Career Overlap Transition record
RecordMove

Sales manager to retail department manager

A sales manager already meets 26% of what the retail department manager role asks for. The move turns on 12 required skills not yet in the profile.

Fig. 1 · Skill transfer ESCO v1.2.1 · directional
From sales manager
26 % overlap
Distant match
To retail department manager
8 You already bring
12 Still to learn
40 Skills in the target role2
Learning distance Substantial retraining

72.8/ 100

1 How much of what a retail department manager is expected to do is already part of a sales manager’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 retail department manager role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.

Why

Why this move works

A retail department manager role treats 6 of its required skills as things a sales manager already does. You would walk in with these on day one.

  • carry out sales analysis
  • implement sales strategies
  • manage budgets
  • manage staff
  • set sales goals
  • supervise sales activities

What stands in the way is 12 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.

Table 2

Table 2 · What you already bring

Of the 8 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A retail department manager role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a sales manager background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area
  • already held carry out sales analysis information skills
  • already held supervise sales activities management skills
  • already held analyse consumer buying trends information skills
  • already held set sales goals management skills
  • already held implement sales strategies communication, collaboration and creativity
  • already held perform market research information skills

All 8 carried skills, including the 6 the retail department manager role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you may need to learn

The 32 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.

Skill to pick up Tier
01 communication, collaboration and creativity 4 required, 7 supplementary
  • still to learn set sales promotions required
  • still to learn implement marketing strategies required
  • still to learn maximise sales revenues required
  • still to learn order supplies required
  • optional, not held maintain relationship with customers optional
  • optional, not held maintain relationship with suppliers optional
  • optional, not held create solutions to problems optional
  • optional, not held negotiate buying conditions optional
  • optional, not held perform procurement processes optional
  • optional, not held show diplomacy optional
  • optional, not held train employees optional
02 management skills 2 required, 7 supplementary
  • still to learn manage revenue required
  • still to learn monitor customer service required
  • optional, not held manage inventory optional
  • optional, not held apply business acumen optional
  • optional, not held evaluate employees optional
  • optional, not held improve business processes optional
  • optional, not held meet deadlines optional
  • optional, not held motivate staff to reach sales targets optional
  • optional, not held recruit employees optional
03 information skills 2 required, 2 supplementary
  • still to learn monitor proper product handling required
  • still to learn control of expenses required
  • optional, not held examine merchandise optional
  • optional, not held measure customer feedback optional
04 assisting and caring 2 required, 1 supplementary
  • still to learn ensure compliance with purchasing and contracting regulations required
  • still to learn ensure compliance with legal requirements required
  • optional, not held manage theft prevention optional
05 business, administration and law 2 required, 1 supplementary
  • still to learn company policies required
  • still to learn employment law required
  • optional, not held accounting techniques optional
06 generic programmes and qualifications 2 supplementary
  • optional, not held communication principles optional
  • optional, not held teamwork principles optional
Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries a retail department manager role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.

Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.

Appendix

Appendix · The rest of the record

All 8 skills that carry over
Skill Type
  • already held carry out sales analysis skill
  • already held implement sales strategies skill
  • already held manage budgets skill
  • already held manage staff skill
  • already held set sales goals skill
  • already held supervise sales activities skill
  • already held analyse consumer buying trends skill
  • already held perform market research skill
20 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
Skill to pick up Tier
  • optional, not held examine merchandise optional
  • optional, not held maintain relationship with customers optional
  • optional, not held maintain relationship with suppliers optional
  • optional, not held manage inventory optional
  • optional, not held accounting techniques optional
  • optional, not held apply business acumen optional
  • optional, not held communication principles optional
  • optional, not held create solutions to problems optional
  • optional, not held evaluate employees optional
  • optional, not held improve business processes optional
  • optional, not held manage theft prevention optional
  • optional, not held measure customer feedback optional
  • optional, not held meet deadlines optional
  • optional, not held motivate staff to reach sales targets optional
  • optional, not held negotiate buying conditions optional
  • optional, not held perform procurement processes optional
  • optional, not held recruit employees optional
  • optional, not held show diplomacy optional
  • optional, not held teamwork principles optional
  • optional, not held train employees optional
54 held skills the retail department manager role does not ask for
Skill Type
  • not needed by the target role align efforts towards business development skill
  • not needed by the target role analyse business plans skill
  • not needed by the target role analyse customer service surveys skill
  • not needed by the target role analyse external factors of companies skill
  • not needed by the target role analyse internal factors of companies skill
  • not needed by the target role analyse supply chain strategies skill
  • not needed by the target role analyse work-related written reports skill
  • not needed by the target role brand marketing techniques knowledge
  • not needed by the target role collaborate in the development of marketing strategies skill
  • not needed by the target role communicate with customers skill
  • not needed by the target role consumer goods industry knowledge
  • not needed by the target role content marketing strategy knowledge
  • not needed by the target role coordinate marketing plan actions skill
  • not needed by the target role corporate social responsibility knowledge
  • not needed by the target role create annual marketing budget skill
  • not needed by the target role customer segmentation knowledge
  • not needed by the target role define geographic sales areas skill
  • not needed by the target role define measurable marketing objectives skill
  • not needed by the target role develop professional network skill
  • not needed by the target role estimate profitability skill
  • not needed by the target role evaluate marketing content skill
  • not needed by the target role forecast sales over periods of time skill
  • not needed by the target role identify potential markets for companies skill
  • not needed by the target role impart business plans to collaborators skill
  • not needed by the target role integrate headquarter's guidelines into local operations skill
  • not needed by the target role integrate marketing strategies with the global strategy skill
  • not needed by the target role integrate strategic foundation in daily performance skill
  • not needed by the target role international business knowledge
  • not needed by the target role investigate customer complaints of food products skill
  • not needed by the target role liaise with managers skill
  • not needed by the target role make strategic business decisions skill
  • not needed by the target role manage accounts skill
  • not needed by the target role manage distribution channels skill
  • not needed by the target role manage profitability skill
  • not needed by the target role market pricing knowledge
  • not needed by the target role market research knowledge
  • not needed by the target role marketing mix knowledge
  • not needed by the target role motivate employees skill
  • not needed by the target role plan marketing campaigns skill
  • not needed by the target role plan marketing strategy skill

14 further entries not listed here

5 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice

Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.

Skill to pick up Tier
  • still to learn company policies required
  • still to learn employment law required
  • optional, not held accounting techniques optional
  • optional, not held communication principles optional
  • optional, not held teamwork principles optional
Index

Other moves recorded from sales manager

Full index of moves from sales manager

FAQ

Common questions about this move

Can a sales manager become a retail department manager?

Yes, and it is a substantial move. A sales manager already covers 26% of what a retail department manager is expected to do: 8 skills carry over, 6 of which the retail department manager role treats as required.

What skills does a sales manager need to become a retail department manager?

12 required skills are missing, plus 20 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is company policies.

How hard is the move from sales manager to retail department manager?

Its learning distance is 72.8 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.

Note

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.