The Sales Development Bible GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF SALES … · 2019-03-07 · THE SALES DEVELOPMENT BIBLE 2 About Mike Grossman Mike has spent over 20 years in sales, primarily in

Mike Grossman on LinkedIn)

The Sales Development Bible GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF SALES

DEVELOPMENT LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

BY MIKE GROSSMANMike Grossman on LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-grossman-1523022?authType=OPENLINK&authToken=uOAu&locale=en_US&srchid=174585651476504938364&srchindex=3&srchtotal=5&trk=vsrp_people_res_name&trkInfo=VSRPsearchId%3A174585651476504938364%2CVSRPtargetId%3A6722126%2CVSRPcmpt%3Aprimary%2CVSRPnm%3Atrue%2CauthType%3AOPENLINK

THE SALES DEVELOPMENT BIBLE 2

About Mike Grossman

Mike has spent over 20 years in sales, primarily in the high tech sector. He most recently served as VP of Enterprise

Sales at Consversica, an AI startup based on Foster City, CA. Before joining Conversica in 2014, he was Senior

Director of Global Inside Sales at Marin Software, and their 25th employee. He successfully grew the inside sales

team from 1 to 49 members, and helped drive revenues from $3 million to $100 million, and a Goldman Sachs IPO in

March of 2013. Previous sales roles include inside sales and management positions at Solidcore Systems (acquired

by Intel) and Macrovision, as well as five years on Wall Street selling equities to European investors. Mike earned

his bachelor’s degree from The John Hopkins University and his MBA from University of Iowa. He currently works

as a consultant based in Austin, Texas, and serves on Performiture's advisory board.


Contents

Executive Summary .................................................................................................... 4

Tactical ......................................................................................................................... 6

Five Stages of the Lifecycle of a Lead-Generation Program ........................... 6

In the Beginning: Recruiting and Rules of Engagement .................................. 9

Week One Goals and Priorities for new Inside Sales Reps .............................12

Rules of Engagement ........................................................................................15

General Management ...................................................................................... 18

Lead Gen and the Lean Startup ...................................................................... 24

Top Ten Mistakes Made by SDR Leaders ....................................................... 25

How to Use an SDR Team to Juice up Revenues Before an IPO

or Fundraising Cycle .....................................................................................26

Marketing, You’re Letting Sales off the Hook too Easy! ................................ 27

The DISC Profile and SDR Managers/SDRs .................................................. 29

How to Sell Into an Obfuscated Marketplace .................................................31

Prospecting Into Strategic Target Accounts .................................................. 32

Scripting for SDR Teams ................................................................................. 35

Forecasting for SDR Teams .............................................................................39

Closed-Lost Opportunities ...............................................................................41

Strategic ....................................................................................................................42

Building Productive Working Relationships ...................................................42

Training .............................................................................................................56

Managing Change ............................................................................................66

Communicating for Results ............................................................................ 70

Managing Teams Effectively ............................................................................80

Supporting AEs and Field Reps ..................................................................... 117

Getting the Most from Cross-functional Teams ...........................................127

Leading Like a General ................................................................................... 131

Productivity Tools .......................................................................................... 152

Anticipating —and Benefitting from—Crises ................................................157

Getting in the Trenches with Sun Tzu ............................................................166


Executive Summary

The Sales Development Bible is about managing lead-generation teams and monetizing the leads they produce.

It was created for inside sales and SDR leaders who are responsible for growing their companies’ pipelines by

managing sales development and lead-generation teams.

This guide is designed for outbound teams in particular, but the principles described can also be applied to inbound

teams. The goal for The Sales Development Bible is to provide guidance for both the day-to-day challenges facing

SDR leaders and longer-term strategic direction for more complex issues.

Executive Summary

Countless pitfalls can impact the efforts of lead generation teams, including, but not limited to:


Executive Summary

Although every product, company, corporate culture,

and sales team is different, there are common elements

across all industries and verticals:

1. We live in a statistical universe.

2. Certain approaches will generate a certain number

of leads.

3. A certain number of leads will generate a certain

number of sales.

These truths hold regardless of vertical or business

type. The goal of this document is to address the chal-

lenges that are inevitable for a lead-gen team under

most circumstances.

This document is divided into “tactical” and “strategic”

sections. The tactical section contains prescriptive

guidance for the day-to-day building, scaling, and opti-

mizing a lead-generation team at a technology vendor.

The strategic part is primarily geared to management

issues that often impact those in sales development

and inside-sales leadership.

For the “strategic” section, we chose the format, i.e.,

the use of famous quotes or aphorisms, for clarity.

These aphorisms were written by some of the most

clear-thinking writers the world has known. If there’s

a message in this format, it’s to demonstrate that the

challenges facing today’s sales leaders—along with the

solutions—have always been with us.

Sun Tzu, perhaps the most quoted philosopher and

author in all of business writing, is accorded a whole

section: “Getting in the Trenches with Sun Tzu.”

BLURRED LINES OF RESPONSIBILITY BETWEEN THE

LEAD-GENERATION TEAM AND THE OUTSIDE-SALES TEAM

WEAK INSIDE SALES MANAGERS WHO CANNOT MANAGE DIFFICULT

OR INCOMPETENT REPS

FAILURE OF THE OUTSIDE TEAM TO MONETIZE THE LEADS GENERATED

BY THE INSIDE TEAM


Tactical

Five Stages of the Lifecycle of a Lead-Generation ProgramThe typical lead-generation program goes through five phases, beginning with the initial “honeymoon” phase, and

ending with the “finish” phase, which is obviously going to vary considerably from one company to the next. There

are, however, some common themes throughout the first four phases.

Phase 1: The Honeymoon The “honeymoon” phase usually occurs immediately after lead-generation activities begin. Typically, during this

phase the inside team can apparently do no wrong. They produce quality leads for the outside team and enjoy

great trust and popularity. During the honeymoon phase, it’s important to take advantage of all the good will that’s

being generated.

Tactical


Tactical

We’ll talk more about the various aspects of lead generation later, but it’s important to understand that, while the

inside sales manager appears to be in a strong position, they should be generating reports on all of their activities

and opportunities created. Reports include a wide variety of quantitative and qualitative benchmarks that should

be sent to the executive staff once a week. This will be covered in greater depth later.

Equally important, the sales manager should enforce the Rules of Engagement during this time. These rules,

governing interactions between inside and outside teams, and between the sales force and the prospects, will be

subject to incidents that challenge their enforcement. It is critical for the inside sales manager to make sure that

everyone abides by the Rules of Engagement. Otherwise, they exist only on paper and are subject to ad hoc amend-

ment whenever anyone wants to create an exception, which inevitably leads to big trouble, as we will discuss next.

Phase 2: The Disappointment Leads received by outside sales forces generally come in two varieties:

1. The first stream of leads, which generally includes contacts from either senior management, or connections

cultivated by sales reps from their personal and / or professional experiences in other positions. This is

usually a small, fast-moving stream of prospects, with shorter sales cycles and greater initial interest than

leads generated from cold calling. Prospects are engaged more easily because they are already predisposed

to believe they have a problem that needs to be solved, and / or they have a previous relationship with the

individual or company.

2. The second, larger stream of leads, which are generated by the inside sales team. These leads are generated

largely through cold-calls and emails to webinar and trade-show attendees, and found in other databases and

resources. Prospects’ degree of interest will vary, but for the most part, the earliest stages of the sales cycle

with these prospects will be marked by a discovery call and “tire-kicking.”

3. Many prospects will not progress beyond this stage, which can come as an unpleasant surprise to the outside

team. Up until this point, their experience with leads will have been with the first stream, and they may expect

second-stream prospects to behave in a similar manner. Once they learn that they need to spend more time

and effort exploring the second stream to uncover the gems, they are likely to experience some degree of

disappointment. Consequently, their initial bout of euphoria is replaced by a more sober view.

Phase 3: The Steady StateOnce the initial waves of euphoria and disappointment pass, the third, and hopefully longest phase is the steady

state. This phase is marked by an understanding of the Rules of Engagement by both inside and outside teams; the

successful monetization of at least some of the prospects generated by the inside team; and a generally smooth,

steady rate of production of new prospects and qualified leads by the inside team.

During the steady-state phase, it is important for the inside sales manager to minimize time spent managing and

training the team and maximize the time spent acquiring new sources of prospects. This is paramount because, as

we’ll discuss next, in most situations, initial sources of leads will dry up and new ones will be needed to replace them.

Phase 4: The Revival Lead sources are a lot like oil wells. Some will produce steadily for long periods and others will dry up quickly. For

example, webinars, white papers, and professional networking sites such as LinkedIn may produce prospects that

the inside team can convert into qualified opportunities for years.

At some point, however, these sources will begin producing excessive duplicate prospects, which will, at some level,

already be qualified as either good or not good sales candidates.


Tactical

Once you hit this wall, there is often a lull during which the inside team needs to update the strategies it uses to

generate new opportunities. The length and depth of the lull depends entirely on how well you’ve prepared for it. If

the inside sales manager, along with marketing, had the foresight to see it coming and took adequate preparatory

steps, this phase can be brief and relatively painless.

On the other hand, if you assumed that the systems that worked initially would continue yielding leads forever and

made no effort during the “steady state” phase to search for new sources and strategies; if reps cannot hit their

number and senior management does not regard the endeavor as being a source of positive ROI; then this point

can be the end of the road for the inside sales team. Patience for unproductive inside sales teams is very limited,

and previous accomplishments are quickly forgotten if it looks like they are not likely to be repeated.

If new sources of leads are located quickly, this can be an opportunity to completely revamp the team. You can

redesign compensation scoring systems; reconfigure the team, mapping it to different territories, reps, or verticals;

and so on. In this way, “the revival” can help continue the “steady state.”

Phase 5: The FinishAll things come to an end eventually, including the lifecycle of a lead-gen team. This can happen in a number of

ways. The company may be acquired, the team may become a hybrid lead gen / business closing team, or senior

management may simply decide that they want to focus funds and resources elsewhere. Whatever the case, it

is critically important that the team’s accomplishments are documented clearly, so that the team and the inside

sales manager get credit as their careers progress.


