Every sales career has the same fork after Account Executive: keep closing, or lead. Here is how many TrackRec sellers took the leadership route and how long it took.
The numbers
| TrackRec sellers with an Account Executive role | United States | Canada |
|---|---|---|
| Held an Account Executive role | 1,769sellers | 710sellers |
| Later held a leadership role | 39%693 of 1,769 | 34%241 of 710 |
| Months from first Account Executive start to first leadership start | 40 monthsmedian, middle half 19 to 81 | 36 monthsmedian, middle half 22 to 64 |
Data read on November 2, 2026.
How to read them
- About three years is the middle. Half of the Account Executives who moved into leadership did it within 40 months in the US and 36 in Canada.
- The fast end is under two years. A quarter of the movers got there within 19 months in the US and 22 in Canada.
- The slow end is long. A quarter took 81 months or more in the US, nearly seven years.
- Leadership means a managing seat. A seat flagged as leadership on the profile, or a title such as sales manager, director, head of, VP, chief, team lead or sales lead. Account, territory, partner, success, product, program, project and marketing managers do not count.
- The share is a floor. Anyone who has not moved up yet counts as not promoted.
What leadership pays
Sales leaders are priced on their own card. In New York a Sales Manager prices at $365K to $525K OTE and a Director of Sales at $435K to $625K, depending on the company. The full tables for the US and Canada are in the sales salary guide.
Method and caveat
Based on TrackRec profiles, mostly imported from LinkedIn, with roles classified by title and dates at month precision as sellers listed them; people who have not moved up yet count as not promoted, so the share is a floor.
The group is TrackRec sellers: people who chose a career platform for salespeople. Read it as a picture of TrackRec sellers and not of the whole market.
Happy hunting.
