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Job outlook for regional sales managers in the United States
Regional sales manager job growth summary. After extensive research, interviews, and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
The projected regional sales manager job growth rate is 5% from 2018-2028.
About 23,800 new jobs for regional sales managers are projected over the next decade.
Regional sales manager salaries have increased 12% for regional sales managers in the last 5 years.
There are over 327,421 regional sales managers currently employed in the United States.
There are 121,934 active regional sales manager job openings in the US.
The average regional sales manager salary is $82,980.
Are regional sales manager jobs in demand?
Regional Sales Manager job and salary trends over time
Regional Sales Manager jobs over time
Regional Sales Manager job growth rate over time
| Year | # Of Jobs | % Of Population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 327,421 | 0.10% |
| 2020 | 291,202 | 0.09% |
| 2019 | 299,995 | 0.09% |
| 2018 | 284,591 | 0.09% |
| 2017 | 279,759 | 0.08% |
Average regional sales manager salary over time
Regional Sales Manager salary by year
| Year | Avg. Salary | Hourly Rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $82,980 | $39.89 | +4.5% |
| 2024 | $79,436 | $38.19 | +1.9% |
| 2023 | $77,918 | $37.46 | +2.6% |
| 2022 | $75,936 | $36.51 | +2.6% |
| 2021 | $73,991 | $35.57 | +3.6% |
Regional Sales Manager jobs by state
Most common states for regional sales managers
| Rank | State | Population | # of Jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 394 | 57% |
| 2 | Massachusetts | 6,859,819 | 1,210 | 18% |
| 3 | Oregon | 4,142,776 | 730 | 18% |
| 4 | Utah | 3,101,833 | 525 | 17% |
| 5 | Delaware | 961,939 | 165 | 17% |
| 6 | Vermont | 623,657 | 104 | 17% |
| 7 | Colorado | 5,607,154 | 898 | 16% |
| 8 | Connecticut | 3,588,184 | 558 | 16% |
| 9 | California | 39,536,653 | 5,560 | 14% |
| 10 | Illinois | 12,802,023 | 1,830 | 14% |
| 11 | Virginia | 8,470,020 | 1,195 | 14% |
| 12 | Washington | 7,405,743 | 1,049 | 14% |
| 13 | New Hampshire | 1,342,795 | 184 | 14% |
| 14 | Rhode Island | 1,059,639 | 148 | 14% |
| 15 | Georgia | 10,429,379 | 1,363 | 13% |
| 16 | North Carolina | 10,273,419 | 1,305 | 13% |
| 17 | Arizona | 7,016,270 | 909 | 13% |
| 18 | Maryland | 6,052,177 | 762 | 13% |
| 19 | North Dakota | 755,393 | 97 | 13% |
| 20 | Minnesota | 5,576,606 | 685 | 12% |
Most common cities for regional sales managers
| Rank | City | # of Jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl | Avg. Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Weston | 4 | 6% | $77,157 |
| 2 | Hartford | 6 | 5% | $79,541 |
| 3 | Boston | 16 | 2% | $88,764 |
| 4 | Atlanta | 10 | 2% | $77,915 |
| 5 | Minneapolis | 10 | 2% | $69,144 |
| 6 | Sacramento | 10 | 2% | $106,411 |
| 7 | Des Moines | 4 | 2% | $60,206 |
| 8 | Chicago | 15 | 1% | $76,171 |
| 9 | Phoenix | 14 | 1% | $78,237 |
| 10 | San Francisco | 10 | 1% | $107,821 |
| 11 | Washington | 10 | 1% | $85,529 |
| 12 | Denver | 9 | 1% | $77,155 |
| 13 | Baltimore | 7 | 1% | $71,278 |
| 14 | Baton Rouge | 3 | 1% | $65,006 |
| 15 | Colorado Springs | 3 | 1% | $77,550 |
| 16 | Irvine | 3 | 1% | $94,925 |
| 17 | Los Angeles | 9 | 0% | $96,402 |
| 18 | San Diego | 4 | 0% | $93,162 |
| 19 | Austin | 3 | 0% | $85,388 |
Regional Sales Manager job outlook: Expert opinions
Our panel of regional sales manager experts
Texas Christian University
Texas Christian University
University of Maryland
University of Saint Mary
The Pennsylvania State University
Baylor University
Adecco USA
Clarion University of Pennsylvania
St. John Fisher College
Penn State Erie, The Behrend College
University of Vermont
The University of West Florida
Christopher Newport University
Andrews University
Valdosta State University
University of Nebraska–Lincoln
Penn State Behrend
Indiana University Southeast
William Paterson University
Minnesota State University Moorhead
Ken Corbit Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Professional Practice in MarketingTexas Christian University
Specialized Sales, Merchandising And Marketing Operations
What general advice would you give to a Regional Sales Manager?
Ken Corbit Ph.D.: Strategic
Company Selection:
Focus on joining companies with robust sales training programs, emphasizing consultative selling. Look for organizations that invest in your development, providing live calling experiences, quota-driven sales processes, and exposure to tools like Salesforce.
Tech
Proficiency and Sales Tools Mastery:
Familiarize yourself with cutting-edge sales technologies, including CRM tools like Salesforce. Your proficiency in these tools will not only streamline your sales processes but also position you as a tech-savvy professional in the competitive sales landscape.
Hands-On
Experience:
Actively engage in live calling, take ownership of sales funnels, and work with senior hiring authorities during your training. This hands-on experience will not only build your confidence but also prepare you for the challenges of consultative selling.
Research
and Decision-Making Skills:
Develop strong research skills to evaluate companies based on fit, growth opportunities, compensation structures, and overall potential. This informed decision-making approach will set you apart and empower you to navigate the sales landscape strategically.