Tactical

In the Beginning: Recruiting and Rules of EngagementSuccessful inside sales teams have two basic requirements at the outset: 1. talented reps, and 2. a set of Rules of

Engagement that the entire sales force can agree to live by.

Recruiting: Minimum Requirements Today’s inside rep needs to be able to communicate over the phone, via email, and even in person, in an effective

and compelling manner. In the past, only phone skills were important, but email has changed everything. Now,

written communication skills are equally important. Even though today’s CRM systems are capable of sending

canned emails, having inside reps who can communicate effectively in writing will give the prospect the impression

that the company is staffed by intelligent, capable people. And even though in-person communications between

inside reps and prospects will be minimal, reps still need to engage their colleagues in a professional manner.

Moreover, they may need to attend the occasional trade show or other event with high lead-generation potential,

which requires strong in-person communication skills.

Ideally, an inside rep will have three things. The first is a four-year college degree. Too many organizations make

the mistake of underestimating the importance of intellectual ability in lead generation and simply hire anyone

who is willing and able make large numbers of phone calls. High-volume activity is important, but it cannot replace

accomplished, intelligent employees. College graduates are more articulate and more likely to have the skills that

allow them to learn about a product to the degree that they can move beyond the role of lead-gen rep. Only the

lowest quality lead-gen reps do not aspire to anything more.

Second, the rep should have experience making between 50 and 100 cold-calls per day. A former recruiter, mort-

gage broker, or stockbroker with two-to-three years of experience is ideal. Small software companies don’t have

the time or resources to invest in training for rudimentary skills such as cold-calling and CRM management. It is

much better to hire reps who already have these skills.

Third, contrary to popular belief, the best inside reps are motivated by more than just money. Whether it’s a sense of

competition, pride, long-term career goals, stock options, family, or some other reason, they need to be inspired by

more than a paycheck. Otherwise, you’ll get a one-dimensional mercenary that adds little overall value, rather than

the sort of person that helps create the esprit de corps and sense of mission that highly successful startups need.

Recruiting: Where to Find ThemThere are many places where an inside sales manager can find lead-gen reps, but no matter where you search,

cost and control are always the most important elements.

College graduates are more articulate and more likely to have the skills that allow them to learn about aproduct to the degree that they can move beyond the role of lead-gen rep.


Tactical

Lead generation is a high-turnover endeavor. Reps often burn out, turn out to be weak performers, or just can’t fit in

with the corporate culture. For whatever reason, their replacement rate is high. Therefore, it is important to keep the

sunk cost to a minimum. Paying 10-20 percent of an inside rep’s base salary to a recruiter is not financially feasible; it

increases the company’s costs, and it’s sure to attract the most unwanted sort of attention from senior management.

Plus, it’s much easier to terminate a failing rep after four months when you didn’t just pay a $10,000 recruiting fee.

Help-wanted postings are cost-effective at $75 to $150 per post, and they’ll help you reach plenty of high-quality candi-

dates if you choose the right websites. Public posting is not only an inexpensive means of generating large numbers of

resumes, it also has the advantage of providing an easy way to test the prospective inside rep’s ability to communicate

via email, on the phone, and, finally, in person.

The first step after receiving a resume from a lead-gen rep candidate should be to reply via email, challenging the

candidate with some simple questions (why did they leave their last employer, do they have experience using a CRM,

etc.). The questions should be slightly difficult, and the reply to the questions should come in a timely, articulate,

and convincing manner. If the candidate can’t sell the inside sales manager via email, they won’t be able to sell

prospects, either.

If the answers are satisfactory, a phone interview is the second step. The phone interview should be brief. The inside

sales manager is looking for something very simple here: talent. This candidate is going to spend a huge amount of

time speaking with prospects on the phone, so they should speak in a clear, coherent, and meaningful manner. Reps

who sound canned, monotonous, or overly nervous should be avoided. Many reps that look good on paper and in their

emails fail here. The first 90 seconds should tell you everything you need to know. If there isn’t a spark of life and pas-

sion in the rep’s voice, the interview can be concluded without further need for follow-up.

If the candidate sounds convincing and sincere, an in-person interview is the next step. By the time the lead-gen

rep candidate reports for the interview, the inside sales manager should have a good idea of what they are dealing

with. However, it’s still a good idea to have at least one or two other people meet the candidate. Often times, the

other interviewers will catch things that the inside sales manager missed, including behaviors and comments that

provide insight into the character of the candidate. Keep in mind that this person is going to have unrestricted

access to the company’s CRM data; hence, you need to be able to trust them without hesitation.

Unfortunately, in most states, there are laws against singling out one person for background screening without

doing so for everyone. A useful question to ask the candidate, then, is, “If we were to do a background check on you,

what would we find?” In most cases, the rep, not wanting something in their past discovered without their being

able to explain it, will explain any circumstances that might give a manager pause before hiring them. It could be a

criminal record, discrepancies on their resume, or other personal circumstances that provide additional perspective.

If the answers are satisfactory, a phone interview is the second step. The phone interview should be brief. The inside sales manager is looking for something very simple here: talent.


Tactical

It is also important to come away from the interview with at least two references from the candidate’s former

employers. References should be called shortly after the interview if the candidate still appears to be strong. They

should be asked about the candidate’s greatest weaknesses and whether they would hire them again if they had

the opportunity to do so.

Recruiting: The First Five DaysIt might seem strange to include the first five days of a lead-gen rep’s experience under “recruiting,” but there are

at least two good reasons for doing so.

First, inside reps, like many employees, still need to be “sold” on the experience they will have and reassured that

they made the right decision. If they are strong candidates, they probably had multiple options, and they won’t put

those other options to bed fully until they know they’ve made the right choice. They usually won’t be completely

convinced until they’ve spent a few days in their new role.

Second, candidates sometimes reveal shortcomings that would otherwise never come up in the interview process.

These shortcomings can include problems with drugs and alcohol, much weaker phone skills than the inside sales

manager was led to believe they had, less experience with a CRM than the candidate claimed, and so on. For these

reasons, structure and schedule are of paramount importance during the first week. This will help the inside rep

feel that there are processes and rules in place, and the inside sales manager will get a quick, clear view of what

kind of candidate they’ve hired.

Lead-gen reps should be on the phone producing leads within no more than one week. We’ll discuss this in greater

detail later, but in a nutshell, the goal is to have them master the high-level value proposition quickly, learn the

CRM and how the organization functions, and then get on the phone and start calling prospects.

A simple outline of a new rep’s first five days might look something like the schedule on the next page.


Tactical

Week One Goals and Priorities for New Inside Sales

Hours Event Owner9:00 to Noon New hire orientation

Noon to 1:00 Introductory lunch

1:00 to 1:30 Hardware Setup: Headset, Desk, Monitors, etc..

1:30 to 2:30 Software setup: CRM, phones, email

2:30 to 3:30 Review call scripts and email templates NA

3:30 to 4:30 Product review

4:30 to 5:00 End of day debrief

DAY ONE

Hours Event Owner9:00 to 9:30 Day 2 Intro & review hours tracking and rules of engagement

9:30 to 10:00 Intro to demand gen/marketing

10:00 to 11:00 Ride along with SDR’s while they prospect

11:00 to 12:00 Call management training (live fire remote room exercise)

12:00 to 1:00 Lunch

1:00 to 1:30 Review comp structure and lead contact research training


3:00 to 3:30 Listening to 1:00 recorded sales rep demos NA

3:30 to 4:00 Intro to sales acceleration tool


4:30 to 5:00 End-of-day debrief

DAY TWO

Hours Event Owner8:45 to 9:00 Day 3 preview

9:30 to 10:00 Meet with customer success

10:00 to 11:00 Shadow sales team

11:00 to 12:00 Continued ride along with SDR team

12:00 to 1:00 Lunch

1:00 to 1:30 Listen to recorded demos NA

1:30 to 3:00 How to use phone system


3:30 to 4:00Continued call-management training – work through script, practice via live-fire remote room exercises.

4:00 to 4:30 Lead lifecycle management

4:30 to 5:00 Review demo distribution/routing rules

5:00 End of day debrief

DAY THREE


Tactical

New inside sales reps should not be reinventing the wheel. They should get up to speed with the script and the

CRM by spending two-to-three hours per day in their first week sitting with other members of the team, listening

in on their calls, and watching how they work. They will pick up a great deal through this sort of observation. They

should also listen in on actual discovery calls, and watch demos that outside reps set up as a result of those calls.

Observing successful calls and developing a feel for how their part of the sales cycle plays out are key contributing

factors in their ability to perform successfully once they’re on their own.

Headsets are far superior to handsets. Headsets increase the inside rep’s productivity significantly, and they also

allow others to plug in and listen to their calls.

At the end of day five, it’s good practice to email the new rep a “top-10” list of things they need to remember. They

will likely be experiencing information overload by now, and a short list will be a welcome relief. The new rep’s top-10

priorities should be customized to their situation, but in general it might look something like the message on the

next page.

Hours Event Owner9:00 to 9:30 Day 2 Intro & review hours tracking and rules of engagement

9:30 to 10:00 Intro to demand gen/marketing

10:00 to 11:00 Ride along with SDR’s while they prospect

11:00 to 12:00 Call management training (live fire remote room exercise)

12:00 to 1:00 Lunch

1:00 to 1:30 Review comp structure and lead contact research training


3:00 to 3:30 Listening to 1:00 recorded sales rep demos NA

3:30 to 4:00 Intro to sales acceleration tool


4:30 to 5:00 End-of-day debrief

DAY FOUR

Hours Event Owner8:45 to 9:00 Day 5 preview

9:00 to noon Out-bounding live – on the phones!

Noon to 1:00 Lunch

1:00 to 4:00 Out-bounding live – on the phones!

4:00 to 5:00 Call audit: review recorded calls and train on points of improvement.

5:00 to 5:30 End of day Debrief

DAY FIVE


Tactical

[First name],

Congrats on making it through your first week! I think you’re going to do great work here. Here’s a quick “top-10”

list of things to keep in mind:

1. In CRM, always check for duplicates, to make sure there are no open opportunities and no duplicate leads.

2. Read #1 again; it’s very important.

3. Slow down when you speak. This is the single most important factor in terms of managing a conversation.

What you say isn’t nearly as important as how you say it.

