How to hire an inside sales manager

How to hire an inside sales manager, step by step

Here's a step-by-step inside sales manager hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write an inside sales manager job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new inside sales manager
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does an inside sales manager do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your inside sales manager job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find an inside sales manager for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect inside sales manager also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   Here's a comparison of inside sales manager salaries for various roles:

   Type of Inside Sales Manager	Description	Hourly rate
   Inside Sales Manager	Sales managers direct organizations' sales teams. They set sales goals, analyze data, and develop training programs for organizations’ sales representatives.	$23-59
   Product Manager/Sales	A sales product manager is responsible for monitoring the sales performance of a specific product and ensuring that the marketing strategies adhere to market standards and client requirements. Sales product managers work closely with the marketing and public relations team to enhance the product's brand image on various market platforms to reach the target audience... Show more	$36-75
   National Accounts Sales Manager	A national accounts sales manager is responsible for maintaining healthy business relationships with clients by managing and monitoring the performance of their accounts. National accounts sales managers establish reasonable sales targets and develop techniques that would maximize sales staff productivity and efficiency... Show more	$30-62

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Customer Service
   • CRM
   • Salesforce
   • Customer Satisfaction
   • Product Knowledge
   • Sales Process
   • Excellent Interpersonal
   • Business Development
   • Work Ethic
   • Sales Reps
   • Sales Professionals
   • Sales Targets
   • Direct Reports
   • Lead Generation

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Implement and enforce SalesForce usage for entering leads and using the system through the customer sales cycle.
   • Achieve proficiency in all aspects of international business from documentation to freight logistics to pricing negotiations.
   • Leverage other sales office resources and administrative/support staff to achieve personal and team relate revenue goals.
   • Account management of detail information into CRM regarding all sales call activity and new business initiatives.
   • Conduct PowerPoint presentations to potential clients as well as new and existing businesses.
   • Focus on software upgrades and migrations to current software products (SAAS environment).

   More inside sales manager duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your inside sales manager job description helps attract top candidates to the position. An inside sales manager salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for an inside sales manager in North Dakota may be lower than in Massachusetts, and an entry-level inside sales manager usually earns less than a senior-level inside sales manager. Additionally, an inside sales manager with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average inside sales manager salary

   $78,425yearly

   $37.70 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level inside sales manager salary

   $49,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 16, 2025

   Average inside sales manager salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$105,768	$51
   2	Massachusetts	$100,470	$48
   3	New York	$98,993	$48
   4	Pennsylvania	$94,860	$46
   5	District of Columbia	$92,888	$45
   6	Washington	$86,340	$42
   7	Nevada	$85,957	$41
   8	North Carolina	$84,498	$41
   9	Illinois	$81,956	$39
   10	Texas	$79,637	$38
   11	Arizona	$78,190	$38
   12	Maryland	$75,797	$36
   13	Missouri	$75,665	$36
   14	Colorado	$74,113	$36
   15	Minnesota	$74,024	$36
   16	Utah	$69,271	$33
   17	Ohio	$69,109	$33
   18	Idaho	$68,518	$33
   19	Georgia	$67,758	$33
   20	Indiana	$67,360	$32

   Average inside sales manager salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Accenture	$129,326	$62.18	365
   2	VMware	$127,292	$61.20
   3	Dell	$124,892	$60.04	7
   4	Okta	$118,969	$57.20	24
   5	F5	$114,221	$54.91	6
   6	Fortinet	$109,935	$52.85	156
   7	Jm	$109,589	$52.69	28
   8	Palo Alto Networks	$108,637	$52.23	155
   9	Cambium Learning Group	$108,091	$51.97	3
   10	Agilent Technologies	$107,625	$51.74	7
   11	Silicon Valley Bank	$106,752	$51.32
   12	Koppers	$106,245	$51.08	1
   13	FLIR Systems	$104,783	$50.38	12
   14	Autodesk	$103,523	$49.77	28
   15	AIG	$102,792	$49.42	1
   16	Sprinklr	$102,635	$49.34
   17	Current TV	$102,097	$49.09	4
   18	Imperva	$102,095	$49.08
   19	Kaseya	$101,914	$49.00
   20	SimilarWeb	$101,064	$48.59	7

4. Writing an inside sales manager job description

   An inside sales manager job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of an inside sales manager job description:

   Inside sales manager job description example

   Do you consider yourself a motivator and developer of talent? Are you driven to elevate the skills and results of those around you? Are you looking for a dynamic culture where you can make a difference? How about working in an environment where people genuinely like each other?
   
