AI exposure: Retail Salespersons
Sell merchandise, such as furniture, motor vehicles, appliances, or apparel to consumers.
Reading this score
computed44.1% of this occupation's weighted task load is exposed, which puts Retail Salespersons at the 79th percentile of 923 occupations. The capability is largely there. Its average task scores 2.6 out of 4 on what a current system can produce, and the frictions that hold other jobs in place are comparatively weak here.
No single friction dominates this occupation. The strongest is context at 1.44 out of 3 and the weakest is presence at 0.54, which is a narrow spread. Where nothing structural stands in the way, exposure tracks capability almost directly, and capability is the thing that changes every quarter.
The most exposed thing this job does is Rent merchandise to customers, at 86.7%. The least is Bag or package purchases and wrap gifts, at 0.0%. A gap of 86.7% between two parts of the same job is the reason this index publishes at task level. An occupation-wide number would have hidden both.
Within sales occupations, this one is less exposed than the median of 50.0% across the group's 22 roles, with 18 scoring higher. Being in an exposed family does not make a particular job exposed, and the reverse holds too.
What would move this score. Of 24 tasks, 18 are currently banded exposed, 0 assisted and 6 untouched. For that distribution to shift materially would take capability alone, since there is little structural friction here to slow adoption once a system can do the work. The score is re-computed every quarter against a fresh capability reference, and the change is published rather than quietly applied.
Task by task
24 tasks, O*NET 31.0| Task | Exposed | Assisted | Untouched | Importance | Band |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rent merchandise to customers. | 86.7% | 13.3% | 0.0% | 3.26 | exposed |
| Recommend, select, and help locate or obtain merchandise based on customer needs and desires. | 80.0% | 20.0% | 0.0% | 4.68 | exposed |
| Answer questions regarding the store and its merchandise. | 80.0% | 20.0% | 0.0% | 4.53 | exposed |
| Maintain records related to sales. | 73.3% | 26.7% | 0.0% | 4.58 | exposed |
| Describe merchandise and explain use, operation, and care of merchandise to customers. | 70.0% | 30.0% | 0.0% | 4.33 | exposed |
| Open and close cash registers, performing tasks such as counting money, separating charge slips, coupons, and vouchers, balancing cash drawers, and making deposits. | 66.7% | 33.3% | 0.0% | 4.42 | exposed |
| Compute sales prices, total purchases, and receive and process cash or credit payment. | 61.3% | 26.2% | 12.5% | 4.56 | exposed |
| Estimate and quote trade-in allowances. | 55.0% | 20.0% | 25.0% | 4.18 | exposed |
| Help customers try on or fit merchandise. | 55.0% | 20.0% | 25.0% | 4.14 | exposed |
| Estimate quantity and cost of merchandise required, such as paint or floor covering. | 55.0% | 20.0% | 25.0% | 3.75 | exposed |
| Estimate cost of repair or alteration of merchandise. | 55.0% | 20.0% | 25.0% | 3.23 | exposed |
| Inventory stock and requisition new stock. | 52.5% | 22.5% | 25.0% | 4.24 | exposed |
| Maintain knowledge of current sales and promotions, policies regarding payment and exchanges, and security practices. | 50.0% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 4.48 | exposed |
| Exchange merchandise for customers and accept returns. | 50.0% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 4.23 | exposed |
| Sell or arrange for delivery, insurance, financing, or service contracts for merchandise. | 50.0% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 3.97 | exposed |
| Place special orders or call other stores to find desired items. | 45.0% | 30.0% | 25.0% | 3.74 | exposed |
| Prepare sales slips or sales contracts. | 45.0% | 30.0% | 25.0% | 4.34 | exposed |
| Greet customers and ascertain what each customer wants or needs. | 31.7% | 18.3% | 50.0% | 4.84 | exposed |
| Demonstrate use or operation of merchandise. | 15.0% | 10.0% | 75.0% | 4.33 | untouched |
| Watch for and recognize security risks and thefts and know how to prevent or handle these situations. | 8.3% | 16.7% | 75.0% | 4.08 | untouched |
| Prepare merchandise for purchase or rental. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 4.55 | untouched |
| Ticket, arrange, and display merchandise to promote sales. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 4.28 | untouched |
| Clean shelves, counters, and tables. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 3.70 | untouched |
| Bag or package purchases and wrap gifts. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 4.14 | untouched |
Task text and importance ratings sourced from O*NET 31.0. Shares computed. The occupation score is the importance-weighted mean.
Where the score comes from
judgedEvery task is scored through the standardised work activities it maps to. These are this occupation’s averages on the six rubric dimensions. Capability is what AI can do; the other five are what stands in the way.
| Dimension | Mean | Scale |
|---|---|---|
| Capability | 2.56 | 0-4 |
| Embodiment | 0.96 | 0-3 |
| Presence | 0.54 | 0-3 |
| Accountability | 0.75 | 0-3 |
| Context | 1.44 | 0-3 |
| Verification cost | 0.85 | 0-3 |
What this means in practice
Where most of a role's weighted task load is exposed, the work that survives is usually the part of the job nobody wrote into the job description: deciding what should be produced rather than producing it, and being answerable for the result. The tasks lowest on this page are a better guide to where to spend your time than any general advice about the future of work.
Occupations either side of this one
The four closest scores in the same occupational family, then the four closest anywhere in the index.
Read this carefully. Exposure is not displacement. A high score means current AI systems can produce this work, not that anyone will stop paying a person to do it. Adoption depends on economics, regulation and inertia that this index deliberately does not model. How the score is built.