A pest control general manager runs a branch, or the whole operation at a one-branch company. That means the route technicians, sales reps, office staff and plan customers. The GM works to keep renewals up and cancels down, keeps licenses and service records ready for a state inspection, and is judged on growth and profit.
By the HireBus team · Updated · Pay data: BLS, May 2025
Median pay, pest control companies · BLS, May 2025
Lead and oversee all pest control operations ensuring seamless coordination between departments and optimal client satisfaction. Drive business growth through strategic management, KPI tracking, and team empowerment. Serve as the primary decision-maker to maintain high service quality and operational efficiency. Contribute directly to the company’s success by integrating business goals with daily operational activities.
2. Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Direct and coordinate all operational activities within the pest control department.
Set performance benchmarks and monitor departmental KPIs to ensure targets are met.
Lead, train, and manage team leaders across various departments to optimize productivity.
Ensure compliance with safety, environmental, and regulatory standards in daily operations.
Develop and execute strategic plans to enhance overall operational performance and client satisfaction.
3. Key Tasks / Daily Activities
Monitor daily performance metrics and review team achievements to ensure operational efficiency.
Conduct regular briefings with department heads to align on targets and operational challenges.
Engage directly with clients to address concerns and maintain high service standards.
Oversee scheduling, service dispatch, and quality assurance across pest control projects.
Implement process improvements and report progress on key operational initiatives.
4. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Customer Satisfaction Rating: >4.8 stars.
Callback Percentage: <5%.
Revenue Growth Rate: ≥10% increase per annum.
Operational Efficiency: Achieve 95% on-time service completion.
Employee Turnover Rate: Maintain below 10%.
5. Required Qualifications and Skills
Bachelor's degree in Business Management, Operations, or a related field.
Minimum of 7 years' management experience with a proven record in service-oriented industries.
Strong leadership, strategic planning, and problem-solving skills.
Excellent communication and interpersonal skills to engage with teams and clients.
Proficiency in using operational software and KPI tracking tools.
6. Preferred Experience
Prior experience in the pest control or home services industry.
Demonstrated success in managing cross-functional teams and complex operations.
Familiarity with industry regulations and best practices in pest management.
Proven ability to drive revenue growth and improve client retention metrics.
7. Physical Requirements
Ability to occasionally lift materials up to 25 lbs.
Regular work in varied environments including indoor offices and outdoor sites.
Exposure to chemical treatments, varying weather conditions, and field inspections.
Frequent standing, walking, and movement across operational sites.
8. Work Environment and Schedule
Standard working hours from 8 AM to 5 PM with occasional extended hours during peak periods.
On-call readiness to address urgent operational issues and client requirements.
Office-based role with regular site visits to assess field operations and quality.
Minimal regional travel for training sessions, conferences, and strategic meetings.
9. Compensation and Benefits
Annual salary range of $90,000 to $120,000 USD.
Performance-based bonuses and commission opportunities.
Comprehensive Health, Dental, and Vision insurance coverage.
401k plan with company matching contributions.
Additional benefits include paid time off and ongoing professional development opportunities.
10. Company Culture and Overview
At [INSERT COMPANY NAME HERE], we foster a collaborative and growth-oriented culture where innovation is celebrated and professional development is a priority.
Our focus on excellence in pest control operations ensures that every team member contributes to creating a safe and pest-free environment for our clients.
We believe in investing in our employees, empowering them to lead change, champion customer satisfaction, and drive continuous improvement.
Join us to be part of a dynamic team committed to exceptional service and career advancement.
11. How to Apply
If you meet the above criteria and want to be part of a growth-oriented company focused on customer satisfaction, please send your resume to [INSERT EMAIL HERE] or apply online at [INSERT WEBSITE LINK HERE].
Need help filling this role? HireBus posts the ad, Iris interviews every applicant by phone before you do, and you decide who to hire. Start hiring now
A pest control branch lives on its routes and its renewals. The GM keeps both healthy while state rules and the seasons set the limits.
The licensed operator owns the technical calls
In Florida, the certified operator in charge of a pest control company's work must be a full-time employee of that company. By law, their duties include picking the right pesticide for each job, making sure it is used safely and at the right strength, and training the staff. If the GM isn't that person, agree on the split: the GM runs the branch, and the operator in charge makes the technical calls. Source: The 2026 Florida Statutes: 482.152, duties of certified operator in charge.
Bats set their own calendar
State wildlife rules set the schedule for some jobs. In Florida, bats may be excluded from buildings only from August 15 through April 15, because young bats that can't fly yet are trapped inside if the exits close in the months between. FWC says exclusion devices must stay up at least four nights, with overnight lows forecast at 50°F or warmer. The GM makes sure sales never promises a summer bat job the branch can't legally do. Source: Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission: Bats in buildings.
Re-services and cancels come home to the branch
Many plans include free return visits between scheduled services. Each one is a stop that brings in nothing, and a customer who keeps needing them is at risk of canceling. The GM reads the re-service and cancellation lists every week, rides along with technicians whose numbers run high, and calls customers who left to learn why. The GM also decides when a customer who keeps calling would be better served by a different plan or a one-time treatment.
