To take an executive job, one usually has to have previous management experience. Therefore, a previous management job or director job in the same field as the desired position is usually a must. Vice president jobs obviously open up to those who are qualified to perform them. A company is going to naturally want to trust its VP jobs with people whom they feel are ready to perform them.
Executive sales jobs are truly rewarding, and can be the crowning achievement of director careers in general. An individual who works in such a position is often trusted with the higher management level of the overall inventory sales of a company. The specific duties differ depending on the company's business plan, but they generally involve the direction of the sales plan of marketing or retail vendor transaction, and bear some similarities to regular sales director jobs, on a large scale.
There is no surefire way to have any sort of the vice president careers that are open to an employee. However, with hard work, dedication, and skill a low-level manager may work their way up to vice president employment. From here their experience in previous director jobs will allow them to lend something new to the company. Of course, such positions are generally more highly compensated than lower-level general manager jobs, and are therefore equally highly sought after positions to be filled when they open.