4. Close “toward the calendar.” Once a prospect is asking questions and showing interest or pain, close him on

talking with an AE.

5. Voicemail works best when paired with email. Email can work without voicemail, but voicemail seldom works

without email.

6. Don’t “go down a rat hole.” Prospects will try to get you into feature-selling, meaning that they’ll want to you

to articulate features about our product or how it compares to another product. This is a buy sign. Use it

to close them on speaking with an AE.

7. Great inside reps are proactive with their AE’s. If they don’t respond to email, call them. Make sure they keep

their calendars up to date so you can book them without fear of double-booking. Most important, work with

them on drilling into accounts that you agree have the highest strategic value, and any others that appear to

be strong prospects.

8. Log everything—calls, voicemails, and emails—into CRM. Remember, when you look at a lead or an opportunity

in CRM, it should tell the story on its own, by virtue of the historical data that’s been logged, without needing

the record owner to explain “what the story is” regarding a given opportunity.

9. Your script may change according to the needs of the home office. Always keep the most recent version in

front of you at all times. Don’t try to wing it. Slow down, see what’s in writing in front of you, and use that

information.

10. You and I will be in very close touch, but always feel free to call/IM/email me anytime if you need anything,

even if it’s outside of our regular times to talk.

Welcome aboard!

Mike


Tactical

Rules of EngagementThe Rules of Engagement are created to set boundaries and create procedures for the inside, outside, and sales

operations teams to live by. The Rules of Engagement should be established early on, and all parties must agree on

them. The most important thing the Rules of Engagement govern is how the inside and outside teams interact with

each another.

Rules of Engagement: Who’s Calling What Leads

The Rules of Engagement should cover three areas:

1. Who’s calling what leads.

2. How discovery calls are executed.

3. What constitutes a “qualified” lead.

There should be a strong firewall between inside and outside sales teams. Sales organizations differ on this topic,

but “division of labor” is the rule of thumb you should always follow, i.e., those who specialize in certain functions

should focus their efforts on those functions exclusively. In other words, the inside team should be calling leads,

and the outside team should be managing the sales cycles that grow out of those leads.

If the outside team insists on calling certain leads, they need to be sure to document those activities in the CRM.

They need to let the inside team know that they are targeting those companies, and the inside team should get

credit if the outside rep qualifies a prospect successfully. This may sound counter-intuitive, but it actually prevents

competition for leads and permits the sales force to do what is best for the company rather than let political con-

siderations get in the way.

Second, a process needs to be set in place for qualifying leads during the earliest phases of the sales cycle. Typically,

the inside rep will speak with a prospect; if the prospect meets the minimum qualification criteria, (usually a certain

number of servers, employees, annual revenue, or whatever metric the company’s software is priced on), and indicates

some level of interest in learning more, the inside rep will set up a call between the prospect and the outside rep.

At this point the inside rep will send a calendar invite to the prospect and the outside rep, including a dial-in number

in the “location” line. This allows the prospect to invite other colleagues and lets the outside rep log into the call,

even if they’re working at home or at a client’s site. It also allows the inside rep to log into the call. This is very

important, for three reasons:

1. It lets the inside rep make a brief introduction at the start of the call, which helps break the ice.

2. If the prospect doesn’t show up, the inside rep needs to know ASAP, so they can email them and set up a new

time for the call, if possible. Up to forty percent of discovery calls may turn out to be “no shows.”

3. It allows the inside rep to reconcile with the outside rep how the call went. Outside reps often claim that a

prospect is not qualified or downplay the quality of the prospect, to lower their sales managers’ expectations.

They are not to be trusted on this matter, and keeping them honest is very important.

If the outside rep is going to follow up with the prospect, this needs to be noted in the CRM. The prospect must be

scored as a “qualified” opportunity, and the inside rep should get quota credit.


Tactical

Finally, everyone needs to agree on what is a “qualified opportunity.” The danger of not agreeing on this strict

definition is that every outside rep will have an individual set of ever-changing criteria as to what they consider a

qualified lead, and they will use these criteria for their own ends. This makes it impossible for the inside team to do

their job over the long run, and it will demoralize them. Inside reps need repetition and process, and they cannot

work effectively if the rules are constantly changing.

Preferably, the definition for “qualified” is very simple, and it usually contains three criteria. First, It might be that

the prospect has a minimum number of servers (for instance), or meets some general company size threshold.

Second, there needs to be either an influencer or decision-marker on the call. And finally, after the initial discovery

call, agrees to see a demo of the product, have a pricing discussion, or agree to some sort of calendered next step.

This final criteria should preferably be loose—the prospect agrees to connect in the next couple weeks after speaking

internally, for instance, should suffice. At this point, the lead should be defined as a “qualified opportunity,” and the

outside rep should take ownership. The inside rep should then continue producing more qualified leads.

The Rules of Engagement do not need to be complicated. They should be stated in bulleted format, and they can

exist in a simple four-slide PowerPoint or Google doc. It should be stored in the CRM for all to see, and new inside

and outside reps should be given a copy as soon as they arrive. They should also meet with the inside sales manager

shortly after being hired, to make sure they understand the process and the rules. Outside reps will need to be

reminded of them early and often, and the SDR leader absolutely must challenge them right away if they begin to

veer from the procedures.

ReportingReporting is critically important, and the inside sales manager needs to report to various people fairly frequently.

The reasons vary, but communicating accomplishments and articulating needs are basic to every lead-gen team.

The executive staff should receive a weekly report, including a bulleted overview of important qualitative and quantitative

information. The quantitative side of the report should include how many qualified opportunities were generated, how

many opportunities are waiting to be qualified, and how the month-to-date is proceeding. Qualitative factors should

include how various lead sources are performing, how new inside reps are doing, and other relevant lead-gen issues

and initiatives. This is also a good platform for mentioning deals recently closed that began with leads produced by

the inside team, and to give credit to other parties (e.g., marketing or business development) when opportunities

are created from programs or initiatives they were involved with.

The weekly executive report is particularly important during the early stages of the lead-gen team’s lifecycle.

Depending on the length of the software vendor’s sales cycle, there may be a three-to-six month period during

Reporting is critically important, and the inside sales manager needs to report to various people fairly frequently. The reasons vary, but communicating accomplishments and articulating

needs are basic to every lead-gen team.


Tactical

which there are no closed deals stemming directly from the lead-gen team’s work. During this period, communica-

tion is of paramount importance so that the work being done is clear for everyone to see.

The math that justifies the existence of a lead-gen team is as follows: technology companies assume that they

will usually be acquired or go public at between five and ten times revenue. If the value of a deal is $50,000, then

executive staff will calculate that this adds $250,000 to $500,000 to their general value. So when a lead-gen team

starts initiating large numbers of successful deals each quarter, justifying their compensation is a no-brainer. But in

that long ramp-up time the jury is out, so executive staff needs to see clearly that the pipeline is being populated by

opportunities that would not exist without inside sales, and the weekly report is the place to convey this information.

The lead-gen team itself also needs frequent reporting, on two occasions in particular. First, the month-to-date

results should be shared during weekly team meetings. At this time, you can assess overall team performance and

discuss what needs to be done before the month ends. This is also a good time to talk about the success, or lack

thereof, of any recent lead-generation initiatives. Upcoming lead-gen events can also be discussed, such as trade

shows or webinars. Most importantly, if the team is not on track from a production standpoint, they need to feel a

sense of urgency during and after the meeting so they’ll understand that they need to crank up their efforts.

During the last 10 or so business days of the month, an “end-of-month countdown” can be emailed to the inside

team. It should specify the number of qualified opportunities created for the month, how many new qualified

opportunities were created over the past day, how many discovery calls are left to be executed, and how many

business days are left in the month. The message is that every day counts and time is running out.

The final group to which some sort of regular communication is necessary is marketing. The relationship between lead

gen and marketing varies greatly from company to company. At some companies, marketing is seen as a support

system for inside sales and will be charged with creating traffic that the inside team can call on, usually from webinars,

white papers, and trade shows. If the marketing team is more focused on brand building, then there may be less

actual lead-gen activity, but hopefully there will be more inbound leads as a result of the work that marketing has

done to improve the product’s position in the marketplace.

Regardless of what stance marketing has adopted, it is very important that qualified leads created from the work

marketing has done are highlighted, preferably to executive staff in the weekly report. This is important because it

will help marketing, as well as the company in general, know what’s working. Moreover, marketing people greatly

appreciate it when revenue can be attributed directly to their efforts. Inside sales has a particularly good vantage

point to see what has worked, and by highlighting this, the inside sales manager has the opportunity to make a key

ally very happy.


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General Management

HoursGenerally speaking, response rates are better in the morning, the earlier the better. Ideally the inside team is on the phones by 8:00 a.m. in whatever time zone they are calling. If they’re on Pacific time and calling an area on Eastern time, they should be on the phones no later than 6:30 a.m. Pacific. The efficacy is so much greater that it’s worth letting them leave after only eight hours (6:30 a.m.–2:30 p.m.) instead of the standard nine-hours most inside reps work (8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.).

CompensationCompensation varies greatly from region-to-region and vertical-to-vertical in terms of base salary, on-target

earnings, and target metrics. A few things should remain constant, no matter what. First, inside reps should have

an easy means of calculating their variable compensation as the month goes by. There’s a tendency to treat inside

reps as second-class citizens in this respect, but this inevitably leads to poor morale, and your top inside reps will

look for something else to do if they can’t even keep track of how much money they’re making.

Base salaries should be as considerate as possible, within reason, compared to how their peers at similar local

companies are compensated. Low-balling on base salary is dangerous for inside reps since they typically don’t

manage their personal finances well (as a result of their being young, usually, and often having certain personality

flaws that sometimes preclude their being promoted to outside reps in the first place). Therefore, without any sort

of base salary to speak of, should an otherwise strong performer have a bad month, they may very well leave, since

their lost income can affect their ability to pay their rent and meet other living expenses.

Finally, it’s OK to increase quotas as time passes, as the team and company become more established, and as

leads and qualified opportunities become easier to create. The appropriate way to communicate a quota increase

is at the beginning of the month, and each rep should be told individually, rather than making an announcement at

the weekly team meeting. Inside reps are much more likely to complain and protest when in a group setting than

when meeting individually with their manager.