Mentorship
and Networking:
Seek mentorship both within and outside your organization. Building relationships with mentors who invest in your sales skills and knowledge will provide valuable insights. Additionally, actively participate in online forums to connect with practical sales
knowledge and best practices.
What Regional Sales Manager skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Ken Corbit Ph.D.: AI-Integrated Consultative Selling: Recognize the evolving role of AI in sales. Embrace AI tools that enhance your pre-call preparation, role-playing, agenda setting, and call talk track development. Stay ahead by incorporating AI into your sales strategies to deliver personalized and efficient client engagements.
What will help Regional Sales Managers increase their earning potential?
Ken Corbit Ph.D.: Holistic
Knowledge Mastery:
Become an expert in your industry, staying abreast of market trends, and thoroughly understanding the products/services you sell. This comprehensive knowledge will empower you to provide exceptional value, resulting in higher sales success and increased client
retention.
Strategic
Question-Based Selling:
Master the art of question-based selling. Use insightful questions to uncover client needs, address pain points, and tailor your approach. This strategic skill will not only boost initial sales but also contribute to secondary sales and long-term client satisfaction.
Compensation
Structure Expertise:
Understand your organization's compensation structure thoroughly. This includes baseline compensation, commission and bonus plans, and additional benefits. This knowledge allows you to set realistic targets, maximize your earnings, and take full advantage
of uncapped commission structures.
Consistent
Target Achievement:
Consistently meet or exceed targets and quotas to demonstrate your value. This not only enhances your immediate success but also positions you for continuous earning potential, especially in roles with uncapped commissions.
Negotiation
and Value Recognition:
Develop negotiation skills to ensure you are compensated appropriately. Recognize your worth and, when appropriate, discuss compensation adjustments or additional benefits with your employer. A proactive approach to recognizing and articulating your value
contributes to your overall salary potential.
In a rapidly evolving sales landscape, continuous learning, tech adaptability, and proactive career management are fundamental for achieving sustained success in consultative sales.
Dr. Brandon Chicotsky
Assistant Professor of Professional Practice in Marketing at the TCU Neeley School of BusinessTexas Christian University
Specialized Sales, Merchandising And Marketing Operations
What skills stand out on Regional Sales Manager resumes?
Dr. Brandon Chicotsky: Substantiated numbers such as sales pipeline efficiency, callbacks, meetings, and repeat purchasing are more important than listing responsibilities. Also, management-level personnel should have team growth numbers and coaching methodologies listed with substantiated returns from such efforts.
What hard/technical skills are most important for Regional Sales Managers?
Dr. Brandon Chicotsky: Sales enablement software, customer relationship management systems; customer analytics and social listening tools; and video playbooks are becoming increasingly important.
What skills will help Regional Sales Managers earn the most?
Dr. Brandon Chicotsky: Research about the client and strategic questions (with active listening) to understand a client's needs and opportunities will help a sales professional determine if there is value alignment, which leads to more efficient and remunerative outcomes.
Roland Rust Ph.D.
Distinguished University Professor, David Bruce Smith Chair in Marketing, Executive Director, Center for Excellence in Service, Ph.D., Business Administration, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill MarketingUniversity of Maryland
Robert H. Smith School of Business
What skills stand out on Regional Sales Manager resumes?
Roland Rust Ph.D.: One might think that a stellar sales record would be most important, but that would be most relevant only if the individual has prior sales manager experience. If promoting a salesperson to sales manager, the thing that may be missing is administrative and managerial skills. In addition, we are in a technological revolution, driven by AI, which means that prior knowledge and experience with AI-related analysis would also definitely stand out (although probably hard to find).
What soft skills should all Regional Sales Managers possess?
Roland Rust Ph.D.: We consider empathy the most important soft skill (see our 2021 book, "The Feeling Economy: How Artificial Intelligence Is Creating the Era of Empathy," authored with Ming-Hui Huang). This is central for both sales managers and salespeople. The sales manager can best manage a salesperson by being able to understand their emotions. Different salespeople require different approaches. Likewise, salespeople need to relate to the customer's feelings. In addition, because so much of business is now digital, and we're in a pandemic of unknown duration, skills on media such as Zoom are more important than ever, as is the capability of texting and other modes of electronic communication.
What hard/technical skills are most important for Regional Sales Managers?
Roland Rust Ph.D.: Artificial intelligence is taking over many thinking tasks throughout the economy (see our recent book). Few salespeople or sales managers are AI experts, but at least they need to be aware of the state-of-the-art in that field, enough to know how best to manage human-AI teams. In the sales context, this generally means using AI in the "backroom" and using people for customer contact, although AI salespeople (e.g., chatbots) are becoming more widespread.
What skills will help Regional Sales Managers earn the most?
Roland Rust Ph.D.: My co-author, Ming-Hui Huang, and I conducted a research study about the "Feeling Economy" published in the California Management Review in 2019. In that study, which tested our predictions about the impact of AI, we investigated US government data to determine which skills are paying more over time. Interestingly, and across various industries, we found that soft skills were increasing in pay the fastest. This makes sense because as AI takes over more thinking tasks, humans will need to focus more on feeling tasks. With sales and sales management being among the most people-oriented jobs that exist, those choosing this career direction are doing the right thing!
Dr. Mark Harvey Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Director of Graduate and Undergraduate Programs, Coordinator of All-University Honors ProgramUniversity of Saint Mary
Division of Business and Information Technologies (DBiT)
What soft skills should all Regional Sales Managers possess?
Dr. Mark Harvey Ph.D.: First, critical and creative thinking. Employers value problem solvers. A Business Development Managers' problem usually is finding growth opportunities. Candidates need to learn to take the initiative to figure out how to solve problems like those.
