Account Sales Manager Trainee

Job purpose

The Sales Support Representative strengthens field sales execution by providing responsive operational, customer, product, and order support to Account Sales Managers and VMI personnel. The role helps protect customer service, improve order flow, supports account growth, and frees customer-facing team members to spend more time developing relationships and advancing sales opportunities.

Essential Job Functions

• Support for Account Sales Managers
• Assist Account Sales Managers with account setup, product conversions, quote preparation, sampling, follow-up, and opportunity advancement.
• Assist Account Sales Managers in maintaining customer inventory bins, racking, cleaning, and relabeling.
• Assist Account Sales Managers in maintaining customer crimping equipment to include trouble shooting issues, cleaning, and recalibrating.
• Help maintain accurate key-account profiles, customer contacts, call notes, product usage, competitive information, and identified growth opportunities.
• Gather vendor, product, market, and competitive information that helps the Account Sales Manager position Royal Brass & Hose effectively.
• Support agreed account sales and gross-margin growth plans by helping assess account potential, track actions, and follow through on commitments.

Support for VMI Operations

• Provide backup coverage for VMI routes if needed.
• Assist with training and monitoring VMI personnel to promote consistent, timely, and high-quality service.
• Coordinate with VMI personnel and Account Sales Managers so field activity, customer requests, and sales opportunities are communicated and acted upon.

Customer & Technical Support

• Respond to customer questions regarding products, applications, order status, availability, and delivery.
• Provide product application or technical assistance within the employee's level of training; involve the appropriate internal or vendor resource when additional expertise is needed.
• Set realistic expectations, resolve service issues, meet commitments, and maintain an exceptional-customer-service mindset.
• Identify recurring customer issues or service deficiencies and communicate them to the Director of Mining/RSM and appropriate upstream stakeholders, including use of the QIR process when applicable.
• Travel to customer locations or company facilities, including occasional overnight travel, when business needs require.
• Participate in customer setups, VMI installations, product conversions, and other field-support projects.
• Perform other related duties assigned by the Director of Mining/RSM needs.

Required Competencies

• Customer focus and relationship support
• Problem solving
• Product and application learning
• Organization, prioritization, and attention to detail
• Clear verbal and written communication
• Teamwork across sales, VMI, purchasing, parts data, warehouse, and vendors
• Sound judgment regarding priorities, commitments, and escalation
• Proficiency with Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, Word, and company business systems

Qualifications

• High school diploma or GED required; bachelor's degree preferred.
• Prior customer service, inside sales, sales support, industrial distribution, VMI, purchasing, or order-management experience preferred.
• Experience with hose, fluid power, OEM, or MRO products and markets is desirable.
• Mechanical aptitude and willingness to build product and application knowledge.
• Valid driver's license and a safe driving record for assigned travel.
• Ability to work effectively in a team environment and communicate with customers one-on-one or in groups.
• Not restricted by an applicable non-compete or non-solicitation agreement; must meet company employment requirements.

Working Conditions & Physical Requirements

• Work is performed in office, warehouse, company vehicle, and customer-site environments, including occasional outdoor conditions.
• Ability to travel to customer sites and company locations, with occasional overnight travel.
• Ability to stand, bend, walk, and perform job-related material handling during the workday.
• Ability to lift up to 50 pounds, with reasonable accommodation where applicable.

Additional information

Ability to work independently, solve problems, comprehend customer needs, plan work, and communicate product or service information.