RelationshipsFor the most part, inside reps are inspired by two things: greed and fear. As mentioned above, compensation is

a strong performance motivator, and, as we will discuss below, fear of termination is equally so. But if the inside

sales manager is overly familiar, and becomes a completely known quantity to the reps the inside sales manager

is managing, it becomes more difficult to do things like raise quotas and terminate low performers with credibility

and confidence. Team outings and outside-the-office interactions in general should be done on a very limited basis.

Base salaries should be as considerate as possible, within reason, compared to how their peers at similar local companies are compensated.


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For these reasons, it’s best to make the decision and let them know right away. Writing down the reasons why they

are being terminated and having the list on hand during the actual termination meeting is a good practice, as the rep

is likely to protest and try to reverse the decision. Additionally, having a witness present such as an office manager,

HR rep, or VP of Sales is a good idea, so the rep can’t manufacture a story afterword about what transpired during

the termination meeting in an effort to extort or embarrass their former employer.

SupervisionSitting within earshot of the lead-gen team is absolutely essential. Once you move into an office—or anywhere you can’t see and hear them—you won’t really know what they’re saying on the phone or how they’re saying it.

Moreover, having the ability to check a rep’s calls from the phone, as opposed to what they log in the CRM, is vital.

It’s imperative for the ISM to look at the call logs, either systematically or randomly, and make sure the reps are

actually making the calls they say they’re making.

It’s very common for reps who are burned out to make calls to their own voice mail, 800 numbers—anywhere they

know they won’t have to actually talk to anyone. This way they appear to be doing their job, while in reality they’re

thinking about being somewhere else, doing anything else. When this happens, they need to be replaced.

Leading by example is critical. Reps watch inside sales managers very closely, and they’ll feed off their energy. If

the inside sales manager spends the day focused on reviewing calls and leads, the team will react accordingly by

working harder. If the inside sales manager spends the day on Yahoo Instant Messenger and Facebook, the team

will goof off, too.

TerminationsLead-gen reps that don’t perform need to be terminated. There are two determinants to a lead-gen rep’s success.

The first is talent. A good inside sales manager can see this pretty quickly. It refers to the rep’s phone skills, their

ability to bend people to their will over a 30-second time frame, and their general aggressiveness in pursuing leads.

The second is their work ethic.

Strong reps have both of these qualities. If the rep fails on either count, they need to be let go. Putting them “on a

plan” is usually not effective. They rarely change the factors underlying their lack of productivity, and they usually

use this time to update their resumes. Also, lead-gen reps have complete access to the company’s most sensitive

data contained in the CRM. If they suspect that they might be terminated, they are more prone than other sales

people to take note of leads and opportunities and sell them to competitors if they are actually let go.

Sitting within earshot of the lead-gen team is absolutely essential. Once you move into an office—or anywhere you can’t see and hear them—you won’t really know what they’re saying on the phone or how they’re saying it.


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Remote RepsRemote reps are very difficult to manage. It’s impossible to verify what they’re saying and how they’re saying it, and because call tracking is usually not available remotely, it’s hard to observe their work habits. The only way remote lead-gen reps can work, from a logistical standpoint, is if they are in a satellite office with other colleagues and checking in with the ISM daily for at least a few minutes.

For remote reps, logging their activity in the CRM is even more critical than for the ones in the office. Otherwise,

failure is inevitable. When they don’t do things right, you won’t be there to correct them, and if they burn out, you

won’t know about it until much later.

Elite PerformersEvery inside rep’s nightmare is that they’ll spend the rest of their lives doing lead gen. If successful inside reps

don’t see a career path, chances are high that eventually they’ll go looking for a company that can offer one.

The paradox of the ISM in this case is that the outside reps being supported by the inside team usually consists of

reps that have between five and ten years experience selling complex IT products. It’s unlikely that an inside rep,

no matter how talented, is going to be trusted to manage long, complex sales cycles without having done it before.

There are at least two ways that top performers can be kept happy. The first is money. The ISM should be familiar

with the pay scales of reps in similar roles at similar companies in the area. For top-tier performers, the ISM should

consider seriously raising their on-target earnings up to 30 percent higher than the local standard.

This may sound excessive, but, as discussed earlier, leads produced from inside reps that are successfully monetized

are often worth five-to-ten times their face value in terms of company acquisition dollars. A lead that turns into a

$50,000 sale can be worth an extra $250,000–$500,000 when the company is acquired. If a rep produces multiple

leads of this nature each month, boosting their compensation is a no-brainer.

Assuming no middle-market product is available for the lead-gen reps to “graduate” to selling, you can still assign

them responsibilities that provide greater leadership opportunities and job satisfaction. Early-stage IT vendors will

often produce target lists of “big-game” prospects that are known to be of great value to the company. This is an

ideal way to give an inside rep a raise and let them work on the company’s top priorities.

How You Should Spend Your TimeWe’ve already described a number of things that the ISM should be doing in terms of general management and

training. But no individual task can possibly fill the entire workday. Hence, the ISM should have a fair amount of

time to spend on other responsibilities.

No SDR leader's task is more important than reviewing the status of leads. This means taking lists that were fed

into the CRM and looking them up to see how the lead-gen reps are handling them. Of the tens of thousands of

leads in the CRM, obviously some are more important and attractive than others. The ISM should be spending at

least a couple hours each day doing quality control on them.

How leads are being managed tell a very important story—are the lead-gen reps doing their job? How are they doing

it? This also lets the lead-gen reps know that you’re paying close attention to what they’re doing. This is critical to

managing a successful inside sales team.

Qualitative MetricsQuantitative metrics are easy to come by. Call volume, overall activity volume, time-on-phone, work hours, aggre-

gate opportunity production, and so on—these numbers tell a story that’s easy to digest and relate, and they are a

critically important aspect of measuring productivity in real time, in an even and unbiased manner.


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However, it is also important that the ISM use qualitative metrics, as these will often tell a story even before the

quantitative ones do. If properly managed and observed, qualitative metrics allow the ISM to understand why the

numbers are what they are.

There is often a great disparity between an inside rep’s behavior toward a manager and that toward his or her peers.

Some disparity is normal; however, if, during the first few weeks of training, a rep appears to be uninterested in listen-

ing to and observing their peers as part of the ramp-up period, this is a major red flag. It indicates that the rep is not

interested in learning, or thinks he or she has nothing more to learn. Oftentimes these reps have weak learning curves

and do not take constructive criticism to heart, and this is sure to show up in their overall performance numbers.

A startup will often have a list of target accounts that need to be penetrated. If you have assigned a lead-gen rep to

assist with this effort, a regular (monthly) territory review is a good idea, as this will provide a deep understanding

of the rep’s progress. Typically these lists contain 50–200 accounts, and a rep who is working nine hours a day

should be able to rattle off details on most of them from memory. During the territory review, the rep should be

able to describe with some passion and level of detail what a given prospect’s status is without having to look at

their notes too often or for very long. If the rep has to open the CRM and look up the account to give you the status

of a prospect, he or she is probably not fully present in the role.

As mentioned previously, it is important for the ISM to sit within the immediate vicinity of the team. The benefits of

this include not only being able to listen to what the reps say (which can also be audited via the phone system in

place), but also how they say it. A rep’s body language will also tell an important story. When making a call, if they

appear relieved—or even happy—that the prospect was not available or did not pick up, they probably have some

level of “phone fear.” This rep is probably lacking the requisite competitive edge and is unlikely to pursue a long-

term career in inside sales.

It is often assumed that inside reps do all their work in the office via phone and email. However, in this age of 24-hour

communication, it is important they check their email frequently outside of work, in case a prospect replies to their

email or wants to reschedule a meeting. Reps should also immerse themselves in the subject matter and the pros-

pects’ world in general. If a rep does not come in with the occasional brainstorm, thought, question, or suggestion

about a prospect or how to get into a certain account, this means that he or she would probably rather be doing

something else, and their productivity numbers will often reflect this.

It is often assumed that inside reps do all their work in the office via phone and email. However, in this age of 24-hour communication, it is important they check their email frequently outside of work, in case a prospect replies to their email or

wants to reschedule a meeting.

@


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Researchers: Lead Gen for Lead GenPerhaps the single greatest impediment to a lead-gen rep’s ability to maintain high activity levels is CRM data

volume and integrity. Stop-and-go activity—i.e., making a call and then sourcing the data necessary for the next

prospect—is painfully inefficient. Although there are sources of pre-packaged support for data cleansing and

contact information, there is no substitute for a human being that can look at an account, browse the available

third-party data repositories (e.g., data.com, LinkedIn, Hoovers, etc.), and then collect the best email addresses,

phone numbers, and addresses and put them in the CRM.

For this reason, it is difficult to overestimate the economic value of hiring a “researcher,” typically, a college graduate

with 0–2 years work experience who is paid 0-to-$15/hour. This individual’s only job is to append the data in the

CRM accurately, and also to source net-new contacts for the lead-gen rep.

To measure the efficiency of this resource, one only has to take the number of activities that the lead-gen rep executes

per day, the value and outcome of those activities, and how much time they spend sourcing the appropriate business

intelligence with those activities. If you fill in the “sourcing” time with activities that cost $X/hour, you have your

answer. In most cases, the economic advantage is very clear, so much so, in fact, that, in environments with large

lead-gen teams, ISMs may want to pair their teams with large teams of supporting researchers.

QuotasQuota setting is an often difficult and highly subjective matter, made even more complex because of variations in

prospects’ accessibility and responsiveness across categories. That said, there are some basic guidelines that can

help teams set goals effectively.

Lead-gen rep’s quotas are often tied to the revenue outcomes of the opportunities they identify. This may be

appealing intuitively, but in reality it presents several practical problems. First, inevitably, some lead-gen reps

are paired with AEs that are very high performers, and the result is a “free-rider” problem, whereby an otherwise

second-rate lead-gen rep receives quota credit only by virtue of the outstanding performance of the AE with whom

he or she is paired. Conversely, great lead-gen reps are sometimes mapped to weak AEs; hence, their quotas and

compensation are unjustly penalized due to their AEs’ poor performance.

