How To Become A Senior Area Manager: What It Is and Career Path

What is a senior area manager and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

R. Scott Hengen

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a senior area manager. For example, did you know that they make an average of $34.23 an hour? That's $71,190 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 6% and produce 189,200 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a senior area manager?

R. Scott Hengen

Technical Theatre Faculty/Production Coordinator, Montgomery College

Your studies and time in school are a good base and support for your production in the industry. As you begin, please consider that you will still be learning and, even though you have learned the essentials, you will be asked to apply your skills and experience in new ways and in a more competitive and practical atmosphere. Deadlines must be met, and the economy of time and effort will be crucial. Work hard, but try to keep a balance between time in the industry and your home life.

ScoreSenior Area ManagerUS Average

Salary

5.6

Avg. Salary $71,190

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

9.6

Growth rate 6%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.47%

Asian 6.43%

Black or African American 6.25%

Hispanic or Latino 15.43%

Unknown 4.35%

White 67.07%

Gender

female 23.13%

male 76.87%

Age - 44

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 - 44

Stress level

9.6

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

9.2

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

3.6

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a senior area manager

Explore senior area manager education requirements

Most common senior area manager degrees

Bachelor's

67.7 %

Master's

15.2 %

Associate

11.3 %

Start to develop specific senior area manager skills

Skills	Percentages
Employee Development	14.31%
Direct Reports	13.96%
SR	10.09%
Financial Statements	8.66%
Business Development	8.31%

Complete relevant senior area manager training and internships

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

Research senior area manager duties and responsibilities

Manage by KPI matrix to ensure goals are met and correct negative indicators to achieve positive results.
Network lead in companywide customer service compliance expectations, thru intercompany KPI & customer generate KPI.
Collaborate with division payroll leads to identify and implement payroll best practices.
Establish productive working relationships with state and federal regulatory agencies, reorganize and improve operation, and achieve OSHA compliance.

Get senior area manager experience

Generally, it takes 4-6 years to become a senior area manager. The most common roles before becoming a senior area manager include general manager, area manager team lead and sales representative.

Prepare your senior area manager resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your senior area manager resume.

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