How to Become a Sales Operations Analyst

As a sales operations analyst, you will help companies understand sales data to identify trends, determine which sales activities are getting the best results, and meet their sales goals. To become a sales operations analyst, you will need to earn a bachelor’s degree and develop relevant skills. After completing your education, you will need to gain experience in building sales strategies and managing sales data. 

Learn more about a sales operations career, including job outlook, average salary estimates, and how to begin a career in this field. 

Read more: What Is an Operations Analyst?

What is a sales operations analyst?

A sales operations analyst is a data analyst who specializes in data collected around sales activities, helping sales teams to be more productive, improve customer experience, and increase sales. Most sales operations analysts work for large companies. According to Zippia, 39 percent of professionals in this role work with a company that has over 10,000 employees and 34 percent in companies with 1,000 to 10,000 employees [1]. 

What does a sales operations analyst do?

A sales operations analyst examines company sales data to determine which sales activities have a desired effect and which are falling short of goals. In this role, you will help shape sales strategies by providing important insights into how the company can improve sales and profit. You may also provide sales forecasting to estimate how much revenue the company will earn in the future and analyze customer preferences, behavior, and experience for lead generation. 

Sales operations analyst tasks and responsibilities

While your day-to-day activities will depend on your specific industry and role, common tasks and responsibilities in this position include:

• Gather, analyze, and assess sales performance and other forms of sales data.

• Identify trends and provide recommendations to other sales team members and senior leadership. 

• Manage and organize customer relationship data.

• Plan compensation and incentive packages for employees and set and review sales goals.

• Develop sales forecasts to provide insight into future revenue.

Sales operation analyst salary and job outlook

According to Glassdoor, the estimated total pay for a sales operations analyst in the US is $100,760 per year [2]. This figure includes an average base salary of $79,605 and $21,155 in additional pay, which may represent profit-sharing, commissions, or bonuses. Factors that influence salary include location, industry, experience, and education level.

The job outlook for sales operation analysts is positive. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects an estimated 23 percent growth from 2022 to 2032 for the overall field of operations analysts [3]. 

How to become a sales operations analyst

To start a career in this field, you’ll need to pursue your education, develop the right skills, and gain experience in related roles. 

Step 1: Get the proper education.

Employers will require at least a bachelor's degree to become a sales operations analyst. Here is a breakdown of degree levels for this role [4]:

• Bachelor's: 74 percent

• Master's: 13 percent

• Associate: 9 percent

• High school diploma: 4 percent

While obtaining this position without a degree using only your skills and experience is possible, you are more likely to find employers who require a bachelor’s degree. 

Common majors for sales operations analysts include business, finance, and marketing. Business is the most popular choice, with 36 percent of professionals in the field holding a business degree [4]. Among other specializations, 9 percent earned finance degrees, 8 percent earned marketing degrees, 7 percent earned economics degrees, and 40 percent earned another degree [4]. 

Step 2: Develop the right skills. 

To succeed in this career, you’ll need to develop sales operations analyst skills. These skills fall into two categories: the technical skills to complete the work and the interpersonal skills to help you succeed in the workplace. 

Technical skills

• Sales operations

• Customer relationship management (CRM)

• Sales processes

• Data analytics

• Data visualization

Workplace skills

• Strong ability to work with others in a team 

• Clear and effective written and verbal communication

• Effective in fast-paced environments 

• Detail-oriented

Step 3: Gain experience.

You may be able to find a sales operations analyst position without prior experience. In some instances, employers will ask you to have several years of experience in sales or a related field. You can gain experience as an inside sales representative, customer service representative, sales associate, or entry-level sales role. 

Another way to gain experience as an operations analyst is to complete an internship. You may also have the opportunity to gain on-the-job training to become familiar with the expectations the company will have for you in this field. 

Career path and related roles

Once you develop the skills and education required for a sales operations analyst role, you may be qualified for a number of similar roles as well. Three careers with similar requirements to a sales operations analyst are data analyst, management analyst, and process analyst. 

1. Data analyst

Average salary: $83,801 [5]

Job outlook (projected growth from 2022 to 2032): 35 percent [6] 

Education requirements: The most common educational requirement for a data analyst is a bachelor’s degree, typically in business, but other potential areas of study include finance, computer science, and accounting.

As a data analyst, you will help companies collect, examine, and organize data. You will also help monitor processes and make recommendations for improvements. Data analysts need to stay current on industry trends and spot new trends as they occur. 

Read more: What Does a Data Analyst Do? Your Career Guide

2. Management analyst

Average salary: $91,980 [7]

Job outlook (projected growth from 2022 to 2032): 23 percent [3] 

Education requirements: The most common educational requirement for a management analyst is a bachelor’s degree, typically in business, finance, or accounting. 

Management analysts use their data analysis skills to examine management processes and procedures and advise leadership on improving relationships with business partners and customers. In this role, you’ll help identify new business opportunities and determine how the business processes align with the company’s long-term goals. 

Read more: What Is a Management Analyst and How Do I Become One?

3. Process analyst

Average salary: $75,248[8]

Job outlook (projected growth from 2022 to 2032): 23 percent [3]

Education requirements: The most common educational requirement for a process analyst is a bachelor’s degree, typically in business, finance, accounting, or computer science. 

A process analyst examines a company's processes or operations to recommend improvements. In this role, you will stay current on industry trends and watch for emerging trends in company data. You will recommend new processes or improvements to existing processes to help the company achieve its business goals more effectively. 

Read more: What Is a Business Process Analyst?

Getting started in sales and analytics on Coursera

As a sales operations analyst, you will help marketing teams determine which activities produce results for your company and which strategies need improvement.

If you’re ready to start a career as a sales operations analyst, consider earning your Google Data Analytics Professional Certificate on Coursera. This eight-course, beginner-level series will help you learn skills such as data cleansing, data analysis, data visualization, SQL, and more. Complete the course and demonstrate your skills to employers with a shareable certificate.