The greatest risk in tying a lead-gen rep’s compensation to revenue is the behavioral impact it has on the rep’s

activities. If even a small portion of the rep’s compensation depends on the deals that are eventually closed, the AE

will lean on the lead-gen rep to help get stalled deals back in play. The lead-gen rep will then spend excessive time

either trying to find new contacts in opportunities they already helped initiate or getting the prospect to re-engage

with the AE. These are activities for which the AE alone should be responsible. If this sort of “mission creep” is

allowed, the lead-gen rep will spend excessive time chasing down contacts and scheduling follow-up calls for

already active sales cycles rather than identifying new opportunities.

Ultimately, lead-gen teams work best in environments that have a strict division of labor, where lead-gen reps can

control their performance and financial rewards by virtue of their efforts and talent. Not every category is right for

outbound lead gen, and if not enough of the deals close, management should examine whether outbound lead gen

is the right method for that category. Managers may also want to look at what constitutes a “qualified” opportunity,

how they are handled by the AEs once the discovery call has taken place, and where the opportunity was originally

qualified. The most effective adjustments to make are those that allow lead-gen reps to drive their quota attainment

by virtue of their own efforts.

Inbound vs. Outbound LeadsIn most categories, new software vendors have very little by way of inbound inquiries. However, this is not always

the case, and the nature of the space and the efforts of the marketing team may result in some inbound activity.


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The lead-gen reps, not the AEs, are best positioned to follow up on inbound leads. It only makes sense for AEs to

follow up on inbound inquires if they have nothing else to do. The reason for this is two-fold: First, response time

has a huge impact on the first impression that a company makes on a prospect. Ideally, response time should be

no more than 10 minutes after the inquiry is made, and preferably less.

AEs rarely have this sense of urgency. They often feel that a 24-hour response time is more than acceptable and

will often take as long as one week to respond. In these cases, prospects may wonder what their customer expe-

rience will be like after they sign on with the ISV if it takes so long for them to respond to their initial inquiries or,

worse, they may have begun evaluations with competitors.

The second problem is that inbound leads are surprisingly hard to chase down. It often takes multiple phone calls

and emails to get prospects to re-engage and commit to scheduling discovery calls. Most AEs take the view that

if someone makes an inquiry and then the AE follows up with a voicemail and an email, and yet the prospect does

not reply, it means that the prospect is not interested. This is an inaccurate assumption, and the prospect often

simply needs to be pursued systematically to bring their original inquiry back to the top of their agenda, which

could otherwise have been replaced by any number of distractions.


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Lead Gen and the Lean Startup Lead-gen teams are uniquely situated to deliver rapid feedback to the executive and product teams. This feedback

is collected in multiple ways: during initial outreach to prospects and response to that outreach; during discovery

calls that take place along side and in conjunction with the outside reps with prospects who respond positively to

the initial outreach; and during follow-up with prospects that were not closed during the original sales cycle and

are now considered either “stalled” or “closed/lost” opportunities.

The lead-gen team can collect, quantify, and package feedback from prospects and share it with the rest of the

organization. If this is done correctly, the feedback can create a “hyperkinetic framework” that lets product teams

test and re-test various messages and features, to determine what is resonating and what is not. These features do

not have to be fully built out or packaged, just pitched verbally and positioned via email. This tentative positioning

and resulting feedback loop is popularly known today as the “lean startup methodology.” There are three compo-

nents to the process as it relates to a lead-gen team:

1. The first is provisioning the lead-gen team with three pieces of information: an email to send to prospects, a

pitch to give prospects an overview, and a website where prospects can be directed.

2. Once these elements have been provided, the team should keep careful metrics—on both a call-by-call basis,

and over outbound emails—in terms of how many prospects respond and what those responses look like.

Prospects can be organized into groups and ranked. This phase should take no more than approximately two

weeks, and each rep should execute between 40-to-60 activities per day.

3. The final aspect of the exercise is the feedback loop. A simple Google doc will do, populated with bullet points

of the most relevant highlights. At the end of the two weeks, this doc can be shared with the relevant teams.

This is where next steps—including A/B testing of messages and value propositions—can take place. Teams

may elect to double-down on certain forms of messaging, or forgo certain types of prospects entirely, in favor

of concentrating on another test market.

The inside sales manager has special responsibility during this type of exercise. He or she must make sure that the

lead-gen reps carefully document all activities and outcomes and that any outliers or extenuating circumstances

are highlighted. The reason is that many decisions are made with limited data, and anything within the data that

would otherwise obfuscate the outcome if they were not known must be clearly pointed out. The margin for error

is razor thin in this type of effort.

The inside sales manager has special responsibility during this type of exercise. He or she must make sure that the lead-gen reps carefully document all activities and outcomes and that any outliers or extenuating circumstances are highlighted.


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4. Not reviewing leads If the lead-gen team doesn’t think you’re looking at

their work, they’ll eventually get sloppy. Either leads

won’t be properly followed up on, or they won’t be doc-

umented in the CRM. The ISM has to be very involved

at ground level, and that means reviewing the progress

of leads documented in the CRM.

3. Not listening to repsThe flip-side of reviewing leads is listening to what’s

happening while they’re being called. ISM’s have to be

sitting within earshot of their team so they can listen

to what their reps are saying. This is especially import-

ant during the first couple of months of a new lead-gen

rep’s tenure.

2. Failure to defend the inside team from the outside team The relationship between lead-gen teams and the out-

side reps they support is both symbiotic and adversarial.

It’s easy to be loved when it’s the former, but when it’s

the latter, the ISM has to be quick to intervene on be-

half of their team. The ISM must be ready to go to war.

The more willing they are to fight, they less frequently

problems will come up.

1. Not building and enforcing Rules of EngagementsIf, from the very beginning, a set of rules is not in place

to govern the processes and procedures that the

outside team and lead-gen team are bound to abide

by, you will fail. Nothing else matters if this does not

happen. The Rules of Engagement must be set in writing

and agreed to by all parties. Changes to the rules

should only happen by mutual agreement following

open discussion. This is the groundwork upon which

all of your future success is built.

10. Becoming friends with your repsLead-gen managers are often first-time managers who

need to keep in mind that the reps are your employees,

not your friends. If you try to be friends with them,

you’ll lose all of your authority with them.

9. Not sitting in on qualification callsThe traffic that the lead-gen team produces has to be

monetized by the outside team. Outside reps cannot

be counted on to give it their all without supervision.

Therefore, the only way to verify the quality of the

leads is to listen to these calls.

8. Failure to give credit where credit is dueIf someone on the lead-gen team does something great,

don’t keep it a secret or feel threatened by it. A-players

hire A-players. Everyone wants to know they’re doing a

good job, so don’t be stingy with praise and recognition.

7. Stealing from team Some Inside Sales Managers have been known to

take credit for leads produced by their reps. This is a

formula for failure. Your reps won’t feel inspired, your

best performers will jump ship as soon as possible,

and your career will be in the toilet because eventually

everyone will know what you’re doing.

6. Keeping underperformersReps who don’t maximize yield with their territories

cannot remain in their seats. It’s unfair to the company,

to the outside reps they support, and to the other lead-

gen reps who are pulling their weight. Fear of job loss is

a major motivator for lead-gen reps, and giving up this

tool is a sure way to sabotage yourself.

5. Not thinking about value consistentlyAs mentioned above, lead generation is an investment

that a company will only make if they feel they’re

getting clear ROI, meaning that deals are being closed

that would not otherwise have happened. This means

very frequent reporting to senior management, in both

quantitative and qualitative terms.

Top Ten Mistakes Made by SDR LeadersWe’ve covered quite a bit of information, and it can be hard to remember it all. I recommend printing out the following

“Top-Ten Mistakes Made by ISMs” list and using it as a handy reference guide to the biggest mistakes to avoid:


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How to Use an SDR Team to Juice up Revenues Before an IPO or Fundraising CycleCompanies deploy SDR teams for many reasons, the most obvious of which is to generate pipeline and growth

when there’s insufficient inbound lead volume. However, one of the most important functions of an SDR team is to

make revenues “hockey stick” during capital events, such as seeking a new round of funds or launching an initial

public offering. During these phases, it is particularly important that the company show a strong growth trajectory;

if this doesn’t happen, it jeopardizes the fundraising or IPO and can result in failure overall.

There are baseline steps that the SDR leadership should undertake to ensure success. The first step is dropping

underperformers. This is a good idea any time, but it’s particularly important during fundraising for two reasons:

1. The team is going to be under more scrutiny than ever before, and any weak link will be seized upon as an

example of team-wide mediocrity; hence, there’s defensive survival value here;

2. The team will soon ask for extra resources (see dialers, below)—which are expensive—for their top reps.

The goal is to spend less money on bad resources and more on good ones.

The second step is getting the best reps on a high-quality outbound dialing system. Again, this is a good idea in

general. In high-pressure scenarios, the benefit of being able to clone your best reps cannot be understated. The

results should be a two-to-four-fold increase in the number of calls they make, and if their historical success rates

hold, the net impact should be a commensurate increase in the number of qualified opportunities generated.

The third step is stratifying the team: taking the top reps and lining them up with the accounts that represent the

greatest value to the company. While this many cost the company in the long run in terms of a smaller number of

total opportunities created, in the short run it will uncover a number of very-high-value deals that should increase

the average sale price and, hopefully, also land some enormous logos and lighthouse deals. These look great on a

badge slide for investors, they’re tremendous for company morale, and they also allow the team to generate some

very big deals that help with the bottom line.

The SDR team needs to be completely relieved of searching for leads. The data-research portion of what they

do should be either outsourced or solved with a technology solution. SDRs who spend time looking for phone

numbers, email addresses, companies, and/or names of prospects are far slower and less effective in their actual

prospecting, and they need to be moving quickly, without hindrances or excuses.

Finally, this is a time, more than any other, when the SDR team needs to take on complete responsibility for the

company’s pipeline goals. This means that if the marketing team is bringing in enough inbound leads to generate

X pipeline, and the pipeline needs of the company are Y, the SDR leader’s goal needs to be Y minus X. This ensures

that the SDR team is thinking and acting in a way that maps precisely to the company’s revenue goals to complete

the financial event that it’s working toward. It is up to the SDR leadership to get the company there.


