Middle Area Sales Manager – CNC & Woodworking Machinery | Western Great Lakes

Area Sales Manager – CNC & Woodworking Machinery | Western Great Lakes

Home-Based | Regional Travel
$55,000–$60,000 base salary + uncapped commission
Potential for $150,000+ in total annual earnings; actual earnings vary based on sales performance.

Build Your Territory. Grow Your Earnings. Help Manufacturers Move Forward.

The best machinery sales professionals see more than an equipment need. They understand what a customer is trying to accomplish—and help them choose the technology to get there.

SCM Group North America is seeking an Area Sales Manager to develop new business and grow customer relationships throughout the Western Great Lakes region. This opportunity combines the independence of a home-based field sales role with the products, technical expertise, and customer support of an established global machinery manufacturer.

You’ll spend time where business happens: visiting manufacturers, meeting decision-makers, understanding production challenges, and turning those conversations into equipment sales. If you enjoy opening doors, building trust, and taking ownership of a territory, we want to hear from you.

Your Territory & Travel

This position serves the Western Great Lakes territory, covering Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, and Missouri, with Chicago and the surrounding metropolitan area preferred as a home location. Candidates based elsewhere within the assigned territory who can regularly travel throughout the region are also encouraged to apply.

Candidates should reside within the region, ideally near a major airport. This is a home-based outside sales position with extensive travel to customer sites, dealer locations, demonstrations, and industry events. Overnight stays and occasional international travel are part of the role.

What You’ll Do

• Win new business: Identify target accounts, prospect through direct outreach and customer site visits, and build a pipeline of qualified equipment opportunities.
• Understand the customer’s operation: Learn how manufacturers work, identify production needs, and connect those needs with appropriate SCM machinery and technology.
• Own the sales process: Guide opportunities from initial contact through equipment selection, presentations, quotations, negotiation, and closing.
• Grow customer relationships: Become a trusted resource for existing customers while identifying opportunities for additional equipment and long-term business.
• Develop dealer partnerships: Support existing dealers and distributors and help expand the regional partner network.
• Bring solutions to life: Conduct equipment presentations and coordinate product demonstrations and customer visits with technical and engineering teams.
• Manage your territory: Plan customer visits, prioritize opportunities, maintain accurate CRM records, and provide timely sales forecasts.
• Stay close to the market: Track competitor activity, customer investment plans, and industry developments to identify opportunities for growth.
• Collaborate across SCM: Communicate customer requirements clearly and coordinate with internal teams to support a smooth transition after the sale.

What You Bring

• At least three years of relevant sales experience, including outside sales of CNC machinery, woodworking machinery, industrial equipment, automation systems, or other capital equipment.
• A demonstrated ability to prospect, generate your own opportunities, and close new business.
• Strong commercial judgment: the ability to qualify opportunities, explain value, negotiate effectively, and move complex sales forward.
• An understanding of manufacturing customers, their markets, and the factors that influence equipment investments.
• Mechanical or technical aptitude and the ability to learn machinery applications and discuss production needs with customers.
• Strong communication, presentation, and relationship-building skills, with the ability to work with business owners, production leaders, and purchasing teams.
• The discipline to manage a home office, plan a territory, and maintain consistent activity without daily supervision.
• A valid driver’s license and the ability to travel extensively throughout the assigned region.

Woodworking machinery experience and established dealer or distributor relationships are especially valuable. We also welcome relevant industrial and capital equipment sales backgrounds that demonstrate strong prospecting results and the ability to learn technical products.

What We Offer

• Base salary of $55,000–$60,000 plus uncapped commission.
• Potential for $150,000+ in total annual earnings, based on sales results and applicable commission plan terms.
• Ownership of a regional territory, with the independence to plan your activity and develop customer relationships.
• An established portfolio of CNC and industrial woodworking machinery to address a range of customer production needs.
• Collaboration with engineering, technical, and service teams to develop customer solutions.
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance.
• Company HSA contribution of up to $4,375 annually.
• 401(k) with company match.
• Company-paid life insurance and short- and long-term disability coverage.
• Employee Assistance Program.
• Optional supplemental insurance, including accident, critical illness, and hospital indemnity coverage.
• Paid vacation, sick leave, and personal days.

What Success Looks Like

You build a consistent pipeline through proactive prospecting and meaningful customer visits. You understand your market, explain the value of SCM technology, and turn qualified opportunities into equipment sales. Customers and dealer partners trust your follow-through, and your results contribute to territory growth.

About SCM Group

Founded in 1952 and headquartered in Italy, SCM Group is a global leader in advanced industrial woodworking machinery. Our technology, distribution network, and technical service teams support manufacturers worldwide.

Bring your sales drive, technical curiosity, and ability to win new business to SCM Group. Apply today and tell us about the territories you’ve grown and the equipment solutions you’ve sold.