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

What is a senior service manager and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

A senior service manager oversees the delivery of services to clients and ensures satisfaction. They manage teams of service professionals, develop service strategies, and implement policies to improve service quality. Senior service managers liaise with clients and stakeholders to identify needs, address concerns, and manage expectations. Senior service managers develop and maintain relationships, negotiate contracts, and manage budgets. They also recruit, train, and mentor service staff to deliver excellent customer service.

ScoreSenior Service ManagerUS Average

Salary

8.4

Avg. Salary $129,065

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.6

Growth rate 16%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

1.7

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.21%

Asian 12.65%

Black or African American 6.69%

Hispanic or Latino 10.05%

Unknown 5.20%

White 65.20%

Gender

female 33.19%

male 66.81%

Age - 47

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 - 47

Stress level

8.6

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.7

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.1

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

What are the pros and cons of being a senior service manager?

Pros

High salary and benefits package
Opportunity to lead and mentor a team
Flexibility in schedule and remote work options
Opportunity to travel and attend industry events
Sense of accomplishment from successfully managing complex projects

Cons

Pressure to meet strict deadlines and performance metrics
Dealing with difficult or dissatisfied customers
Potential for conflict or miscommunication within the team or with other departments
Limited control over external factors that can impact service delivery
Risk of burnout from high demands and intense workload

Key steps to become a senior service manager

Explore senior service manager education requirements

Most common senior service manager degrees

Bachelor's

68.4 %

Master's

17.5 %

Associate

9.4 %

Start to develop specific senior service manager skills

Skills	Percentages
Project Management	6.77%
Client Relationships	6.58%
Business Development	6.19%
Cloud	5.00%
Email Marketing	4.46%

Complete relevant senior service manager training and internships

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

Gain additional senior service manager certifications

Senior service manager certifications can show employers you have a baseline of knowledge expected for the position. Certifications can also make you a more competitive candidate. Even if employers don't require a specific senior service manager certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for senior service managers include IT Information Library Foundations Certification (ITIL) and Project Management Professional (PMP).

More About Certifications

Research senior service manager duties and responsibilities

Manage revenue and expenses for budget to meet shareholder KPI metrics.
Ensure SLA compliance, manage escalations and build solutions to respond to new requirements.
Develop a robust PMO framework and manage the responsibilities for the SunGard project team.
Identify investment opportunities and manage investment product fund to ensure excess ROI and minimize carryover losses.

Get senior service manager experience

Generally, it takes 6-8 years to become a senior service manager. The most common roles before becoming a senior service manager include service manager, manager team lead and project manager.

Prepare your senior service manager resume

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

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a senior service manager resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable senior service manager resume templates

Build a professional senior service manager resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your senior service manager resume.