Second, writing. The best employees know how to communicate in writing. More and more communication occurs through email and other forms of social media and apps, and as such, this skill is absolutely critical. You don't need to be a creative writing genius, but you do need to know how to write in a professional tone, present your ideas in an organized way, get to the point, and avoid errors. There is a direct line between a student's ability to write an academic essay with a clear thesis and an employee's ability to write a good email or proposal. If you can't do those things, then you risk embarrassment and possibly limited options for promotion.
Third, speaking. The American business world discriminates against introverts-sometimes at their own peril. Everyone needs to know how to give a quality speech, but more importantly, you need to sound confident and assertive in a board room during meetings. You need to be confident in front of clients. Fake it if you have to. The way you present yourself is absolutely critical.
Fourth, social skills. You need to be friendly. Get to know co-workers and clients. Find out what they like and show an interest. Find common ground. Your undergraduate degree hopefully exposed you to a wide diversity of topics you may have thought were irrelevant at some point. Now is the time to remember that stuff and use it to connect with people. Nearly everything you learned will have some application someday. It will help you connect with others. In addition, put away your cell phone when you are at work or on social occasions. To some people, a preoccupation with a cell phone communicates a lack of interest in the person you are with. It can alienate bosses, co-workers, and clients.
What hard/technical skills are most important for Regional Sales Managers?
Dr. Mark Harvey Ph.D.: Familiarity with software-basic windows packages, particularly MS Word and Excel. Candidates should not be afraid of quantitative data analysis. Analytics are necessary to figuring out what your business is doing and how it can grow. Also, familiarity with whatever social media platforms are used in that industry can be very important.
What skills will help Regional Sales Managers earn the most?
Dr. Mark Harvey Ph.D.: One consideration is, does the position pay commission? If so, the soft skills listed above are extremely important because the more you apply those skills, the more likely you are to grow your business.
When a manager is not on commission, there's little correlation between skills and pay while doing the job. The employer will hire you at a given salary level, and it is your job to negotiate to the best position. Once they have chosen you-that's the moment when you have the most leverage. You will never get a raise that is as substantial as what you might be able to ask for upon hire. After that, most raises are not going to be tied mechanically to performance and skills. Your next chance at a raise will be when you move or are promoted to a new position. Thus, those soft skills can affect your ability to negotiate.
I will repeat a previous theme: education and experience are probably more important than skills in terms of making more money. An employer can't really tell what your skills are from your resume. Just because you say you have a skill doesn't mean that you really do. They can reasonably guess that somebody with a degree is responsible enough to have accomplished something big. Somebody who makes it through a graduate program is probably very good at what they know. And somebody who has been in the industry and/or in a similar job is more likely to be able to walk in with little orientation and know what they are doing. Employers take risks on employees and hope that they can deliver. Thus, with more education and more experience, you are able to apply for higher-level jobs, which usually come with higher salaries.
What skills stand out on Regional Sales Manager resumes?
Dr. Mark Harvey Ph.D.: Resumes are hard. It is very difficult to predict what any employer is looking for on any resume. The "skills" section of a resume is probably not the first thing most employers are looking at. The first consideration is probably education. Those with a bachelor's degree will be sorted first in fields-such as those who have business degrees, or particularly sales and marketing majors. Those with MBAs will be placed on the top. Those who have MBAs and marketing concentrations will likely be valued the most. The second consideration would probably be experience. Someone with several years of experience in business development or sales and marketing will be moved to the top. Someone with a bachelor's degree who has a lot of experience might beat out a fresh MBA. However, MBA plus experience beats almost everything. Someone with an MBA going for an entry-level position with little experience needed will likely beat out all bachelor challengers. For new graduates, getting some kind of internship in sales and marketing can differentiate them from those who do not.
Most hiring managers will probably assume that somebody who has sales and marketing education and/or experience probably has the skills necessary to do the job. An interviewer may probe on specific skills. I'll comment more specifically on other kinds of skills below, but it's also fair to say that a candidate's soft skills should shine in the interview. Simply saying that you have certain skills on a resume doesn't mean that you actually have them.
I think that the best thing a candidate can do is to research the company they hope to work for and tailor their resume to that employer. What does the business do? What kinds of things do you think that development manager is going to do in that particular industry? How do your skills as a candidate match what you guess they're looking for? The more you customize your resume, the better chances you have of resonating with the company. Employers are impressed when you already know something about the job and the industry.
James Wilkerson Ph.D.
Business Program Coordinator, Project and Supply Chain Management Program CoordinatorThe Pennsylvania State University
Business Department
What skills stand out on Regional Sales Manager resumes?
James Wilkerson Ph.D.: Skills, experience, knowledge, and abilities that matter especially strongly include target market analysis (including market research skills and knowledge), product/service positioning within competitive field, project work or coordination with sales staff, major client relationship management, and enough general business and industry knowledge to be able to relate business development to operational/production realities.
What soft skills should all Regional Sales Managers possess?
James Wilkerson Ph.D.: Verbal skills (both speaking and writing), negotiation skills, unfailing honesty, ability to empathize with clients' wants, and teamwork skills suitable for working collaboratively with sales and operations staff.
What hard/technical skills are most important for Regional Sales Managers?
James Wilkerson Ph.D.: Spreadsheet (Excel) skills (including graph production from data), basic statistical knowledge, and online information search skills.
What skills will help Regional Sales Managers earn the most?
James Wilkerson Ph.D.: Skill at rapidly learning market trends, relating business development to product development, and persuading major prospective clients when brought in to help with closing sales. Bottom line: the business development manager must be on the cutting edge of new market conditions and new business opportunities to help the firm organically grow its sales, especially in new markets or product/service lines.
Andrea Dixon Ph.D.
Executive Director, Center for Professional Selling, Frank and Floy Smith Holloway Endowed Professorship in Marketing, President, University Sales Center Alliance 2019-2021Baylor University
Hankamer School of Business
What skills stand out on Regional Sales Manager resumes?
