Best Sales Manager CV Examples & Guide for 2025

Typically, your sales manager CV needs to showcase that you understand the world of sales and that you’re able to guide your sales staff in making great decisions. This means you should highlight interpersonal skills as well as knowledge of the sales process for the particular industry you’re applying to.

Your specific CV structure will depend on the CV format you choose. There are three common CV formats: the chronological format which prioritises work experience, the functional format which showcases skills and the combination format which balances both. Your professional CV can be any of these formats, but regardless of the format, they’ll typically include these sections.

 

Header

The first element of any good CV is your header. The header includes your full name, phone number, email address and any social media profile links, such as LinkedIn. This information helps the hiring manager contact you for an interview if selected.

 

Professional summary

Next, you’ll write a CV summary. This is a 2-3 sentence paragraph just under the header that gives hiring managers a brief overview of your best skills and work history. A sales manager professional summary will typically feature how you’ve met your sales targets, what technical skills you use regularly and your proven track record in the sales field.

 

Skills

Sales manager skills need to be widespread to benefit the company you’re working for. Here are some skills to consider for your CV:

• Customer service
• Retail sales knowledge
• Implementing sales strategies
• Account management
• Communication skills
• Taking initiatives
• Customer relationship management (CRM)
• Merchandising
• Bringing in new business
• Pricing
• Project management
• Prospecting
• Creating sales plans
• Social media marketing

The best sales manager resume is one where your skills section balances technical skills and soft skills. Both types of skills are equally important to get the sales manager job title, and hiring managers are looking for you to showcase them both.

 

Work history

This is where you get to show off your professional experience, with your most recent job listed first. Whether you list experience as a salesperson, a sales representative, a sales associate or even a sales manager in another field, show off sales metrics that show you can produce results.

 

Education

Last is the education section. Depending on the position you’re applying for, you may or may not need education to get the job. Oftentimes, a bachelor’s degree in business administration can be incredibly beneficial. List your top credential (whether it’s a college or high school degree) here, along with any special honours or awards earned from school.

Do:

• Include your certifications, if applicable. If you have any certifications as a sales manager, including them will prove your skills.
• Use measurable metrics when possible. This helps you really prove that you were able to help the company you were working for.
• Use a CV example to create the basic format for your CV. You can find over thousands examples at CVHelp.

Don’t:

• Cut corners to save time on the actual CV writing. Even if you have the greatest certifications, recruiters are more likely to pass over a lacklustre, unprofessional CV that doesn’t present them well.
• ISubmit your CV without proofreading. Typos are one of the most common problem issues that recruiters notice in CVs.
• Include unnecessary work history. In general, you should only include work within the last 10 years that are relevant to your field.