Every organization serves a number of clients and each of them is equally important to the organization. The organization would succumb to the competition prevailing in the market if the clients or the accounts are unsatisfied with the services provided by the organization. Therefore, an organization appoints a key accounts manager and assigns several responsibilities to that person in order to keep the business running and revenues flowing through efficient sales operations.
A key accounts manager is actually a person who plays several roles on a given day. Right from planning strategic moves in the pursuit of business development to streamlining the operations and making them more efficient, the manager is in-charge of everything. Making decisions that are crucial for the functioning of the organization and implementing new policies and strategies are some of the core responsibilities of this manager.
A major chunk of the duty hours of the accounts manager is spent in analyzing the background of prospective clients and conducting meetings with them to finalize deals. Forecasting short term and long term trends in the market and accordingly laying down plans to run the business operations smoothly is the task performed by the manager. Evaluating the business plans and monitoring the activities of the account executives and other staff in the department are other important responsibilities that this person has to handle.
The manager who is appointed for handling the accounts of the organization is bound to work in a fast paced, stressful environment and is accountable for controlling the expenses and making the best utilization of resources available. He/she investigates about the complaints registered by the clients and offers feasible solutions while implementing measures to avoid further occurrence of similar incidents.
More information about the various responsibilities assigned to a professional appointed for this position have been described below:
Account Planning
Identifying the prospective clients and drafting business proposals that are suitable for the clients is one important duty of the key accounts manager. This professional needs to constantly research about the ways to explore into new areas and establish long term relationships with prospective clients.
Budgeting
Defining and controlling the expenses for advertising and promotional activities is another important responsibility of the manager. He/she must ensure that the money is spend wisely in order to achieve profitable returns on the amount invested.
Team Management
It is very important for the manager to handle the team with utmost efficiency and assign them tasks according to their competency. The manager is also expected to keep a track of what the team members are doing and has to guide and train them in order to help them achieve the assigned targets.
Customer Service
Providing efficient service to the clients, resolving their complains, and ensuring their satisfaction is the responsibility of the manager. He/she has to see that the clients are retained and all of them are treated equally.
Reporting
The key accounts manager is required to prepare and maintain detailed reports and share the same with the authorities. Presenting these reports during the company meetings and explaining the information to the people present in the meeting are other vital roles of the manager.
Additional Responsibilities
Usually, interviewing people who appear for senior level position in the department and training them is a task assigned to this professional. He/she may also carry out other administrative functions and represent the organization during events and press conferences if required.
To deliver excellent performance while working in this position, you need to be:
You need to complete your education with a bachelor or master's degree in marketing, business management, or a similar course and work for a few years in order to obtain the experience and insight that will enable you to handle this position with ease.
Average annual salary of an individual working in this position is around $71,000, which is exclusive of the benefits and allowances paid to regular, full time employees of the organization.
With the key accounts manager responsibilities, we believe that you now have a clear idea of what this job is all about and what you need to do in order to get into this position. Always remember that there can be a variation in the job responsibilities according to your qualifications and the industry you work in. While joining an organization, you should ask about all the responsibilities that will be a part of the job and also the additional responsibilities that you might be asked to handle on a frequent basis.