Andrea Dixon Ph.D.: Like salespeople, sales managers must focus their resumes on tangible, objective performance results that are achieved by their teams.
Growth in revenue or quota attainment for the overall team are examples of the types of objective performance results that matter.
High-performing sales managers also highlight long-term performance indicators, which includes both long-term revenue growth by the unit
AND investment metrics that signal the sales manager is building company results for the long run. For example, a high-performance sales manager focuses on building and maintaining a high-performing unit. Such a manager looks to move low performers to other roles where they can be successful.
Another investment metric that a sales manager can signal is the percent of their unit promoted to managerial roles in the organization.
What soft skills should all Regional Sales Managers possess?
Andrea Dixon Ph.D.: Since sales professionals have a lot of information available to them today via customer relationship management (CRM) systems, the sales manager's "supervisory" role is less important (especially for experienced sellers). Consequently, the sales manager needs to be more of a coach and enabler of high performance. Having confidence balanced with humility allows the sales manager to engage more effectively with their salespeople.
One of the critical soft skills for sales managers going forward will be the ability to connect members of the sales team to others in the organization - in other words, the sales manager of the future needs to have strong skills in network building for others. Sellers have access to data which helps them build success.
They also need access to the right people to turn to when they need specific expertise or assistance.
What hard/technical skills are most important for Regional Sales Managers?
Andrea Dixon Ph.D.: One of the growing technical skill requirements for sales managers is in the area of data analytics. Our performance and customer systems provide a myriad of data, and the role of the sales manager is to be a sense-maker of that mound of data. What are the implications for changes in strategy or behavior evident in last quarter's activity? How can the sales manager help a specific seller "see" where the data suggest new approaches?
What skills will help Regional Sales Managers earn the most?
Andrea Dixon Ph.D.: People who can recognize patterns (in data, in people), build connections with and across others, create a focus on high-performance behaviors, and lead with a confident humility are those who will win today and in the future business environment.
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Regional Sales Manager job market given the pandemic?
Madeleine Felion: - Increased wages and a focus on upskilling and reskilling are some of the biggest trends we're seeing, especially as the COVID-19 pandemic further accelerates the demand for certain skillsets.
- The ability to work from home - if the position allows, remote work and the flexibility it offers is here to stay.
- Safety is also top of mind for employers. Companies have made production schedule changes to accommodate social distancing, as well as implemented virtual processes for the application and onboarding phases, such as video and telephone interviews replacing in-person interviews.
What technical skills for a Regional Sales Manager stand out to employers?
Madeleine Felion: - In many hourly positions, math and measurement skills are increasingly sought after by companies - these skills can apply to several jobs from quality to CNC machining.
- Data entry and accuracy is a skill many nontraditional jobs are asking for as machines become more automated. Computer skills continue to stand out as it also applies to many in-demand roles.
- Other skills include experience working with ERP software systems such as SAP, Oracle and Syteline. Niche skills such as lean manufacturing, Six Sigma, 5S and a variety of ISO quality standards are highly desired in most manufacturing companies.
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Regional Sales Manager job market given the pandemic?
Dr. Miguel Olivas-Luján Ph.D.: As the economy "reopens" (thanks to appeased fears of contagion driven by vaccination, herd immunity, people worn out by the lockdowns, warmer weather, etc.), we should see workforce adjustments across industries and occupations. Already in March, unemployment was returning to 6% (from a high of 14.8% in April 2020, but after a low of 3.5 in February 2020; https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS14000000). Barring unexpected resistance in the virus variants or other influences, the summer and fall months should give us better job market numbers, but this recovery seems to be benefitting some population segments more than others. The unemployed rate for teenagers was at 13%, followed by Blacks (9.6%), Hispanics (7.9%), Asians (6%), adult men (5.8%), and adult women (5.7%; more detail is available at https://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm).
What will help Regional Sales Managers increase their earning potential?
Clair Smith Ph.D.: St. John Fisher is at its core a liberal arts college, and I'm a firm believer that a grounding in how to reason and make sound independent judgments is critical. And in Economics, that's what we do. I believe that graduates who can effectively reason and think through the implications of important decisions, who have quantitative skills to analyze and interpret data to inform those decisions, and who can powerfully communicate those arguments to others through the written and spoken word will have the greatest professional success and financial remuneration.
What will help Regional Sales Managers increase their earning potential?
Lisa Elliott Ph.D.: We are starting to see demand for data visualization in addition to the traditional user experience education requirements. Students who can take unstructured data sets and create a meaningful story helps the organization and the user understand complex situations. We expect that data visualization and data modeling will be a future skill for those in human factors psychology and for user experience design professionals.
Will there be an enduring impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Regional Sales Managers?
Madison Berry: There will definitely be an enduring impact on students who graduate during the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall, I think this may be more of an emotional or mental impact than a career one. Everyone will have that shared experience of a very strange year. They may be more likely to jump at new opportunities and feel a little more comfortable taking risks to get experience. Everyone is worried about "falling behind" and also tired of being in quarantine - so that may fuel some big career moves in the first few years out of college!
I think expectations for work-life balance and flexibility for work may also come out of this. Students know a lot more about their own working styles now - they have been forced over this time to try online, in-person, and hybrid learning, and they've seen how all of those options suit them. I think there will be a higher desire for remote work opportunities for some, while others now know remote is *definitely* not the work environment they want.
Eric Bostwick Ph.D.
Professor of AccountingThe University of West Florida
Department of Accounting and Finance
What soft skills should all Regional Sales Managers possess?
