Sales manager

Briefly explain what you do for a living. 

I work as a sales manager at Otava Learning in the region of Northern Finland. Otava Learning sells educational materials to pre-primary, primary and lower secondary, and general upper secondary schools. My work tasks include presenting educational materials to teachers and rectors of schools in Northern Finland and managing and developing customer relationships. In the spring, I work in sales, and in the autumn, I help teachers to start using the materials. I work in close cooperation with Otava’s marketing, customer service and delivery team.

How have you ended up in the profession of your choice? 

I worked as a class teacher for ten years and was Otava’s contact teacher for five springs. In practice, it meant that I took leave of absence from my job as a class teacher every spring and toured primary and lower secondary education establishments, presenting Otava’s educational materials. I became familiar with Otava’s educational materials, Otava itself and the schools of Northern Finland while working as a contact teacher. When they sought to hire a sales manager, I decided to apply because I was longing for new challenges.

Describe your typical working day or week. 

My work weeks vary seasonally. Schools order most of their educational materials in the spring. That is why I spend the beginning of the year touring schools and educational material marketing events. In the spring, I do guidance visits and help teachers start using their new educational materials. The most important thing about working as a sales manager is to be easily approachable and present when people need help with the materials.

The content of my workdays varies as well, and I rarely have two similar days. I pretty much have a free hand in managing my work tasks and schedules. My workdays involve some internal meetings and some meetings with clients. My typical workday could involve a few customer visits in different schools, a few meetings and answering calls and e-mails.

What kind of work environment or working hours do you have? 

I work from home, at the office or in schools at clients’ premises. I get to drive a car a lot in my work because the distances are long in the north. I can influence my work hours, but I aim to work during “office hours”. In the winter, I have marketing events and fairs in the evening.

What kind of competence or qualities are required in the profession? 

The most important qualities when working as a sales manager are cooperation and interaction skills. Knowing people well and understanding teachers’ needs are also a plus in sales. To enjoy working as a sales manager, it is important that you want to improve yourself and set goals for your work. Of course, you should also know the materials you sell as well as possible.

Additionally, the work requires flexibility, stress tolerance and customer service skills. The more active your approach to work is, the better you can achieve your goals. The work requires self-direction because no-one will give you detailed instructions on how to carry out your work or schedule your work weeks for you.

What is the best thing about your profession? 

The best thing about my profession is the freedom to work how I want to. My personality can show, and I can decide on my own schedules. I get to meet people daily, and they are often thankful for my work. I also get a lot of support from our own sales team, which helps me succeed.

What are the downsides of the profession or what seems challenging?

A sales manager is often busy. Sometimes I feel like I’m running out of hours, but the same applies to many other jobs as well. Sales in this field are also affected by the overall economic situation of municipalities and schools.

What would you tell a person considering the profession of a sales manager?

To succeed in this job, you need to have good cooperation and interaction skills and enjoy working with people. If sales are your passion and you want to improve yourself, I recommend working as a sales manager. I’m also eager to recommend publishing companies.

How do you see the future of your profession?

The most important thing about the sales manager’s role is to keep up with the times. What kind of changes are taking place in the world of education? How are the materials evolving? New software are constantly developed to support sales. They will make monitoring sales even easier in the future.