How To Become An Outside Account Manager: What It Is and Career Path

What is an outside account manager and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Kaustav Misra Ph.D.

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being an outside account manager. For example, did you know that they make an average of $21.22 an hour? That's $44,143 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 5% and produce 23,800 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to an outside account manager?

Kaustav Misra Ph.D.

Associate Dean, Central Connecticut State University

I have spent almost two decades in the higher education industry and about a decade in administration. I often advised students, and it is astonishing to see how many of these students do not plan for their future. A good plan is a starting point to lead a good and successful career and life. Hence, by all means, it is worth noting that developing a future-oriented focus is important, so taking time to streamline the plan should be an important exercise for every graduate before they begin to do anything.

ScoreOutside Account ManagerUS Average

Salary

3.4

Avg. Salary $44,143

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.4

Growth rate 5%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

2.7

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.24%

Asian 4.07%

Black or African American 3.24%

Hispanic or Latino 9.82%

Unknown 4.41%

White 78.23%

Gender

female 26.68%

male 73.32%

Age - 46

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 - 46

Stress level

6.4

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.7

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.4

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become an outside account manager

Explore outside account manager education requirements

Most common outside account manager degrees

Bachelor's

66.7 %

Associate

15.9 %

High School Diploma

10.7 %

Start to develop specific outside account manager skills

Skills	Percentages
Sales Process	11.57%
Customer Retention	8.91%
Product Knowledge	8.64%
Account Management	7.53%
Business Development	7.15%

Complete relevant outside account manager training and internships

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

Research outside account manager duties and responsibilities

Manage services including contract logistics, distribution, and inbound logistics and shipping brokerage along with various additional transportation solutions.
Provide overall guidance regarding territory and travel planning, and CRM management.
Administer appropriate planning to deliver high impact business plans to dealership and OEM regional management.
Negotiate with top level decision makers and investors, making successful presentations targeting client needs and ROI.

Apply for outside account manager jobs

Now it's time to start searching for an outside account manager job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do outside account managers rate their job?

-/5

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Outside account manager reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Mar 2020

Pros

Semi-flexible work hours. You have a sales goal and customers to call on in order to achieve said goal, so you have some flexibility of your schedule.

Cons

The amount of travel required takes you away from home frequently. If you have a family, being away starts taking a toll on them and work/life balance suffers.

A zippia user wrote a review on Jan 2020