Sales engineer to motor vehicle aftersales manager
A sales engineer already meets 26% of what the motor vehicle aftersales manager role asks for. The move turns on 14 required skills not yet in the profile.
73.4/ 100
1 How much of what a motor vehicle aftersales manager is expected to do is already part of a sales engineer’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the motor vehicle aftersales manager role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A motor vehicle aftersales manager role treats 5 of its required skills as things a sales engineer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- build business relationships
- consumer protection
- ensure compliance with warranty contracts
- negotiate sales contracts
- provide customer follow-up services
What stands in the way is 14 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 9 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A motor vehicle aftersales manager role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a sales engineer background worth leading with.
- already held parts pricing engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held ensure compliance with warranty contracts communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held consumer protection services
- already held car controls services
- already held types of vehicles engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held teamwork principles generic programmes and qualifications
All 9 carried skills, including the 5 the motor vehicle aftersales manager role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 25 missing skills fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn develop aftersale policies required
- still to learn manage aftersales processes to comply with business standards required
- still to learn supervise sales activities required
- still to learn apply business acumen required
- still to learn manage staff required
- still to learn plan event marketing for promotional campaigns required
- optional, not held meet deadlines optional
- still to learn monitor after sales records required
- still to learn use mathematical tools for managing vehicles required
- still to learn produce statistical financial records required
- optional, not held operate dealership management system optional
- optional, not held report accounts of the professional activity optional
- optional, not held apply numeracy skills optional
- still to learn commercial law required
- still to learn product comprehension required
- optional, not held sales argumentation optional
- optional, not held competition law optional
- optional, not held employment law optional
- still to learn perform customers’ needs analysis required
- still to learn show diplomacy required
- optional, not held implement customer follow-up optional
- optional, not held give instructions to staff optional
- optional, not held think proactively to secure sales optional
- still to learn guarantee customer satisfaction required
- optional, not held new vehicles on the market optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a motor vehicle aftersales manager role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 develop aftersale policies practise this
- 02 commercial law study this
- 03 guarantee customer satisfaction practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 9 skills that carry over
- already held build business relationships skill
- already held consumer protection knowledge
- already held ensure compliance with warranty contracts skill
- already held negotiate sales contracts skill
- already held provide customer follow-up services skill
- already held car controls knowledge
- already held parts pricing knowledge
- already held teamwork principles knowledge
- already held types of vehicles knowledge
11 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held implement customer follow-up optional
- optional, not held operate dealership management system optional
- optional, not held report accounts of the professional activity optional
- optional, not held sales argumentation optional
- optional, not held apply numeracy skills optional
- optional, not held competition law optional
- optional, not held employment law optional
- optional, not held give instructions to staff optional
- optional, not held meet deadlines optional
- optional, not held new vehicles on the market optional
- optional, not held think proactively to secure sales optional
33 held skills the motor vehicle aftersales manager role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role achieve sales targets skill
- not needed by the target role advise customers on motor vehicles skill
- not needed by the target role apply health and safety standards skill
- not needed by the target role apply technical communication skills skill
- not needed by the target role apply territory planning skill
- not needed by the target role calculate costs of repair operations skill
- not needed by the target role capital goods industry knowledge
- not needed by the target role carry out repair of vehicles skill
- not needed by the target role check finished vehicles for quality control skill
- not needed by the target role coordinate automotive repair and maintenance service skill
- not needed by the target role drive vehicles skill
- not needed by the target role e-procurement knowledge
- not needed by the target role electrical wiring plans knowledge
- not needed by the target role implement marketing strategies skill
- not needed by the target role implement sales strategies skill
- not needed by the target role interpret electrical diagrams skill
- not needed by the target role inventory management rules knowledge
- not needed by the target role issue sales quotations for repairs or maintenance skill
- not needed by the target role keep up-to-date on manufacturer's policies skill
- not needed by the target role maintain customer records skill
- not needed by the target role maintain parts inventory skill
- not needed by the target role maintain vehicle records skill
- not needed by the target role manage vehicle services' financial resources skill
- not needed by the target role maximise sales revenues skill
- not needed by the target role organise storage facilities skill
- not needed by the target role perform road testing of vehicles skill
- not needed by the target role prospect new customers skill
- not needed by the target role provide customer information related to repairs skill
- not needed by the target role purchase automotive equipment skill
- not needed by the target role purchase vehicle parts skill
- not needed by the target role supply chain principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role think proactively skill
- not needed by the target role use communication techniques skill
6 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn commercial law required
- still to learn product comprehension required
- optional, not held sales argumentation optional
- optional, not held competition law optional
- optional, not held employment law optional
- optional, not held new vehicles on the market optional
Common questions about this move
Can a sales engineer become a motor vehicle aftersales manager?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A sales engineer already covers 26% of what a motor vehicle aftersales manager is expected to do: 9 skills carry over, 5 of which the motor vehicle aftersales manager role treats as required.
What skills does a sales engineer need to become a motor vehicle aftersales manager?
14 required skills are missing, plus 11 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by management skills. The single most important is develop aftersale policies.
How hard is the move from sales engineer to motor vehicle aftersales manager?
Its learning distance is 73.4 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.