Torchora
Back to Home

Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Dealer Relations Manager

💰 $ - $

SalesChannel ManagementDealer NetworkAutomotiveB2BField Operations

🎯 Role Definition

The Dealer Relations Manager is responsible for building strong, productive relationships with authorized dealers and channel partners to maximize sales, brand representation, and customer satisfaction. This role drives dealer onboarding, performance improvement plans, incentive program execution, training, territory planning, and regular field engagement. The ideal candidate combines B2B account management experience, strong analytical skills, and a consultative sales approach to optimize channel performance across retail and wholesale networks.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Senior Account Manager or Key Account Manager with channel responsibilities
  • Regional Sales Representative or Field Sales Manager overseeing dealer territories
  • Channel or Partner Specialist from OEM, parts distribution, or related industries

Advancement To:

  • Regional Sales Director / Channel Sales Director
  • Head of Dealer Development / Director of National Accounts
  • VP of Sales, Channel Strategy, or Commercial Operations

Lateral Moves:

  • Channel Marketing Manager
  • Aftermarket Sales Manager
  • National Accounts Manager

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Build and maintain strategic, trust-based relationships with assigned dealers and channel partners by conducting regular on-site visits, business reviews, and executive level alignment to ensure adherence to brand standards and achieve sales targets.
  • Design and implement dealer onboarding programs that cover sales processes, merchandising guidelines, product training, systems access (DMS/CRM), and compliance requirements to reduce time-to-productivity for new partners.
  • Develop, monitor and act on dealer performance scorecards (sales, service, CSI, inventory turns, warranty claims) to identify underperforming locations, create tailored improvement plans, and track measurable outcomes over time.
  • Lead dealer incentive and compensation program execution including rebate processes, volume-based incentives, co-op funds, spiffs and promotional funds; ensure accurate payouts and strong ROI while preventing program abuse.
  • Collaborate cross-functionally with Sales, Marketing, Product, Finance and Supply Chain to align dealer strategies with product launches, pricing structures, inventory allocation and promotional campaigns to maximize market penetration.
  • Conduct quarterly business reviews (QBRs) and formal performance reviews with dealers to set objectives, review KPIs, identify growth opportunities and agree on action plans with clear owners and timelines.
  • Act as the primary escalation point for dealer issues including supply shortages, warranty disputes, product quality concerns and contract interpretation; coordinate internal resources for rapid resolution and dealer satisfaction.
  • Provide consultative support and training to dealer leadership and staff on sales techniques, digital retailing tools, CRM usage, lead management and customer experience best practices to improve conversion rates and retention.
  • Analyze market and dealer-level data (sales trends, competitive activity, demographic shifts, pricing anomalies) to generate actionable market intelligence and territory plans that inform regional and national strategies.
  • Execute territory planning and dealer network optimization, including opening new dealer locations, relocations, consolidations and terminations based on market potential, performance metrics and network coverage analysis.
  • Ensure dealer compliance with contractual obligations, brand standards, regulatory requirements and safety protocols through audits, mystery shop programs and standard operating procedure reviews.
  • Manage dealer marketing support and co-operative advertising processes: develop campaign guidelines, approve spend, measure campaign effectiveness and ensure brand consistency across local activations.
  • Negotiate dealer agreements, renewals and amendments including performance clauses, territory rights, exclusivity terms and investment commitments in partnership with legal and finance teams.
  • Champion digital transformation initiatives with dealers such as DMS integrations, online merchandising, e-commerce enablement and digital lead routing to improve dealer efficiency and omnichannel customer experience.
  • Create and manage dealer training curricula and certification programs including certification tracking, competency mapping, and development roadmaps for sales, service and parts personnel.
  • Forecast dealer demand and collaborate with supply and distribution teams to prioritize allocations during constrained supply, ensuring equitable treatment and minimizing lost sales at the market level.
  • Drive customer satisfaction initiatives by analyzing CSI/Net Promoter Score feedback, implementing corrective actions with dealers and establishing service improvement programs to boost retention and warranty cost control.
  • Lead change management with dealer partners during product transitions, pricing changes or organizational updates by providing clear communication plans, training materials and on-the-ground support.
  • Develop and maintain an internal knowledge base of dealer best practices, competitive intelligence and case studies to enable scalable replication of high-performing dealer strategies across the network.
  • Prepare and present monthly and quarterly performance reports, executive summaries and strategic recommendations to senior leadership that highlight dealer health, risks and growth opportunities.
  • Support business development efforts by identifying and vetting prospective dealer candidates, preparing pitch materials, conducting discovery meetings and securing commitments for expansion into new markets.
  • Manage vendor and partner relationships (training providers, merchandising suppliers, third-party auditors) to ensure high-quality service delivery and cost-effective support for dealers.
  • Implement loss prevention and warranty fraud-prevention measures with dealers, including anomaly detection, auditing protocols and escalation procedures for suspected misuse.
  • Facilitate dealer feedback loops into product roadmap and aftersales strategy by collecting structured input on feature requests, support needs and customer pain points and presenting consolidated insights to product teams.
  • Coordinate large-scale dealer events, dealer councils and national conferences to align network priorities, share best practices and recognize high-performing dealers, leveraging these forums to drive advocacy and adoption.