Eric Bostwick Ph.D.: Similar to the answer above, oral and written communication skills have been important for a number of years, but in our current environment, these skills have become much more important. Our ability to pick up on the context surrounding email messages is reduced since we have fewer in-person interactions, and even our virtual meetings eliminate much of the body language that we use--both consciously and unconsciously--to interpret what other people mean by what they say. Thus, candidates will stand out when they can clearly articulate their thoughts in both written form, via email or chat, and in oral form, via the ubiquitous "Brady Bunch" layout on their coworkers' computer screens.
What certifications/licenses/courses can have the biggest impact for Regional Sales Managers?
Eric Bostwick Ph.D.: Although the use of office productivity software has been important for a number of years, the importance of fluency with these types of programs has been heightened by our increased virtual interactions. In addition, the use of online collaboration tools has grown and will continue to grow. Thus, candidates will stand out when they demonstrate knowledge/skill (e.g., certification) with respect to basic collaborative productivity tools as well as specific technology commonly used in their career fields.
Will there be an enduring impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Regional Sales Managers?
Eric Bostwick Ph.D.: In a word, yes. The adjustments that both individuals and businesses have made during this time have shifted our expectations for life and work. For a generation of students who were already tech-natives, the shift to more technology-enabled interactions has reinforced the "click-to-do" mentality. And for non-tech-natives, the roll-out of intuitive, easy-to-use apps has overcome much of their resistance to these types of interactions. These shifts have affected everything from business meetings to family reunions and from buying lunch to meeting with your doctor. However, graduates will need to grow beyond being technology consumers. They must be able to effectively use technology to deliver a company's value proposition, especially in service-oriented fields such as accounting, finance, law, medicine, and consulting.
What certifications/licenses/courses can have the biggest impact for Regional Sales Managers?
Eric Bostwick Ph.D.: Although the use of office productivity software has been important for a number of years, the importance of fluency with these types of programs has been heightened by our increased virtual interactions. In addition, the use of online collaboration tools has grown and will continue to grow. Thus, candidates will stand out when they demonstrate knowledge/skill (e.g., certification) with respect to basic collaborative productivity tools as well as specific technology commonly used in their career fields.
Todd Lee Goen
Instructor & Internship DirectorChristopher Newport University
Department of Communication
What technical skills for a Regional Sales Manager stand out to employers?
Todd Lee Goen: Technical skills are often industry and/or position specific. Applicants should highlight any technical skills related to the position advertisement and those that add value to the position/organization. Most importantly, requirements for technical skills change with time and technological advances. This means employers value workers capable of adapting to change and continually improving and acquiring new technical skills. Thus, it's usually more important to demonstrate you are capable of learning and developing technical skills than it is to have a specific skill set upon hire (although this is not true for some positions/industries).
That said, technical skills related to online presentations, virtual meetings, virtual networking, remote working and the like are hot commodities right now. While most organizations were in the process of adopting many of these technologies and ways of doing business pre-pandemic, the pandemic accelerated the process. Organizations are making it work, but they often don't know best practices or the most efficient means of working in the largely virtual, pandemic environment. Post-pandemic, many of the remote/virtual changes the pandemic brought will stay in some form. Technical skills that support this type of workplace will make applicants stand out to many employers because they need/want to do virtual/remote business better.
What's a good job out of college for Regional Sales Managers?
Todd Lee Goen: Pandemic or no pandemic, the best job out of college is one that sets you on the path to achieve your ultimate career goal(s). Reflect on where you want to be in five or ten years or even twenty-five years. Then consider positions that will set you on the path to achieve that goal. Very few people land their dream job upon graduation - dream jobs are typically those we're not qualified to do without some additional work experience and training. A good job is one that will help you achieve your goal(s) - just don't frame it that way in the interview.
Good jobs pay a livable salary for the location, offer benefits (health insurance and retirement at minimum), and provide professional development opportunities (these can take a variety of forms). Too often, college grads overlook professional development. If an employer isn't willing to invest in you, there's no guarantee you will succeed in the job. Good employers understand they need qualified employees who continually develop their skills and abilities, and good employers will make sure employees have the resources they need to succeed.
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Regional Sales Manager job market given the pandemic?
Todd Lee Goen: The pandemic is demonstrating that employees can be productive working remotely and with flexible schedules, so we're likely to see more flexible and remote positions emerge in the job market. This will be industry/company/position specific, but these options give employers access to a larger applicant pool (which means a more talented workforce) and allows them to reduce overhead costs of maintaining physical office space.
Relatedly, hiring processes will become more technology-driven. In-person interviews (especially if there are multiple rounds) will be significantly less likely and more organizations will opt for pre-recorded interviews. This started pre-pandemic, but the pandemic will accelerate it. The good news is that as the technology improves the application process should become more efficient and streamlined (e.g., applying with LinkedIn profiles has the potential to become more of a norm).
The job market in recession-proof industries will remain strong, but wages will likely stagnate and may even decrease. Many recession-proof jobs are connected to state and local governments. The pandemic and its associated recession brought decreased tax revenues and increased demands for public expenditures, and state and local governments won't have the funds to support wage growth for the next few years. The job market in recession-intolerant industries will fluctuate for several years and will only stabilize once the economy begins to recover.
One of the key take-aways from the pandemic is that public health systems are inadequate. One possible outcome is that in the next few years there will be a greater number of jobs in the public health sector. Whether or not this happens will largely depend on the length and severity of the current recession as well as funding allocations of governments post-pandemic. Given the US federal government ceded much of the responsibility for responding to the pandemic, expect many of these positions to be with state and local governments. Also, expect many of these will be community/public engagement type positions that focus on communication and relationship building.
What technical skills for a Regional Sales Manager stand out to employers?