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Marketing, You’re Letting Sales off the Hook too Easy!Sales and marketing teams often spend a lot of time debating each other’s responsibilities in terms of producing

pipeline and what is a “qualified lead.” The conventional wisdom is that the marketing team should produce in-

bound leads—usually in the form of demo requests and/or trial downloads—and the sales team should then follow

up with those prospects. Sometimes this pool of prospects is further narrowed according to company size, vertical,

and/or geographic location.

When the lead reaches a certain score or grade, the sales team takes it. If the lead doesn’t hit the score or grade—

usually because the prospect didn’t ask to be contacted—the lead stays with marketing for further nurturing, until

the prospect asks to be contacted.

The problem that usually comes up is that the sales team is often starving, but is either declining leads from

marketing because they aren’t “qualified,” or marketing is withholding these leads from the sales organization

because they haven’t indicated that they’re ready to be called. During these times, the sales team reaches out to

cold prospects to fill the pipeline gap.

This makes no sense. A prospect who attended a webinar, but has a low lead score because that may be the only

action they took, is still a better prospect than someone from a list that hasn’t indicated any interest whatsoever.

The golden rule that teams in this situation should follow is that if there aren’t enough “qualified” leads for the

sales team to follow up on, they should be calling everything that marketing produces, regardless of “lead score” or

“grade” or what is an MQL or SQL. If a prospect expresses any interest in the company, then the sales team should

reach out to them.

There are exceptions, of course. If the company is simply too small, or the title is a non-runner, then this rule

doesn’t apply. However, data constraints and potential-deal size notwithstanding, the sales organization cannot

afford to have a filter on who they reach out to, and the marketing team cannot afford to give them one.

If the company does a webinar, the sales organization should reach out to everyone who attended, unless their title,

vertical, or company size makes them completely inappropriate as a prospect. The notion that these prospects

should be quarantined by marketing, nurtured, and then released to the sales team as appropriate is a luxury that

only very successful companies with rich pipelines and large numbers of inbound demo requests—usually the

result of viral and organic growth—can afford.

If the company does a webinar, the sales organization should reach out to everyone who attended, unless their title, vertical, or company size makes them completely inappropriate as a prospect.


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To make this actionable, there are a few things that marketing can do to make the sales team’s job easier.

First, one of the barriers to sales following up on collateral and marketing-event leads is bad data. There are multiple

workarounds for this: Researchers can be hired to append the data, and there are commercial list sources that can

attach phone numbers and email addresses. However, the odds of sales following up successfully are far greater if

they don’t have to fish around for data.

Second, marketing needs to stay close to sales on the presentation of the data. If a webinar takes place, marketing

needs to meet with sales and tell them a bit about the webinar, so sales has context when reaching out to these

prospects. At the same time, the lead source needs to be clear, not cloaked in gibberish that is unintelligible to

sales. This way, when the sales rep calls the prospect, they can invoke the source of the lead, thereby jarring the

memory of the prospect and making it a much warmer call.

On the sales side of the equation, leads that are not demo requests or trial signups still need to be called. SDRs often

prefer to email these prospects, but the prospects can get confused by the marketing emails that they’re already

getting from the vendor as a result of their original download, and so the efficacy of sales emails in this case is

limited. Therefore, appending them with phone numbers for the sales team is a must, as is tracking the activities

logged for these leads in the CRM. Good SDR managers audit the calls made against collateral downloads.

The SDR team should be divided into inbound and outbound teams. If SDRs have inbound leads to follow up on,

but they’re also charged with generating leads from outbound activities, they’ll generally neglect engaging in out-

bound prospecting in favor of following up on inbound leads as this represents the path of least resistance.

With the inbound team, there should be further subdivision—ideally a rep that does nothing but follow up on

collateral leads from webinars, white papers, case study downloads, etc. Otherwise, they, too, are prone to simply

following up on the demo requests, which represent a higher grade of prospect and less pursuit than those derived

from collateral. If the SDR team cannot have a rep dedicated to collateral for one reason or another, it’s best to

assign these leads to the outbound team as they represent cold prospects far more closely than they do demo

requests or “contact us” leads.


Tactical

The DISC Profile and SDR Managers/SDRs The DISC Personality Profile is a popular and easy-to-use test to help describe people’s personality traits.

There are personalities that are well suited to SDR management and SDR work, and some that are not.

The basic attributes of the DISC are as follows:

DISC Personality Type Behaviors

Dominance

Person places emphasis on accomplishing results, the bottom line, confidence

• Sees the big picture

• Can be blunt

• Accepts challenges

• Gets straight to the point

Influence

Person places emphasis on influencing or persuading others, openness, relationships

• Shows enthusiasm

• Is optimistic

• Likes to collaborate

• Dislikes being ignored

Steadiness

Person places emphasis on cooperation, sincerity, dependability

• Doesn't like to be rushed

• Calm manner

• Calm approach

• Supportive actions

• Humility

Conscientiousness

Person places emphasis on quality and accuracy, expertise, competency

• Enjoys independence

• Objective reasoning

• Wants the details

• Fears being wrong


Tactical

It’s a good practice to have SDRs take a free version of the DISC personality test during the interview process.

Many versions are available online, and they take around 15 to 20 minutes to complete.

Individuals who are high on the Dominance scale (D’s) typically make good SDRs. They seek to impose their will on

others, which is something that SDRs are asked to do day-in-and-day-out. They’re highly competitive and can deal

well with rapid and frequent change.

D’s also make good SDR managers as they’re well suited to corralling and managing SDRs in their reporting

stream, and weathering the fires that are constantly being lit all around them by both the sales reps they’re

charged with supporting and senior management in its need for data and increased pipelines.

Individuals who are high on the Conscientiousness scale (C’s) do not typically make good SDRs. The C type’s need

to have every process spelled out can make rolling with change very difficult. They don’t deal well with confrontation,

which is something that SDRs face all day, every day. The need for detail subverts their ability to freestyle when

they engage prospects who don’t fit into a bucket that they’ve been trained to address, which is problematic as

SDRs face corner cases all the time.

C’s can make good SDR Managers. They are usually very good at documenting processes, which is something that

their team members enjoy and appreciate. The C’s attention to detail from a reporting standpoint can also be ben-

eficial when communicating with others in senior management on data and process issues. They do need to learn

to confront performance behaviors on the SDR team, which is probably not their first instinct. For this reason, they

may want to work closely with a “team lead,” who can supply some cover when the SDRs aren’t doing as asked.

Those high on the Steadiness scale (S’s) can be good SDRs, but with caveats. S’s prefer a stable work environment

and are consistent and reliable, which are good qualities in an SDR. However, they don’t necessarily like to be pushed

to hit a number or quota, which is something that SDRs are asked to do all the time. They give teams a sense of

comradery and enjoy building and maintaining relationships, but they also have a hard time seeing turnover on the

team, which, again, is a hallmark of inside sales organizations.

S’s do not typically make good SDR managers. Their need to keep the team stable and consistent makes it hard

for them to be the catalyst for change and risk that the organization needs. In an environment where all things are

going well and there’s no need for change, this can be fine, but most companies starve at some point, and S’s are

not the ones who are going to save the day.

Those who are high on the Influence scale (I’s) often make good SDRs. They seek constantly to sway prospects,

and their willingness and ability to change the way prospects think about problems can make them very effective.

I’s often seek the limelight, so if they’re not the center of attention, they can become a distraction, but they are

positive and optimistic overall, and very competitive, so this usually makes them a good asset.

As SDR managers, I’s can do a decent job, but with caveats. I’s often focus too much on classroom type white-board

training, which is not an ideal learning method for SDRs. I’s do provide a forward-looking environment, and they

excel at gamification, though sometimes at the expense of making tough decisions that may disappoint both their

team members and their peers. Also, the need to be liked can subvert the need to be effective.


Tactical

How to Sell Into an Obfuscated Marketplace Most companies have easily defined metrics as to the companies they target, including revenue, number of

employees, vertical, location, etc. However, there are instances in which a company may sell a product for which

the prospect is not obvious. For example, a company with 200 employees and $10 million in revenue may be every

bit as viable as a company that’s 10 times larger. The net result is that the SDR team may have little directional

data on who to reach out to.

In cases like this, there are a few options. A common solution is to use some sort of predictive lead scoring or

analytics to figure out which companies represent the highest likelihood of being decent prospects. These solutions

are not particularly accurate and often don’t work out.

The only surefire way to make sure the team is addressing all the prospects that are most likely to have a problem

they can solve is reaching out to the entire addressable market. This is a significant undertaking, requiring the right

data, tools, and team members.

The data within the CRM must be geared toward accounts, not leads. This means that when an SDR looks at a

prospect, they are looking at a contact at a company, not simply an individual. The time savings and efficiency this

affords the sales team is enormous; instead of speaking to 10 people at a company 20 times in the course of 18

months at the company, one or two conversations with a single prospect may help identify whether the company

is viable as a prospective client.

Also, the data should include a component of the technologies the account has installed. This information is

available from a variety of sources—some scrape the source code, while others get behind the firewall—and what

type of information that a company needs will vary. This allows for a primitive, yet highly reliable, type of account

scoring that enables the sales team to prioritize how they spend their time.

Sales acceleration tools for obfuscated marketplaces are a must. The SDR team needs to email, call, and track on

social media huge numbers of people quickly and efficiently. Therefore, all the drivers that make sales-acceleration

tools attractive economically under normal circumstances make them all the more so when the reps don’t even

know what prospects to start with.

Finally, the quality of the rep needed for this type of space is different. When an SDR reaches out to a prospect at

a company where it’s known that they’re a fit for the vendor’s solutions simply from their size or vertical, the SDR

has far less heavy lifting to do. However, when an SDR reaches out to a company that actually has to have a particular

set of circumstances in place to be viable, the SDR needs to do a fair amount of discovery before the prospect is

even introduced to the sales rep. This requires a higher level of intellectual agility than a simple appointment-setting

SDR, and hiring needs must be tailored accordingly.


Tactical

Prospecting Into Strategic Target Accounts Most companies have a “wish list” of accounts, representing either the largest potential dollar contract value, or the

best wins for impressing investors and other customers. Because of their high value, these accounts need to be

treated considerably more thoughtfully and deliberately than others in the category. Therefore, special prospecting

rules and procedures apply.