Spring hiring starts in winter
EPA's certification page says many states go past the federal rule and certify every commercial applicator, not only those using restricted-use products. Where that is the rule, a new hire has to get certified, or work under someone who is, before treating homes. A GM who starts hiring when the spring calls arrive will be short all summer. Plan the hiring class in winter, and stay in touch with good people who left on good terms. Source: U.S. EPA: How to get certified as a pesticide applicator.
How much pest control general managers make
The closest BLS group for pest control general managers is general and operations managers. General and operations managers who work for pest control companies earned a median of $81,890 a year ($39.37 an hour) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s below the $105,770 median for general and operations managers in all industries. About 9,200 of the 3,503,020 general and operations managers in that survey work for pest control companies.
Salary, a performance bonus and commission, as the template lists. Basing part of the bonus on customers kept, not only plans sold, pays the GM for the renewals a branch lives on.
Pest control companies
$81,890$81,890 median Middle half $62,550–$112,040 10th–90th $44,920–$157,830
All industries
$105,770$105,770 median Middle half $72,320–$167,280 10th–90th $50,090–$253,390
$0k$50k$100k$150k$200k$250k$300k
10th–90th percentileMiddle halfMedianAnnual pay, May 2025. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
Annual pay by percentile
Group
10th
25th
Median
75th
90th
Pest control companies
$44,920
$62,550
$81,890
$112,040
$157,830
All industries
$50,090
$72,320
$105,770
$167,280
$253,390
BLS reports residential and commercial pest control companies together. Post a real range for your market in the ad.
The pay line in the template above is an example from our Role Blueprint. Set yours from these figures and what local companies pay.
Skills to hire for, and what you can teach
Hire for these
Has run a team that included other supervisors or managers
Starts each day with the routes, the re-service list and yesterday's sales
Explains treatments to worried customers without promising more than the label allows
Hires all year and coaches new technicians and reps
Keeps safety, records and licenses in order without reminders
Teach these on the job
Pest identification and treatment basics
Your state's license and inspection rules
Wildlife seasons and permits in your area
Your plan terms, re-service rules and pricing
How your routing system flags cancels and past-due accounts
Each morning's numbers, such as completed stops, re-services, cancels, new sales and collections, come from the branch view in the company's pest control software. The same system holds the service records a state inspector may ask for, so the GM should know how to pull them quickly.
Pest control general manager interview questions
They have their own page: 6 questions that test this job, what strong and weak answers sound like, and a work exercise to run with your finalists.
Treat the template's figures as placeholders. This branch's own service and sales history should set each target, and the scorecard gets reviewed at the weekly managers' meeting.
Customer Satisfaction Rating
Read every review and survey comment the branch gets each week and tag each one with its cause: a missed area, an odor, a pet concern or a late technician. Track the star average beside the tags.
Callback Percentage
Re-service requests for every hundred services completed, each month. Sort them by route and by the rep who sold the plan; a cluster tells the GM where to look.
Revenue Growth Rate
Branch revenue against the matching month a year earlier, split into new plans, renewals, add-on services and one-time jobs. Track cancellations beside it, since a branch can sell well and still shrink.
Operational Efficiency
Recurring services finished inside the window the plan promises, such as the scheduled week or month, out of all services due. Report rain delays and sick days separately so they don't hide routing problems.
Employee Turnover Rate
People who left in the last twelve months divided by average headcount, for technicians, sales and office staff separately. Exit notes tell you whether pay, the manager or the schedule drove it.
The GM runs the branch as if it were a small company. The GM decides who to hire, which routes need help, how to win back canceled customers and when to spend on another truck. The GM coaches the branch's sales and service leads, handles the complaints they can't, and watches collections. Where the GM isn't the certified operator, the two work together on product and training choices.
How much does a pest control general manager make?
General and operations managers who work for pest control companies earned a median of $81,890 a year ($39.37 an hour) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The middle half earned between $62,550 and $112,040 a year. Pay also depends on your local market, experience and bonus terms.
What does a pest control GM do that a field supervisor doesn't?
A field supervisor works on the routes: riding with technicians, checking finished work, training new hires and fixing problems at the customer's door. The GM is responsible for all of that plus sales, the office, collections and profit. The supervisor tells the GM what is going wrong in the field; the GM decides what to change and pays for it.
How should a pest control GM handle a customer worried about kids or pets?
Start with the label. EPA calls pesticide labels legally enforceable, and the directions on them govern every use of the product. Train technicians to explain the label's directions in plain words and leave them in writing, and never promise a product is harmless. In Florida, the certified operator in charge must report any accidental human poisoning tied to the work to the state within 24 hours of learning of it.
How can a pest control GM keep technicians through the season?
Look first at what the GM controls. New technicians need training and a ride-along partner before they work alone, routes that can be finished in a normal day, and a pay plan they understand. Hold short check-ins with your best technicians before spring, and ask the ones who stay what would make them leave.
What should a pest control GM job ad include?
Give the branch's size in customers, routes, technicians and reps. Say whether the GM will be, or must become, the branch's certified operator, and if not, who makes product calls. Explain how the bonus treats cancels and re-services, not just sales. Be clear about summer hours and on-call duty.
