How to hire a territory manager

How to hire a territory manager, step by step

Here's a step-by-step territory manager hiring guide:

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

What does a territory manager do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The territory manager hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

   Yes

   No

   A territory manager's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, territory managers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list shows salaries for various types of territory managers.

   Type of Territory Manager	Description	Hourly rate
   Territory Manager	Sales managers direct organizations' sales teams. They set sales goals, analyze data, and develop training programs for organizations’ sales representatives.	$22-56
   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
   Sales Manager/Sales Trainer	A sales trainer or manager provides training for the sales staff. The target of the training is to improve the sales figures and meet target sales... Show more	$25-74

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Customer Service
   • Patients
   • Product Knowledge
   • Work Ethic
   • CRM
   • Excellent Interpersonal
   • Trade Shows
   • Sales Objectives
   • Territory Sales
   • Customer Satisfaction
   • Medical Sales
   • Sales Strategies
   • Sales Process
   • Business Relationships

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Achieve MVP in Q3 2003 and Q1 through Q4 2004.
   • Manage promotional budgets focusing on high ROI events, thus increasing sales at lower promotional cost.
   • Manage all aspects of TM specification, sales, order management and delivery of customer's orders.
   • Generate leads through internet research, marketing, trade show participation, internal department cross-selling, and referrals.
   • Manage all aspects of SalesForce CRM integration and administration throughout the entire sales department
   • Achieve profitable relationships with current and prospective customers by providing exceptional customer support through attentiveness and extensive product knowledge.

   More territory manager duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your territory manager job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A territory 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 a territory manager in Wyoming may be lower than in Alaska, and an entry-level territory manager usually earns less than a senior-level territory manager. Additionally, a territory 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 territory manager salary

   $73,728yearly

   $35.45 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level territory manager salary

   $46,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 21, 2026

   Average territory manager salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Washington	$100,572	$48
   2	California	$95,862	$46
   3	Oregon	$86,853	$42
   4	District of Columbia	$82,458	$40
   5	Massachusetts	$80,179	$39
   6	Pennsylvania	$78,507	$38
   7	Texas	$77,303	$37
   8	Florida	$76,412	$37
   9	New York	$75,850	$36
   10	Alabama	$73,549	$35
   11	Arizona	$72,592	$35
   12	Virginia	$71,621	$34
   13	Indiana	$71,252	$34
   14	Maryland	$71,074	$34
   15	New Mexico	$70,649	$34
   16	Utah	$70,571	$34
   17	Nevada	$68,021	$33
   18	Connecticut	$67,857	$33
   19	Maine	$65,313	$31
   20	Wisconsin	$65,134	$31

   Average territory manager salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies	$136,224	$65.49	1
   2	Elanco	$135,094	$64.95	4
   3	Cordis	$118,074	$56.77	34
   4	W. R. Berkley	$111,451	$53.58	16
   5	CVS Health	$109,697	$52.74	311
   6	Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc.	$108,151	$52.00	69
   7	UGI	$106,558	$51.23	12
   8	Johnson & Johnson	$106,245	$51.08	103
   9	Cisco	$104,301	$50.14	14
   10	Marathon Petroleum	$104,087	$50.04
   11	Snowflake Computing	$103,998	$50.00	5
   12	Conga	$103,263	$49.65
   13	Conviva	$100,652	$48.39
   14	General Electric	$100,161	$48.15	72
   15	Hologic	$99,011	$47.60	77
   16	AIG	$98,937	$47.57	2
   17	Cummins	$97,044	$46.66	4
   18	Mallinckrodt	$96,487	$46.39
   19	Area 1 Security	$95,580	$45.95
   20	Boston Scientific	$94,757	$45.56	74

4. Writing a territory manager job description

   A territory 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. To help get you started, here's an example of a territory manager job description:

   Territory manager job description example

   AppOne, an affiliate of Reynolds and Reynolds, is seeking an Outside Sales Representative to join our growing sales team. As an Outside Sales Representative, your primary focus will be to promote the sale of AppOne solutions within your territory. You will serve as the subject matter expert for our solutions and will be responsible for building and maintaining relationships with our current customers, as well as finding new accounts. You will work with marine, RV, power sports, outdoor power equipment, and commercial vehicle dealerships. In this position you will travel 30% or less of the time on the west coast as well as utilize a web based video application to meet customers while working from home. Additionally, you will attend some lender, dealer, and software product conferences as well as dealer tradeshow events. In this role, You will also be provided with a tablet, iPhone, and home office equipment. Salary: $60-65k base plus uncapped commissions - Total target in first year of selling is $75-80k BENEFITS: We strive to offer an environment that provides our associates with the right balance between work and family. We offer a comprehensive benefits package including: - Medical, dental, vision, and life insurance - 401(k) with up to 6% matching - Working remotely with an tablet, iPhone, laptop, and other provided home office equipment - Professional development and training - Promotion from within - Paid vacation, sick days, and eight paid holidays - Referral bonuses - Associate discounts for cell phones, cars, computers, entertainment, and much more
   Share this job
   
   Training:
   
   Our training consists of remote online courses and time with experienced representatives in the field.
   
   Requirements:
   
   + 2+ years experience in automotive, marine, recreational vehicle, or power sport required
   
   + Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience
   
   + Lending and finance knowledge preferred
   
   + Must be a self-starter with the ability to schedule time effectively
   
   + Ability to create and maintain strong relationships
   
   + Strong presentation skills
   
   + Excellent oral and written communication skills
   
   Salary:
   
   $60,000 - $65,000 / year
   
   This position includes commission

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right territory 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 territory managers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit territory 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 territory manager job on Zippia to find and recruit territory manager candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting territory managers requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete 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 territory manager

   Once you've found the territory manager candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new territory manager. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

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 a territory manager?