Manager, Sales Desk
About The Position
The Manager, Sales Desk leads a team of Internal Sales Specialists who support life insurance and annuity sales activity for National Life Group. This role is accountable for coaching, developing, and directing the team to deliver strong sales support, service quality, and distribution results. The position serves as a key connection between the Sales Desk and the field, translating agent, agency, and field leader needs into clear coaching priorities, team development plans, and process improvements. The manager partners closely with Distribution leadership and internal business partners to strengthen field relationships, improve execution, and advance opportunities across the sales process. The ideal candidate brings sales leadership experience, strong business judgment, and a market-oriented mindset with the ability to build trust, develop talent, and drive accountability in a fast-paced environment.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree.
- 5 years of sales, sales support, distribution, financial services, or related experience.
- Demonstrated ability to coach, develop, or influence others in a professional setting.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills.
- Ability to work in a fast-paced, changing environment.
- Up to 10% travel required.
Nice To Haves
- 2 or more years of people leadership or team leadership experience.
- Experience leading a sales desk, internal sales team, distribution team, or relationship management function.
- Knowledge of life insurance, annuity products, financial services distribution, or independent agency models.
- Experience with CRM tools, including Salesforce.com.
- Demonstrated ability to use field feedback, business insights, and performance data to improve sales execution and partner experience.
- Strong ability to build relationships across field sales, internal partners, and leadership teams.
- Experience developing high-performing teams through coaching, training, accountability, and development planning.
- Leverage approved AI tools, where appropriate, to improve the efficiency, quality, and impact of their work.
- Stay curious and open to new AI-enabled ways of working.
- Exercise sound judgment by reviewing and validating AI-generated content.
- Maintain accountability for the accuracy, quality, fairness, and integrity of work products by adhering to National Life's AI guiding principles.
- Use AI responsibly and in accordance with company policies related to confidentiality, data privacy, security, compliance, retention, and intellectual property.
Responsibilities
- Lead, coach, and develop Internal Sales Specialists supporting life insurance and annuity sales activity.
- Set clear performance expectations and provide ongoing feedback, coaching, training, and performance management.
- Build team capability through quality review, development planning, and continuous learning.
- Promote a market-connected, distribution-focused mindset that reflects field priorities, agency needs, and competitive dynamics.
- Partner with external sales teams, field leaders, agencies, and Distribution leadership to align Sales Desk activity with business goals.
- Gather and synthesize feedback from agents, agencies, field leaders, and sales partners to identify trends, barriers, and opportunities.
- Translate field and market insights into coaching priorities, team training, sales enablement, and process improvements.
- Collaborate across Distribution, Operations, Marketing, Product, Technology, and other partners to improve sales execution and the agent and agency experience.
- Foster a collaborative culture centered on accountability, service excellence, and results.
- Identify and develop future talent through succession planning, development planning, and career growth support.
- Use technology, CRM tools, reporting, and operating practices to improve team effectiveness and efficiency.
- Monitor performance metrics and team output to ensure goals and service standards are met.
- Travel as needed for training, field engagement, relationship building, and business meetings.
- Perform other duties as assigned.
Benefits
- 401(k) eligibility
- various paid time off benefits, such as vacation, sick time, and parental leave
- discretionary annual incentive programs
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Manager