Todd Lee Goen: Technical skills are often industry and/or position specific. Applicants should highlight any technical skills related to the position advertisement and those that add value to the position/organization. Most importantly, requirements for technical skills change with time and technological advances. This means employers value workers capable of adapting to change and continually improving and acquiring new technical skills. Thus, it's usually more important to demonstrate you are capable of learning and developing technical skills than it is to have a specific skill set upon hire (although this is not true for some positions/industries).
That said, technical skills related to online presentations, virtual meetings, virtual networking, remote working and the like are hot commodities right now. While most organizations were in the process of adopting many of these technologies and ways of doing business pre-pandemic, the pandemic accelerated the process. Organizations are making it work, but they often don't know best practices or the most efficient means of working in the largely virtual, pandemic environment. Post-pandemic, many of the remote/virtual changes the pandemic brought will stay in some form. Technical skills that support this type of workplace will make applicants stand out to many employers because they need/want to do virtual/remote business better.
What's a good job out of college for Regional Sales Managers?
Todd Lee Goen: Pandemic or no pandemic, the best job out of college is one that sets you on the path to achieve your ultimate career goal(s). Reflect on where you want to be in five or ten years or even twenty-five years. Then consider positions that will set you on the path to achieve that goal. Very few people land their dream job upon graduation - dream jobs are typically those we're not qualified to do without some additional work experience and training. A good job is one that will help you achieve your goal(s) - just don't frame it that way in the interview.
Good jobs pay a livable salary for the location, offer benefits (health insurance and retirement at minimum), and provide professional development opportunities (these can take a variety of forms). Too often, college grads overlook professional development. If an employer isn't willing to invest in you, there's no guarantee you will succeed in the job. Good employers understand they need qualified employees who continually develop their skills and abilities, and good employers will make sure employees have the resources they need to succeed.
Lucile Sabas
Associate Professor of Finance & EconomicsAndrews University
School of Business Administration
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Regional Sales Manager job market given the pandemic?
Lucile Sabas: Several features will characterize the labor market hit by the coronavirus pandemic. Among them we can underline the five major following ones according to our analysis of the current situation:
1.A decrease in the job creation annual growth rate. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), foresees that over the next decade, this rate will be 0.4%, way below the 1.3% of the past decade 2009-2019. Even though the BLS projections data do not include the pandemic impacts, we assert that the trend mentioned could be maintained due to the changes that we can observe in the economy. It's also important to notice that this is a long run trend, and therefore, the projection remains valid.
2.A decrease in the labor force participation (LFP). The major factors that explain the decrease in the LFP can be mentioned as follows:
- An increase in retirements and early retirements. Many aged workers who had the possibility chose to leave the labor force due to the risks of virus contamination.
- In the category of young workers, some have seized the opportunity of distance learning for further education in the midst of a changing labor market.
- The number of discouraged workers increased because of the shifting skills requirements in the labor market and the fear of the contamination risks.
3.The emergence or reinforcement of some sectors at the expense of others. Yet, the unemployment rate increased significantly between April and June and remained higher than the 5.3% natural unemployment rate of the country; however, many sectors are still hiring and are performing very well. We'll see a conformation of this trend over the next years. For examples, the technology and NTIC sectors, as well as the e-commerce along with the transportation activities that come with it, the health and lifestyle and pharmaceutical sectors, the entertainment sector, and online education are the ones that experienced a revitalization and are expected to continue growing.
4.Due to this sectoral restructuration of our economy, the disparity between the skills requirements of the labor market and the skills currently available is increasingly visible.
5.The new organization of the workplace and the professional relations due to the COVID-19, led to a series of new activities or reinforcement of some exiting ones that still were low or experimental. More and more businesses are moving online and therefore, are moving global through the internet. This will lead to an increase in demand for a series of competencies that international business graduates will be able to find their way in. We can mention for example, foreign and internal market analysts, market trends analysts, bilingualism, e-managers and e-commerce specialists, international marketers, specialists in international finance and payments, specialists in International sales and negotiation (International marketing), approach to foreign markets and commercial communication specialists. Graduates with high competencies and skills in all these domains, will easily find their way in this new environment.
What general advice would you give to a Regional Sales Manager?
Lucile Sabas: To graduates beginning their career, I would advise to be ready to work hard and make themselves irreplaceable in the workplace, to be flexible and able to adapt to any change in the work environment, to try to develop several skills. They also need to be bold, curious, and read without stopping. Finally, every morning they should think about and apprehend their work and day as an opportunity for helping someone else, somewhere, to solve a problem and to be happy. Actually, this why we are here for. Aren't we?
What Regional Sales Manager skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Lucile Sabas: Along with the competencies mentioned above related to a restructuration of the labor market, many other competencies would be needed. We can mention some few of them, like, competencies in NTIC, web developers and designer, teleworking software specialists, technician-supports, software developers, drone specialists, cybersecurity specialists, teleworking software specialists. With the pandemic, we saw the intensification of online education. This later has proven to be very efficient in almost all domains. A graduate can take this option to use her gap year acquiring new competencies, if being on campus represents a challenge in the pandemic context. With this said, we assume that as an international business graduate, the student has had an international experience of at least six months (in a foreign country).
Herbert Fiester Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Program Coordinator, Curriculum and Instruction Doctoral ProgramValdosta State University
Department of Curriculum, Leadership, and Technology
What skills stand out on Regional Sales Manager resumes?
Herbert Fiester Ph.D.: Education and certifications complemented with practical experience is what employers like to see. Additionally, demonstrated skills leading, whether it be an implementation process through an entire lifecycle or driving change through innovation, will always impress. A resume should demonstrate a prospective employee's ability to take ownership of the functions of the job and complete those functions competently. Employers want to feel confident that the applicant can perform the job successfully, and any inclusions on the resume to help make that case should be included.
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Regional Sales Manager job market given the pandemic?