Secondary Functions

  • Support ad-hoc market analysis and exploratory dealer segmentation to refine territory assignments and prioritize investments.
  • Contribute to the organization's dealer engagement strategy and channel development roadmap through pilot programs and performance experiments.
  • Collaborate with business units to translate dealer operational needs into technical requirements for CRM, DMS, reporting and incentive systems.
  • Participate in cross-functional project teams and agile ceremonies for dealer enablement initiatives, and help prioritize features based on dealer impact and ROI.
  • Assist in the design and rollout of dealer-facing self-service tools and portals for claims, rebates, training and inventory lookup.
  • Provide mentorship to junior dealer relations staff and coordinate field onboarding for new hires to ensure continuity of dealer support.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Dealer network management and channel sales strategy
  • CRM and Dealer Management System (DMS) configuration and user support (e.g., Salesforce, CDK, Reynolds & Reynolds)
  • Advanced Excel modeling (pivot tables, VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP, macros) and experience with BI tools (Tableau, Power BI, Looker)
  • KPI development and performance scorecard design (sales, CSI, parts & service metrics)
  • Contract negotiation and commercial agreement drafting with dealers
  • Incentive program and rebate administration, audit and reconciliation
  • Territory planning, market analysis and network optimization methodologies
  • Experience with digital retailing tools, e-commerce integration and online-to-offline lead routing
  • Familiarity with warranty, claims processing and parts logistics workflows
  • Project management practices and use of collaboration tools (JIRA, Asana, Microsoft Teams)
  • Basic understanding of P&L drivers, margin management and pricing strategy

Soft Skills

  • Consultative relationship-building and strategic account management
  • Clear, persuasive oral and written communication tailored to executive and frontline audiences
  • Strong problem solving and decision-making under pressure with a focus on root-cause analysis
  • Influencing and stakeholder management across Sales, Marketing, Finance and Supply Chain
  • Coaching and training ability with a focus on behavior change and skills transfer
  • Analytical mindset with the ability to synthesize quantitative and qualitative inputs into recommendations
  • High levels of organization, time management and ability to prioritize competing dealer demands
  • Diplomacy and conflict resolution when managing escalations and performance interventions
  • Adaptability to changing market conditions and regulatory environments
  • Customer-centric mindset with a focus on driving exceptional retail and aftersales experiences

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Marketing, Supply Chain, Engineering, or related field.

Preferred Education:

  • MBA or relevant advanced degree; certifications in Sales Management, Channel Management or Project Management (PMP) considered a plus.

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Business Administration
  • Marketing / Sales
  • Supply Chain Management
  • Automotive Engineering / Technology
  • Finance / Economics

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 5 - 10+ years of progressive experience in dealer/channel management, field sales or account management roles.

Preferred:

  • 7+ years working directly with dealer networks or multi-location channel partners, preferably within automotive, powersports, industrial equipment, or consumer electronics industries.
  • Demonstrated track record of improving dealer sales performance, executing incentive programs, and managing cross-functional projects end-to-end.
Explore More Careers