IT sales professional : Employers and vacancy sources

Sales is one of the largest job areas in IT. Professionals in this role are most likely to be employed by computer manufacturers and software houses, all of whom need specialists to explain the detailed features of their products in non-technical terms to both users and those with purchasing power. In these settings, the role is likely to encompass both pre-sales support and after-sales contract assistance to help with faults or to maximise facilities, although some companies will have separate job roles for this.

Major computer retailers offer advice to individual and corporate customers, helping them to choose the computer or software that meets their particular needs and offering a help desk for after-sales service. Smaller, specialist computer retailers offer an individual and more informal service to their customers, which may include providing maintenance and support packages.

Given the essential part that computers play in all organisations and the sophistication of the hardware and software available, support staff have a vital role to play in ensuring that customers are aware of its possibilities and suitability to their needs. As software and hardware are becoming ever more complex, there is a growing need for support in this area.

Telecommunications has been a huge growth area in recent years and the need for IT sales professionals in this area is consequently increasing. The growing popularity in online shopping has shown the need for improvements and advances in retail software. This is therefore a high growth area and is one of the main employers of IT sales professionals.

Sources of vacancies

• Search graduate jobs on this site.
• Computer Weekly  
• Computing.co.uk  
• IT Sales  
• IS Opportunities   
• The IT Job Board  
• Sales Target   
• Simply Sales Jobs  
• Careers service vacancy lists.
• National and local press.

Recruitment agencies commonly handle vacancies. See agency entries in IS Opportunities, Computer Weekly and Computing.co.uk or go to the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC)  for further details of agencies handling IT vacancies.

Get tips on job hunting, CVs and covering letters and interviews.