What's involved in being a senior sales executive?

I'm exploring careers in sales and trying to understand what it's like to work as a senior sales executive. What are the typical duties and skills needed for this role? Any insights would be super helpful for my future planning!

The role of a senior sales executive can be quite challenging yet rewarding, often combining high-level strategic planning with hands-on work in a firm's sales department.

A senior sales executive's typical duties primarily revolve around reaching a company's sales goals. This includes developing sales strategies, identifying business opportunities by identifying prospects and evaluating their position in the industry, leading and training a sales team, and securing strong client relationships. They may also be responsible for providing sales forecasts and reports to the organization's top management, along with monitoring competition by gathering current marketplace information on pricing, products, and trends.

In terms of skills, excellent communication, negotiation, and presentation skills are crucial, as this role often entails pitching products or services to potential clients. Leadership skills are essential as well due to the executive's role in managing a sales team. Other important skills can include strategic planning, business acumen, and customer relationship management.

Senior executives also need to be consistently motivated to meet targets and drive sales. They often need inherent resilience as sales can be a high-pressure job with frequent rejection. Also beneficial would be a comprehensive understanding of the particular sector or industry as it will help guide sales strategy based on trends and market conditions.

In a more practical sense, this role may often require traveling to meet clients and close deals, so a willingness to travel might also be required.

Just note that specifics can vary depending on the company and the industry. However, these general elements hold for most senior sales executive roles.