   If the answers to these questions were “YES!” then you may have just found the company and culture you've been hoping for.
   
   A successful Inside Sales Manager is a “Swiss Army Knife.” A leader, a mentor, a strategist, and a trainer. A Strategic Inside Sales manager takes ownership of the performance and actions of their sales team. Their day includes one on one coaching sessions to drive results and ensures that clients are being handled with empathy and care in a compliant manner.
   
   The ideal candidate will possess superior interpersonal and communication skills while applying a data-driven approach to sales management. This person will facilitate the sales process with knowledge of our product and the broader financial services category. A Strategic Manager will drive a diverse group of Inside Sales Consultants toward success and consistently coach and mentor their team to achieve the aggressive sales goals of a high-growth company. Through education, innovation, empathy and teamwork, you will help consumers achieve financial peace of mind while representing the Strategic brand with the highest integrity. A Strategic Manager is self-motivated & passionate and has the ability to work effectively and thrives off our rapid and ever-changing sales environment. You have a proactive, never-fail, positive attitude and most importantly, love to work when in a competitive environment where people have fun together.
   Responsibilities * Please note this is an in-office role, requiring a presence in the office Mondays through Thursdays with remote work on Fridays * Develop and coach a team of sales consultants to meet and exceed sales goals. Monitor and report on team productivity including key performance indicators. Exceed monthly and quarterly team and company targets. Leverage sales operations resources and collaborate with cross-functional teams. Optimize your team's daily activity to maximize effective on-phone time, inclusive of pre-call planning and activity metric adherence. Push innovation and disruption of processes and procedures through technology enhancement. Encourage individual development and maximize efficiency within the team. Provide evaluation, identify areas of improvement, and distribute active feedback to team to ensure transparency of expectations and performance management Excel at identifying present issues within the business, forecast potential short/medium term concerns, and provide solutions. Qualifications Minimum 4 years' experience within a progressive sales environment with strong emphasis on time and sales pipeline management 2+ years' experience managing an inside-sales team (both in-person and remote ideally) Proven record of building, maintaining, and expanding a diverse and cross-cultural team Results-oriented attitude driven by exceeding targets Ability to develop and motivate talent with a focus on delivering the best customer experience Proven record of driving highly qualified conversions and tackle customer escalations Strong communication and relationship management skillset Ability to develop system and processes to scale; leading with a clear vision on sales strategies Analytical, passionate and a self-motivated, fundamental problem solver Experience with CRM systems
   
   Employee Benefits:
   
   Health, Vision, and Dental Insurance with company contribution Paid Time Off, Volunteer Days, and Six Paid Holidays 401(k) with company match Employee Stock Ownership Program (ESOP) Life Insurance Short/Long Term Disability Commuter Benefits Gym benefits
   A Little About Strategic: Strategic Financial Solutions is an award-winning financial services firm dedicated to helping people live a financially healthy life through the products and services we offer. We were recently named as one of the Best Companies to Work for in New York State for the 6th time. Additional honors include being named, two times, as one of the 50 fastest growing companies in New York City and to the prestigious Inc. 500 list as one of the 500 fastest growing companies in the United States. Strategic is 100% employee owned, has offices in Manhattan and Buffalo, to house our rapidly growing family of over 750 associates. In June 2022 we proudly celebrated our 15th anniversary. Strategic is committed to hiring, training, cultivating, promoting, and celebrating an environment where we have a welcoming and fulfilling place for all people to call home. Diversity of race, thought, sexual orientation, age, veteran status, religion, and disability will empower us to thrive as individuals, as teams, and as a company. Please mark @talent.icims.com as a safe sender to ensure recruiter emails don't go to spam

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right inside sales manager for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with inside sales managers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit inside sales managers who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your inside sales manager job on Zippia to find and recruit inside sales manager candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with inside sales manager candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new inside sales manager

   Once you have selected a candidate for the inside sales manager position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   To prepare for the new inside sales manager first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire an inside sales manager?