Before deploying these rules, it’s worth noting that only top SDRs should be asked to engage these accounts,

usually those who have at least six months with the company and a strong understanding of the category and

product offering. They should be hitting their number regularly, have great organizational skills, and strong verbal

and written communications.

Once these SDRs have been found and a target list identified, the following sample set of rules and procedures can

be used to govern the engagements of these accounts.


Tactical

Operational Procedures for Management of Accounts by SDRs at [Company]

Account Mapping

• SDRs (and researchers) will visit the company website, Linkedin page, and Facebook page to document all

staff members who would likely be relevant in the course of a sales cycle. These prospects will be populated

as “Contacts” within SFDC.

• Contacts will be populated with phone numbers and email addresses when available.

• Should the company be part of another organization, a “Parent/Child” mapping will be set up in SFDC,

illustrating that relationship.

• Company city, state, and address will be logged into SFDC on the Account page.

• As current products and processes are discovered, they will also be noted within the account.

• An SDR will own 300 to 500 accounts per quarter.

Social Media

• SDRs will follow all accounts in their territory on social media, including Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and

Google News.

• Every morning, SDRs will search their feeds for actions or events that might provide fuel for a conversation.

• If the prospect has a presence on LinkedIn, the SDR can “connect” with the prospect.

• SDRs can be active participants in “liking” or “sharing” or “retweeting” items as is appropriate.

• Prospects can be messaged directly via LinkedIn. This can also include reference requests to other prospects

with whom the SDR has had successful previous interactions.

Messaging

• All prospects relevant to a sales cycle will be called and emailed over the course of a 14-touch cadence, featuring

eight calls and six emails over 25-day windows.

• SDRs should seek to go “high and wide” into an account, i.e., reaching out to multiple levels of leadership in

various departments simultaneously.

• After a “meaningful interaction” takes place—i.e., when prospect has been reached and has indicated their

level of interest—the SDR will either set up a call with an AE or, if the prospect isn’t ready, set a task for future

follow-up. The SDR should start engaging another prospect to establish another path of entry.


Tactical

• Email cadences will be provided via deployed tool set, which can be customized as needed. These should feature a

mix of sales/prospecting emails with calls-to-action, along with content and assets made available via Marketing.

Customized emails with references to activities on social media should also be interjected (i.e., BASHO format).

• Calls will include voicemails, which will reference emails sent, along with items noticed via social media monitoring.

• Calls will be prioritized and timed based on how often and when emails are (or are not) being clicked on and

opened.

• Once all prospects have completed a cadence at a company, the account will enter a phase of bespoke,

opportunistic messaging featuring team selling (see below).

Team Selling

• The SDR and the AE may intermittently switch off on reaching out to a given account. Certain prospects

may display higher levels of responsiveness to a different “voice,” or style, which may lead to multiple lines of

activity.

• Senior company leaders may be called upon occasionally to send emails to prospects, thereby conveying a

sense of importance and mission to a given prospect.

• The customer-success team may be asked to query happy customers in close geographic proximity to a prospect

to determine whether they might be amenable to providing an introduction to a given prospect.

Account Turnover and Review

• Company leadership will engage each SDR for a territory review approximately once monthly, including a review

and discussion around at least 20 accounts, with a focus on messaging, responses, tactics, and brainstorming.

• Once quarterly, an SDR will be able to release up to 50 accounts and receive 50 new ones. These must first

be reviewed by company leadership, which needs to agree that the accounts have a low probability of turning

into qualified prospects within the next six months.

• Additional accounts may be added on as-needed, as older ones become qualified opportunities.


Tactical

Having a few alternative openings can work well. SDRs can be surprisingly creative in finding things that work, and

not every opening and talk track will work for every SDR. However, it’s important not to have too many variations;

otherwise the script becomes cluttered and hard to follow.

An objections section is essential. There are usually multiple good examples of how to overcome any given objection,

and so a few different rebuttals can be included.

SDRs often ask if they can say or do something a certain way as it relates to managing their scripts. Generally, the

SDR leader should be amenable to this. Ideally, she’ll ask the SDR to email her the desired changes, and then the

SDR can test it for a week. If there’s a net improvement, then the SDR can make a slightly different version of the

script, while keeping the original untouched.

The top of the script should contain some basic overriding reminders that should govern the way that SDRs, no

matter what they say, are always thinking about how they say it. Checking for duplicates should be number-one on

the list. Few companies, especially early-stage ones, have a means by which they can effectively police duplicates

coming into the CRM. The danger is that the SDR may well find themselves calling on active opportunities and

current customers, and so they need to be reminded constantly to check for duplicates.

Scripting for SDR Teams“Scripting” means different things to different people. To some, it conjures visions of 40-page call-center scripts

designed to cover everything from objection handling and rebuttals to credit card declines and warranty and

return policies. To others, it’s little more than a brief elevator pitch scribbled on a note pad, leaving the SDR to play

it by ear after delivering it.

A good SDR call script should be somewhere between the examples above. The most important part of the script

is the elevator pitch and the first few questions. If the call begins well, it has a far greater chance of success; the

SDR can even make mistakes toward the middle or end of the conversation and still have a successful call. If the

call starts out poorly, however—if it lacks a clear articulation of what the company does and a fast segue to the

questions—the call is pretty much doomed.

At the top of the script should be a few reminders as to basic cold-calling best practices. These generally vary

slightly by company and category, but they usually fall into a specific range of things to remember (see the sample

script, below).

The top of the script should contain some basic overriding reminders that should govern the way that SDRs, no matter what they say, are always thinking about how they say it.


Tactical

The single biggest mistake that inside sales reps make, especially SDRs, is speaking too fast. Intuitively, they feel

that speaking more quickly increases the likelihood of getting their pitch across. Indeed, the opposite is actually

the case. SDRs should speak as though English were the prospect’s second language. They’ll be far more likely to

lean in and listen.

Controlling the conversation means asking questions, not simply answering them. If the SDR is not constantly asking

questions, they’ve lost the cadence and trajectory of the discussion and will not be able to steer the prospect

toward agreeing to take another call.

As soon as a sales rep asks, “how are you doing today?” the prospect will know instantly that it’s a sales call. They’ll

also know that the SDR does not really care how they‘re doing, so the question is not only disingenuous, it’s also

a waste of time, and it works against the SDR’s goals. It’s best to simply caution the opening of the discussion by

saying something along the lines of, “we haven’t spoken before, but …”

Much of the time, the prospect that the SDR is reaching out to will be the wrong person. The key to making this

prospect worthwhile is by asking for a referral to the right party. This will eventually result in a portfolio of fol-

low-ups that results in a high success rate for the SDR.

When closing the prospect, the SDR can boost their odds of success by simply suggesting a couple of times to

schedule a demo or discovery call instead of asking if the prospect would be open to further discussion. It’s far less

uncomfortable for a prospect to agree to a specific time to talk again than to overtly agree to another conversation.

This is known as “closing to the calendar.”

On the following page is a basic framework of what an SDR call script might look like.


Tactical

[Company] SDR Call Script

Remember:

• Always check for duplicates in the CRM.

• Speak slowly.

• Always end a sentence with a follow-up question. Don’t leave dead air.

• Do not say, “how are you today?” (or similar).

• Ask for references (internal or external).

• Close to the calendar.

Talk trackHi, [Name] . . .

[Introduction] We haven’t spoken before, but I’m with [company name]. Do you handle [function] for

[company name]?

[If yes]: Great. How much do you know about [company] and what we do here? OR, Am I catching you at a bad time?

[If no]: That’s OK, I understand. Do you mind if I ask who currently handles that? [get referral and complete call]

[Elevator pitch if either yes/no] [20 to 30-second elevator pitch—quickly segue to qualification question]

[Qualification question] [first qualification question 1]?

[If asked why you’re asking] [second elevator pitch/value proposition] [reset question].

[Hot transfer–if possible] I’d love to get you some more specific information about [company]. Are you in front

of a computer? [if yes] If it’s OK with you, I’d like to transfer you to someone who specializes in [company application/

value proposition]. Is now a good time, or would this afternoon work better?

I did have a few questions. [walk through qualification questions below]

[Calendar close if hot transfer is not possible]. May I ask how your calendar is shaping up on [name of days]?

What I’d like to do is set up a time for you to speak with one of our team members when you're in front of a computer,

who can walk you through our application and answer any questions that you may have. May I ask if either [name

2 times/days] could work on your end, for 20 minutes or so?

[Qualification questions after calendaring] I have 3–4 questions that will help me get you to the right person.

[Qualification question 1]



[Takeaway after scheduling if not a hot transfer] I know you’re busy; can you confirm as of right now, that [time/

date] looks like it’s going to work for you?


Tactical

[Gatekeeper drilldown] Thank you, [elevator pitch/value proposition]. How do you guys normally evaluate these

types of partnerships? Is that part of your role, or is there anyone else you can put me in touch with at [company

name] that normally takes a look at these things?

[Pro-active rescheduling VM after no-show] Hey there [Name]. I hope all is well. This is [Name] from [company].

Sorry that we missed you on [day]. We were hoping to get rescheduled so we could continue the conversation. I’m

going to go ahead and send along a calendar invite for [date/time]. If that doesn’t work, just let us know, and feel

free to suggest another time; we’ll make it work on our end. Thanks very much!

[Post “just send me an email” close] You got it. I’m happy to send you an email. Can I have your best email

address? [after getting address]: [Qualification questions 1 & 2] [after answers] You’re actually a really good

candidate for what we do. [Reiterate value proposition]. Is there any way we can get on your calendar for 10

minutes on [specific time/date]? The reason I ask is that it’s just a much more effective way to understand our

lead programs than reading our marketing materials.

Objections:[Objection 1] rebuttal [calendar close]

[Objection 2] rebuttal [calendar close]





Tactical

Second, SDRs by nature run harder as they near the end of their attainment period. If the interval is monthly and

they’re behind, they’ll work harder to make up ground in the second half of the month. If it’s quarterly, however,

they’ll wait until the latter part of the third month. Therefore, the net amount of high-speed activity the company gets

from the SDR team will be greater if the team is measured at shorter-term increments, i.e., monthly versus quarterly.

