Summary Report for:
41-3031.02 - Sales Agents, Financial Services
Sell financial services, such as loan, tax, and securities counseling to customers of financial institutions and business establishments.
Sample of reported job titles:
Financial Consultant, Financial Specialist, Investment Officer, Relationship Manager, Select Banker, Client Manager, Financial Services Representative, Relationship Banker, Sales Representative
Tasks | Tools & Technology | Knowledge | Skills | Abilities | Work Activities | Work Context | Job Zone | Interests | Work Styles | Work Values | Related Occupations | Wages & Employment
Tasks
- Determine customers' financial services needs and prepare proposals to sell services that address these needs.
- Contact prospective customers to present information and explain available services.
- Sell services and equipment, such as trusts, investments, and check processing services.
- Prepare forms or agreements to complete sales.
- Develop prospects from current commercial customers, referral leads, and sales and trade meetings.
- Review business trends to advise customers regarding expected fluctuations.
- Make presentations on financial services to groups to attract new clients.
- Evaluate costs and revenue of agreements to determine continued profitability.
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Tools & Technology
Tools used in this occupation:
| Calculators or accessories — 10-key calculators |
| Desktop computers |
| Notebook computers |
| Personal computers |
Technology used in this occupation:
| Data base user interface and query software — Data entry software; Database management software; Microsoft Access; Web-based information systems |
| Electronic mail software — Email software; IBM Lotus Notes; Microsoft Outlook |
| Financial analysis software — Bloomberg Professional; Financial needs analysis software; Realm Business Solutions INSIGHT for ARGUS; Sales analysis software |
| Project management software |
| Spreadsheet software — Microsoft Excel |
| Word processing software — Microsoft Word |
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Knowledge
| Customer and Personal Service — Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction. |
| Sales and Marketing — Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems. |
| English Language — Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar. |
| Economics and Accounting — Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking and the analysis and reporting of financial data. |
| Mathematics — Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications. |
| Administration and Management — Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources. |
| Law and Government — Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process. |
| Computers and Electronics — Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming. |
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Skills
| Active Listening — Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times. |
| Speaking — Talking to others to convey information effectively. |
| Reading Comprehension — Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents. |
| Time Management — Managing one's own time and the time of others. |
| Service Orientation — Actively looking for ways to help people. |
| Judgment and Decision Making — Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one. |
| Critical Thinking — Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems. |
| Persuasion — Persuading others to change their minds or behavior. |
| Monitoring — Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action. |
| Active Learning — Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making. |
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Abilities
| Oral Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand. |
| Oral Comprehension — The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences. |
| Speech Clarity — The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you. |
| Speech Recognition — The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person. |
| Deductive Reasoning — The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense. |
| Problem Sensitivity — The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem. |
| Written Comprehension — The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing. |
| Near Vision — The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer). |
| Written Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand. |
| Inductive Reasoning — The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events). |
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Work Activities
| Making Decisions and Solving Problems — Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems. |
| Selling or Influencing Others — Convincing others to buy merchandise/goods or to otherwise change their minds or actions. |
| Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time. |
| Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources. |
| Communicating with Persons Outside Organization — Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail. |
| Interacting With Computers — Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information. |
| Developing Objectives and Strategies — Establishing long-range objectives and specifying the strategies and actions to achieve them. |
| Performing for or Working Directly with the Public — Performing for people or dealing directly with the public. This includes serving customers in restaurants and stores, and receiving clients or guests. |
| Analyzing Data or Information — Identifying the underlying principles, reasons, or facts of information by breaking down information or data into separate parts. |
| Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person. |
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Work Context
| Deal With External Customers — How important is it to work with external customers or the public in this job? |
| Face-to-Face Discussions — How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job? |
| Telephone — How often do you have telephone conversations in this job? |
| Contact With Others — How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it? |
| Electronic Mail — How often do you use electronic mail in this job? |
| Work With Work Group or Team — How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job? |
| Indoors, Environmentally Controlled — How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions? |
| Importance of Being Exact or Accurate — How important is being very exact or highly accurate in performing this job? |
| Frequency of Decision Making — How frequently is the worker required to make decisions that affect other people, the financial resources, and/or the image and reputation of the organization? |
| Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results — How do the decisions an employee makes impact the results of co-workers, clients or the company? |
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Job Zone
| Title |
Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed |
| Overall Experience |
A minimum of two to four years of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified. |
| Job Training |
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training. |
| Job Zone Examples |
Many of these occupations involve coordinating, supervising, managing, or training others. Examples include accountants, human resource managers, computer programmers, teachers, chemists, and police detectives. |
| SVP Range |
(7.0 to < 8.0) |
| Education |
Most of these occupations require a four - year bachelor's degree, but some do not. |
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Interests
Interest code: EC
| Enterprising — Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business. |
| Conventional — Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow. |
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Work Styles
| Integrity — Job requires being honest and ethical. |
| Dependability — Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations. |
| Initiative — Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges. |
| Leadership — Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction. |
| Persistence — Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles. |
| Stress Tolerance — Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations. |
| Independence — Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done. |
| Achievement/Effort — Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks. |
| Attention to Detail — Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks. |
| Cooperation — Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude. |
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Work Values
| Working Conditions — Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions. |
| Achievement — Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement. |
| Relationships — Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment. Corresponding needs are Co-workers, Moral Values and Social Service. |
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Related Occupations
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Wages & Employment Trends
National
Median wages data collected from Securities, Commodities, and Financial Services Sales Agents.
Employment data collected from Securities, Commodities, and Financial Services Sales Agents.
| Median wages (2007) |
$32.90 hourly, $68,430 annual |
| Employment (2006) |
320,000 employees |
| Projected growth (2006-2016) |
Much faster than average (21% or higher)
|
| Projected need (2006-2016) |
161,000 additional employees |
State & National
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics 2007 wage data
and 2006-2016 employment projections
.
"Projected growth" represents the estimated change in total employment over the projections period (2006-2016). "Projected need" represents job openings due to growth and net replacement.
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