilities, because "strong interpersonal skills are a valuable characteristic for sales engineers, both for building relationships with clients and effectively communicating with other members of the sales team." A field sales engineer resume example shows how interpersonal skills is used in the workplace: "utilize effective communication and customer service skills to build and maintain interpersonal relationships with retailers and coworkers. "
Self-confidence. field sales engineer responsibilities often require "self-confidence." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "sales engineers should be confident and persuasive when making sales presentations." This resume example shows what field sales engineers do with self-confidence on a typical day: "experience and outstanding customer service skills allow for customer confidence in managing the technical support aspects of the products. "
The three companies that hire the most field sales engineers are:
- ITW13 field sales engineers jobs
- Amphenol10 field sales engineers jobs
- RBC Bearings8 field sales engineers jobs
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Compare different field sales engineers
Field sales engineer vs. Territory representative
A territory representative is responsible for selling the company's goods and services within a designated area, negotiating offers with potential clients, and identifying business opportunities according to market trends and customer demands. Territory representatives analyze the sales performance and strategize techniques to reach sales targets by coordinating with the whole sales team. They must be highly knowledgeable of the products offered by the company to demonstrate features and functionalities and respond to the inquiries and concerns the customers may have.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between field sales engineers and territory representative. For instance, field sales engineer responsibilities require skills such as "hvac," "fire protection," "technical support," and "semiconductor." Whereas a territory representative is skilled in "customer service," "patients," "territory development," and "food handling." This is part of what separates the two careers.
Territory representatives tend to reach similar levels of education than field sales engineers. In fact, territory representatives are 2.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Field sales engineer vs. Sales/account representative
A sales account representative is responsible for managing and responding promptly to customer complaints and queries of clients. They focus on customer concerns and contact prospects. They work on upselling or cross-selling products and services, collaborating with account executives, and prepare reports to upper management. This job requires you to be a goal-driven person, energetic, and have excellent communication skills. Moreover, this is a challenging job; at times, it requires being extra polite and calm in handling customer complaints and other related situations.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that field sales engineer responsibilities requires skills like "hvac," "fire protection," "technical support," and "semiconductor." But a sales/account representative might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "customer service," "sales techniques," "work ethic," and "indirect sales."
Sales/account representatives earn a lower average salary than field sales engineers. But sales/account representatives earn the highest pay in the technology industry, with an average salary of $72,531. Additionally, field sales engineers earn the highest salaries in the technology with average pay of $93,976 annually.In general, sales/account representatives achieve similar levels of education than field sales engineers. They're 2.5% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Field sales engineer vs. Sales specialist
A sales specialist is responsible for offering the best goods and services to customers in order to boost the company's sales. Sales specialists also promote strategies and solutions to contribute to the company's growth and profitability. A sales specialist must have extensive knowledge of the current market trends and the best sales skills to perform marketing tasks. Sales specialists should have excellent communication and customer service skills to assist existing and potential clients with their inquiries and concerns.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, field sales engineers are more likely to have skills like "hvac," "fire protection," "technical support," and "semiconductor." But a sales specialist is more likely to have skills like "building relationships," "customer complaints," "customer orders," and "patients."
Most sales specialists achieve a similar degree level compared to field sales engineers. For example, they're 2.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Field sales engineer vs. Territory sales representative
A territory sales representative is responsible for selling goods and services, assisting customers with their inquiries and concerns, and monitoring the assigned area's sales reports. Territory sales representatives coordinate with the rest of the sales team to develop effective marketing strategies and promotional techniques to increase revenues and profitability. Territory sales representatives research current market trends to identify business opportunities to meet consumer demands and widen their services. A territory sales representative must have excellent knowledge of the sales disciplines and principles, managing the market approach to ensure customer satisfaction.
Types of field sales engineer
Updated January 8, 2025
