Sales Operations Manager Jobs in Duluth, MN (NOW HIRING)

Sales Operations Manager

Arctic Compressor is a rapidly growing, family-owned manufacturing business located in Superior, Wisconsin that distributes its products exclusively through a nationwide dealer network.

Position Overview: We are looking for a highly strategic, proactive, and process-driven Sales Operations Manager to serve as the operational engine for our organization. In this role, you will lead a lean, focused sales support team (currently consisting of two direct reports, with the expectation to build and scale the department over time to support the growing needs of the business). While you will not directly manage the outside sales team (Segment leaders and their Territory Managers), you will act as their ultimate operational partner and shield-bridging the gap between active sales and post-sale success. You will enforce CRM integrity, establish internal guardrails, and foster a "How Can We?" culture that maximizes field time and accelerates revenue.

Core Responsibilities

Team Leadership & Department Scaling

• Lead, Mentor, and Grow: Direct and coach the current Sales Operations & Support team, taking ownership of scaling this department as the company's needs expand.
• Oversee Dealer Support: Ensure support functions operate smoothly, providing external dealers and internal reps with the resources, order updates, and operational support they need to succeed
• Escalation Management: Serve as the primary point of escalation for complex customer, dealer, or rep issues, resolving disputes with a focus on long-term relationship retention.

Sales Enablement & Admin Relief

• Eliminate Admin Grind: Champion a department culture laser-focused on absorbing administrative burdens from the outside sales team, maximizing their face-to-face field time and enabling them to focus on high-level selling.
• Calendar & Workflow Optimization: Lead your support team to proactively manage and streamline rep calendars, optimizing travel and meeting schedules for maximum efficiency.
• Establish Operational Guardrails: Partner with sales leadership to create firm, clear boundaries and processes for the outside sales team that keep them organized and compliant without stifling their ability to sell.

CRM Accountability & Pipeline Management

• Own CRM Integrity: Serve as the ultimate champion for our CRM (Pipedrive), driving strict accountability and data stewardship across the sales and operations teams.
• Protect the Pipeline: Implement rigorous lead-tracking processes to guarantee that zero new sales opportunities or inbound inquiries slip through the cracks.
• Pipeline Visibility: Ensure all accounts, deals, and activities are accurately logged and maintained to provide leadership with a crystal-clear view of the sales pipeline.

Internal Service Level Agreements (SLA) & Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Enforce Internal SLAs: Establish and hold the organization accountable to strict internal Service Level Agreements (SLAs) for quote turnarounds, dealer requests, and inter-departmental communication.
• Cross-Functional Accountability: Act as the primary communication between Sales, Engineering, and Operations to ensure commitments made to the field are delivered on time.
• Feedback Loop: Act as the voice of the customer and the dealer within the organization, sharing critical feedback with Operations, Engineering, and Marketing to improve products and messaging.
• Data Analysis: Track and analyze customer feedback, quote volumes, and resolution times to identify systemic bottlenecks and present actionable insights to leadership.

Who You Are (The Qualities)

• The Diplomatic Enforcer: You are highly organized and comfortable holding people accountable. You can firmly uphold CRM rules with a high-performing sales rep, or hold Engineering/Operations to the SLA, without alienating them. You build bridges, but you hold the line.
• A "How Can We?" Mindset: You are an enabler, not a roadblock. When faced with unique challenges or special customer requests, your default instinct is never a flat "no," but rather, "Yes, and here is what we need to make it happen." You are a creative facilitator who wants to get to "yes," while possessing the operational maturity to gracefully redirect or escalate when a request is truly out of bounds.
• The "Shield" Mentality: You possess a deep sense of ownership over the sales team's time. You view every administrative hurdle as an enemy to revenue, and you take pride in clearing the path so your territory managers can do what they do best: sell.
• Systems Thinker: You naturally see the big picture. When a quote gets delayed or a deal slips through the cracks, you don't just put out the fire-you look at the underlying process to figure out how to prevent it from ever happening again.
• Servant Leader: You thrive on building up the people around you. You want to empower your lean support team to take ownership of their roles, giving them the tools and confidence they need to succeed while planning for the team's future growth.
• Calm Under Pressure: Sales moves fast, and escalations happen. You don't get rattled when an urgent dealer issue arises; instead, you become the calm, stabilizing force that resolves the problem logically and fairly.

How You Will Know You're a Great Fit Here

• You get genuinely frustrated when you see people doing repetitive, manual tasks that could be solved with a clear process or a workflow rule.
• You are not intimidated by strong personalities. You are entirely comfortable looking a top-performing outside sales rep in the eye and saying, "I need this logged in Pipedrive before we can move forward."
• You understand the inherent friction between Sales (who want things yesterday) and Operations/Engineering (who need time to do things right), and you enjoy being the translator and mediator between those worlds.
• You believe that data hygiene isn't just "busywork"-it is the exact foundation that allows a company to scale, forecast, and win.
• You measure your own success by how seamlessly the sales engine runs and how little the sales team has to think about administration.

The Baseline Experience

• Proven leadership experience managing a customer success, sales support, operations, or revenue operations team (experience growing a small team is a plus).
• Deep familiarity with CRM platforms (experience as a Pipedrive champion/administrator is a massive advantage).
• A strong track record of cross-functional project management-specifically working alongside sales, operations, and technical/engineering departments.
• Experience establishing, tracking, and enforcing team KPIs and internal SLAs.

Attributes:

• Reports To: Director of Sales
• Position Type: Full-time
• Working Hours: Monday-Thursday (8:00 AM - 5:00 PM) & Friday (8:00 AM - Noon)
• Work Environment: This position primarily operates in a professional office environment using standard office equipment and also in a manufacturing environment that requires the employee to follow safety protocols.
• Travel: None expected.

Benefits:

• Paid Time Off
• Paid Holidays
• Health Insurance
• Health Share Option
• Dental & Vision Insurance
• Life Insurance
• 401(k)
• Profit Sharing
• YMCA membership discounts
• Snacks and Cameron's coffee in the breakroom
• Growing workforce with advancement opportunities
• Fun, team-oriented atmosphere