Herbert Fiester Ph.D.: This is an interesting question. On one hand, I expect organizations are treading water right now related to new hires while they weather the current atypical pandemic business conditions and an uncertain future. I know budgets in many industries, including public education, have been frozen. On the other hand, the pandemic has brought new challenges to how people work. New processes have been developed and are being utilized to allow productivity to continue. Many of these changes require employees to be trained to do these new process and use new productivity tools, which provides excellent opportunities for people with the ability to train others especially with technology related skills. I expect individuals with technology training skills will be in high demand even with the tight budgets. If, and when, the effects of the pandemic start to recede, I expect all organizations will look to shore-up human resource gaps where those needs exist.
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for Regional Sales Managers to find work opportunities?
Herbert Fiester Ph.D.: I used to think of "place" as a geographic location, but with the technological changes that have occurred within the past several years, and especially this past year, many doors have opened to allow flexible working conditions. Telecommuting, remote work, working from home, and telework, which were once frowned upon by many employers, have now been embraced. With this new acceptance, "place" becomes much less about geographic location and much more about industry type. I have not observed a lot of activity in higher education and P-12 domains lately due to the pandemic and tight budgets, and industry probably holds the most opportunity. Applicants who are willing to work in flexible work models will have access to many more job opportunities.
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Regional Sales Manager job market given the pandemic?
Celeste Spier Ph.D.: In terms of recruitment, one of the biggest trends will be a shift toward virtual recruiting, including virtual information sessions held by specific organizations, virtual career fairs, and virtual interviewing. This shift to virtual expands the amount and geographic area that organizations can recruit while reducing cost. In terms of jobs, one of the biggest trends will be increased flexibility in work schedules, including more remote work options and leeway to balance personal and professional demands.
What Regional Sales Manager skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Celeste Spier Ph.D.: If a student opts to take a gap year, recommended skills to gain include the Naceweb sought by employers according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), which are critical thinking, communication, teamwork, digital technology, leadership, professionalism/work ethic, and global/intercultural fluency. Technical skills are especially powerful in catching the eye of a recruiter in today's job market. Many free resources like EdX and Coursera exist to boost technical skills at no cost. For students who are taking a gap year because they are uncertain of their future career goals, their gap year should focus on exploration and reflection to ensure they end the year with a better sense of direction and next steps.
What general advice would you give to a Regional Sales Manager?
Celeste Spier Ph.D.: My advice would focus on three areas. First, adopt a growth/learner mindset. While your college degree has given you a great foundation of knowledge and skills, there is still much to learn. Second, build a community of support. Work (and life) are all about relationships. Put extra focus on building and maintaining strong relationships at work as well as outside of work. Finally, establish healthy work habits. Organizing your work, managing distraction, and getting the important work done (well and on time) are all essential skills for today's employees.
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Regional Sales Manager job market given the pandemic?
Dr. Mark Owens Ph.D.: It is hard to know for sure, but it seems like there will be a trend toward doing more job related tasks remotely. The pandemic forced many employers to adjust to life without in-person contact and many of these changes are going to persist in some form.
What skills stand out on Regional Sales Manager resumes?
Dr. Mark Owens Ph.D.: In international business it helps to be bilingual and to have study abroad and/or an international internship on your resume.
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for Regional Sales Managers to find work opportunities?
Dr. Mark Owens Ph.D.: Historically, the greatest number of jobs in international business have been located in the major trade areas like New York, Los Angeles, and Houston. However, the work from anywhere trend could open more opportunities for international business in areas outside traditional trade centers.
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Regional Sales Manager job market given the pandemic?
Dr. Uric Dufrene: There will be several trends that will impact graduates. Perhaps the most recognizable is the presence of working remotely. Employees will have more discretion in working remotely or from the office. For recent graduates, this may introduce conveniences and offer more flexibility on where one might choose to live. However, graduates must find ways to maintain some type of presence among co-workers. A new graduate must be cognizant of the old adage, "out of sight, out of mind".
Graduates will need to find creative ways to network. At some point, traditional face to face networking will return. Until then, graduates need to think about ways to network. This means that graduates must be very cognizant of their social network brand. Their online brand will take on a greater level of importance. For many graduates, the impression that colleagues and others in the industry might have will be influenced by their social networking branding.
What Regional Sales Manager skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Dr. Uric Dufrene: First, I would not recommend a gap year. One of the skills that is critically important, regardless of the time period, is adaptability. Learning how to adapt to the circumstances around you is a skill that is valued in the workplace, regardless of the year. This is a key part of problem solving. Solving problems with the conditions and resources on hand will prepare you for a lifelong success in any field. As a graduate develops a reputation for problem solving, they emerge as a "go to" employee and will be seen by others as a leader, in their department or company.
What general advice would you give to a Regional Sales Manager?
Dr. Uric Dufrene: Graduates must make a commitment to life-long learning. This does not have to be in a traditional graduate program, for example. Although, graduate school is highly recommended. Outside of a formal degree program, graduates must find ways to continue to invest in their professional development. This includes hard skills within their profession and soft skills, regardless of the occupation.
Find ways to meet people. This includes both within the organization and the industry. Think about face-to-face networking, when available, but also be very sensitive and intentional with respect to your online brand. Use the social media tools as a way of maintaining a very professional image and 24/7 virtual networking. Graduates need to think of their name as a brand. That brand will be influenced by your digital footprint, and how one might communicate, both in writing and in a virtual sense (video technologies). With working in a remote environment, the impression that one might develop of you will be based on writings co-workers receive from you (emails, memos, etc.) and your video presence. Graduates need to invest time in developing and enhancing these important skills.
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Regional Sales Manager job market given the pandemic?
Giuliana Andreopoulos: The pandemic has caused massive dislocation, particularly for the small companies already financially fragile. However, while industries like retail, arts and entertainment, personal services, food services, and hospitality experienced substantial layoffs, finance, and professional services experienced less disruption, because there were able to transition to remote work.
It is still not clear if remote work is a short-term response to the pandemic or should be regarded as a long-term phenomenon. If this is the case, we need to recognize that remote work can be associated with problems like lack of engagement and low productivity of the workers, difficulty of managing remote workforce, security considerations, and reconfiguration of office space. In England, some companies are already selling buildings and renting spaces for a short period.
Not surprisingly, some companies gained from the pandemic, increased their production and were able to hire. We refer to those connected with e-commerce, like Amazon and Walmart, and high- tech companies, like Microsoft and Cisco, since they experienced substantial increase in profits.
What skills stand out on Regional Sales Manager resumes?
Giuliana Andreopoulos: I do not think that the pandemic has been and will be able to reverse the importance of certain skills on students` resumes. There is no doubt in my mind that communication, team working, problem solving, leadership, still come at the top of the list for business students. However, the pandemic has added new skills: ability to work remotely, manage crisis, and deal with data. We hope that Business Colleges and Schools will take into consideration these new developments when they plan new courses, programs, or certificates.
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for Regional Sales Managers to find work opportunities?
Giuliana Andreopoulos: The job opportunities for business students mainly depend on their personal skills, GPA, field of specialization, practical experience, and networking. Based on my ten-year experience as the Director of Experiential Learning at WPU, global business students need some sort of specialization, otherwise it is not easy to get a job because companies still require specific skills. Thus, a global business degree is most useful when it is taken in conjunction with another more specialized program or degree, like finance, marketing, management, or law and politics. This becomes evident if we look at possible careers such as Marketing Manager, Human Resources Manager, Financial Analyst, and Policy Analyst. The US offers many job opportunities for graduates in international business, especially in cities like NYC, Chicago, Washington, and San Francisco. However, outside the Unites States countries like Singapore, Canada, Switzerland should also be very appealing to international business graduates.
Wooyang Kim Ph.D.
Associate ProfessorMinnesota State University Moorhead
Paseka School of Business
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Regional Sales Manager job market given the pandemic?
Wooyang Kim Ph.D.: During this unprecedented context, the biggest trends in the marketing job market would be three parts - 1) Hyper-competition in the shrunk size of the job markets, 2) Emerging virtual (or remote) work environment at the home office, and 3) Salary and/or compensation reduction in the workplaces.
First, on average, the unemployment rate has been drastically increased while the job positions were (temporarily) eliminated in 2020 due primarily to the negative effect of the pandemic across industry sectors. Also, the pandemic situation has accelerated the job positions by replacing humans with AI (artificial intelligence) and machines (e.g., automation and/or touchless system), shrinking the total size of the job market. As a result, the given conditions inevitably entail hyper-competitions by creating a new structural environment in the job market for two or three years from now. This situational tendency would accelerate in the manufacturing and service industry sectors. Second, due to safety reasons by following the CDC regulation, many firms have changed the workplace from firms' office to home office, although several labor-intensive sectors had minimized this change (e.g., retailers and restaurants). This replacement of the workplace has increased the virtual or remote oriented work environment. Third, overall costs for maintaining businesses increase while declining profits - tight budget for business sustainability to survive in the current market. This circumstance tends to reduce overall marketing costs as well as the labor force-related costs (salaries, compensations, and benefits).
Nonetheless, the job positions in analyzing consumer behavior and psychology would be sustainable in the marketing-related job market, such as the job areas related to market and marketing analyses, online consumer analyses, and similar fields across the industry sectors.
What Regional Sales Manager skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Wooyang Kim Ph.D.: I believe diverse recommendations exist dependent upon the job positions in the different industry sectors. Generally speaking, even marketing-related jobs encompass numerous functional areas in many business organizations, such as advertising and PR, branding, customer experience and service, digital marketing, new product development, product management, sales and promotions, social media marketing, and more.
Regardless of the diversity above, I commonly recommend two skills to enhance marketing-related competence: 1) communication skills as a soft skill and 2) analytical skills as a hard skill responding to the concurrent marketing environment. These two skills would be fundamental skills to be marketers since marketing job activities always interplay with people (colleagues, consumers, partners, etc.) and products/services, and therefore, job seekers should understand human behavior and are capable of comprehending the marketability of products/services.
To obtain these two skills, I suggest that students need repetitive practices by conducting continuous observations and interacting with others in the college and workplace. In this process, I urge them to keep asking three essential questions - what (it is), why (it occurs), and how (to act) questions, according to the principle of 5W and 1H, when facing the situation needed to react or solve. In my opinion, this continuous training would help to develop the recommended skills: communication and analytical skillsets.
What general advice would you give to a Regional Sales Manager?
Wooyang Kim Ph.D.: I have frequently observed anxieties about the new job and doubts about their capability toward uncertainties to the new journey and future. This encountered situation is a very different immediate environment beyond their comfort zone, which is rarely experienced in the school-affiliated environment. Accordingly, I have commonly given relatable and motivational advice to encourage my advisees and mentees; but importantly, the advice should be tailored to an individual's interests and circumstances since all individuals are not the same. Although I cannot describe all the individual cases here, I have commonly encouraged my students and mentees who first step into their careers as follows.
'Trust yourself and realize and develop your potentials. Enjoy your job for achieving your happiness.'
I believe having confidence and realizing potentials are critical factors to enter and adapt to new fields. Since humans, as we are, experience repeatedly mistakes and successes during the lifespan, we should recognize the rises and falls. In this premise, we should trust ourselves and develop our potentials as a baseline. Also, I believe we attempt to begin with a career path for achieving happiness by doing where individuals have values. Although some discussion points exist to establish the personal meaning of happiness (e.g., financial status, job security, etc.), pursuing happiness is an innate and ultimate goal to us all the time.