Once the team has committed to a monthly schedule, forecasting can begin. Forecasting for SDR teams isn’t terribly

complex, but there are some simple numbers and metrics that need to be known.

The first number is the percentage of “discovery calls” set for the AE team that convert to qualified opportunities.

The industry standard is between 40% and 60% conversions. It varies by rep, category, and company, but 50% is

a useful guideline. If it’s much lower than that, then the team might be too liberal in what it’s sending the AEs, or

the “rules of engagement” (or interpretation thereof) may be too stringent. If it’s a lot higher than 50%, then the

AE’s may be too generous in what they’re converting to qualified opportunities, or the SDRs may not be taking

enough risks.

Another number that needs to be known is the rate at which discovery calls are set. Once the SDR leader has some

data on this, it’s a known quantity. This number is generally between 10 and 20 per month, with the number going

up or down depending on inbound volume and the ACV. Generally, the higher the price point, the lower the number.

Forecasting for SDR TeamsForecasting is an essential task for sales managers of every stripe, including SDR leaders. If the pipeline is going

to appear to be light, or if the team is going to come up short in terms of opportunities for the revenue-generating

sales reps, it’s vitally important for the entire company to know. It can even rise to a board-level event, i.e., the

executive team might need to let investors and board members know that there’s going to be a significant revenue

shortfall in the near future.

SDR teams should be forecasted and quota’d every month. Some organizations opt for a quarterly schedule, but this

is a mistake for two reasons. First, SDRs should not require more than a couple of attainment periods to determine

whether they’re going to perform well. If the attainment periods are quarterly, it will take at least three-to-six

months before assessments can be made. Monthly periods allow for monthly assessments, which is appropriate

for this highly transactional role.

Some organizations opt for a quarterly schedule, but this is a mistake for two reasons. First, SDRs should not require more than a couple of attainment periods to determine whether they’re going to perform well.


Tactical

The final number that comes into play is marketing activity. There’s a lot of disparity here; if the marketing team

is running high-grade collateral campaigns or has a trade show coming up, it can impact brand-name recognition

and volume of inbound leads. The SDR leader has to have a handle on this type of activity and its impact.

Once all of these nuances are understood, at the middle of the month (say the 15th, as a rule of thumb), the SDR

leader should have a handle on how they will finish and should be able to forecast the finish within 5–10% certainty.

Of course, this can be impacted by reps being out, holidays, and other variables.

The value of forecasting accurately where the team will finish is two-fold:

1. It enables the SDR leader to gain credibility with the rest of sales leadership by demonstrating an understanding

of his or her area of the business, thereby engendering trust, and

2. It enables them to take action. There’s no shortage of options here, and spiffs, contests, extra training, etc.

can all act as levers to increase production.


Tactical

Closed-Lost Opportunities Sales teams will lose the majority of sales cycles in the course of their work. There are many reasons why prospect

won’t buy, but for the most part, the main culprit is the prospect going silent due to competing priorities. There are

certainly other reasons, including too-high price, more attractive competitive products, or they might choose to

build a solution in-house.

No matter what the reason, the company needs to go back to these prospects. This is an extremely high priority

when the size of the total addressable market is limited, as the SDRs will eventually run through the limited supply

of new prospects.

Perhaps the best reason to go after closed-lost opportunities is that, once revitalized or reengaged, they represent

the highest win rates and shortest sales cycles (with the exception of inbound “contact us” or “demo request”

forms). These prospects are already familiar with the product and the company and have already demonstrated

their need and interest. Prospects are closed-lost simply as a result of poor execution by the sales rep; hence, the

prospect may be highly receptive to follow-up contact.

The key to making closed-lost opportunities work is finding new contacts. The highly transitory nature of today’s

workforce means that there’s a reasonable chance that the original point-of-contact is no longer at the company.

Therefore, new contacts need to be found. Even if the original contact is no longer at the company, they’re still

likely to have the same problem they did during the original sales cycle.

Closed-lost opportunities should always be viewed as “accounts” rather than “leads,” meaning that the SDR should

be able to see all the contacts, activity, and history on one screen. This spares the SDR from having to research

each individual with whom interactions may have taken place.

Knowing the history of a closed-lost opportunity is key. Sales reps are notorious for leaving bad notes, or even no

notes at all, in the CRM. Therefore, it’s up to the SDR to play detective, which often means tracking down colleagues

with knowledge of the opportunity in order to understand its history.

Once the opportunity is properly presented in the CRM, the history is known, and the contacts have been confirmed

or updated, the SDR is ready to pursue it. At this point, it’s vitally important for the SDR to mention the history of

the relationship. It’s possible that the prospect either forgot about the sales cycle, or didn’t know about it in the

first place, and so the SDR needs to make clear and frequent reference to previous interactions during phone and

email contacts.

If possible, the SDRs who focus on closed-lost opportunities should do so exclusively. These opportunities are

more complex than other types of leads, and they need to be pursued by someone who can focus effectively on

the details. If this type of prospect is executed on correctly, the production will likely be greater than from almost

any other yield source.


Building Productive Working Relationships

“He that overvalues himself will undervalue others, and he that undervalues others will oppress them.” —Dr. Johnson

As a general rule, the SDR leader needs to make an effort to be as close to marketing and sales operations as is

possible. These relationships are not always good, of course, but they need to be as good as you can make them.

The SDR team should be the customer of marketing and sales ops, and it’s important to be a responsive, commu-

nicative, and flexible customer.

There’s an unfortunate tendency among SDR teams to denigrate their marketing and sales operations peers. This

creates a toxic mentality whereby, in the minds of the SDR team, marketing and sales ops can do nothing right.

This attitude poisons those vital relationships, making cooperation and improvement impossible.

Avoiding the problem—or solving it if it has already infected your operation—requires that representatives from

marketing and sales ops and SDR team members attend each other’s meetings, coordinate reports to senior

management to avoid sabotaging each other, and provide marketing and sales ops leaders with direct access to

the SDRs themselves, whose feedback is often the least filtered and therefore most trusted.

BOTTOM LINE: Include all stakeholders in team meetings, and try to stay positive regarding other teams.

Strategic


Strategic

“Those who think they have no need of others become unreasonable.” —Vauvenargues

For an SDR team to succeed, all other parts of the organization—product, marketing, sales ops, etc.—need to function

reasonably well. Deficiencies in any of these components will work against the SDR team’s efforts.

The SDR leader needs the team to function optimally despite the other teams’ setbacks. Therefore, the SDR team

needs to be impervious to losses of major customers, downtime and bugs in the company’s flagship application,

confusion about backend changes to the CRM, and so on. The SDR leader should not sugarcoat these issues, but

the team shouldn’t be distracted from their work with concerns about whether the other groups are running on all

cylinders.

BOTTOM LINE: Don’t ignore bad things that are happening, but no matter what, keep your head down and

do your job.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“A man of correct insight among those who are duped and deluded resembles one whose watch is right while all the clocks in the town give the wrong time. He alone knows the correct time, but of what use is this to him? The whole world is guided by the clocks that show the wrong time.” —Schopenhauer

There will be times when the rest of the ecosystem in which the SDR leader operates is wrong about a certain issue.

The SDR leader may be the only one who sees this given their close proximity to the reality “on the ground.” In such

cases, the SDR leader has two options:

1. Try to turn the tide, using carefully assembled and presented empirical data to back up their position.

2. Yield to “conventional wisdom” to determine whether it is in fact correct.

If the second option is chosen, the SDR leader has to go through with the requests being made in good faith so as

not to appear to be subverting the concepts being deployed. The SDR should also develop a backup plan to repair

the damage in case it turns out that the plan actually was ineffective or, worse, harmful.

BOTTOM LINE: If everyone else thinks you’re wrong, you may or may not be wrong, but you’ll probably

have to give something else a shot.


Strategic

“There exists scarcely a man so accomplished or so necessary to those around him, that he does not have some failing which will diminish their regret at this loss.” — La Bruyere

When kids get upset or frustrated, they sometimes fantasize about running away from home. The adult version of

this fantasy is dreaming about quitting your job. SDR leaders often imagine the dire straits the company would be

in without them. In reality, no one is irreplaceable, and it's good to keep in mind that superiors may very likely be

relieved to be rid of an employee who was otherwise “holding them hostage” via their control of a function so vital

to the company’s success.

A more productive way to deal with frustration is to work your way out of your job, i.e., do it so well and have such

good processes, people, and procedures in place that the machine can run without you. At this point you’ll be

sought after elsewhere to do it again, with higher levels of responsibility and compensation.

BOTTOM LINE: No one, no matter how good they are, is irreplaceable.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“The shortest and best way to make your fortune is to let people see clearly that it is their interest to promote yours.” —La Bruyere

Competition for resources exists not only between companies, but also between departments. Every department

has a budget, reflecting, among other things, where senior management feels they’ll get the most bang for their

buck. Part of the SDR leader’s job is to make sure their SDRs’ work is being monetized, and that this monetization

is clear to the rest of the company. If this is done right, the company will see the SDR team as a cash cow that it

can’t invest money in fast enough.

The SDR team’s long-term goal should be creating revenue rather than tactical goals such as creating opportunities.

The way to make this happen is to adjust the goals to what the AE team needs related to the size, volume, and

quality of opportunities, and then requesting and deploying the resources needed to make it happen. If senior

management sees a repeatable, scalable process, the SDR leader will be showered with everything they need, and

their career will advance accordingly.

BOTTOM LINE: Focus on what’s best for the company and others will notice and invest more in you.


Strategic

“Sincere people are executioners.”—Frederic Dard

Frequently killing off ideas, projects, and processes that don’t work—and getting rid of ineffective people—are hallmarks

of a well-run organization. While continuity is important within teams and companies, giving up the things that

negatively impact productivity and progress is key to every company’s success. This is true for both the SDR team

and the groups that surround it. Teams supporting the SDR team that can’t or won’t make adjustments out of

sentiment or laziness are organizational cancer and should be regarded as enemies of the shareholders.

BOTTOM LINE: Try new things, but don’t hesitate to dump the ones that aren’t working.

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“For countless people there is only one remedy: the catastrophe.” — —Christian Morgenstern

Fiascoes and disasters can be valuable. They teach people about who’s right and who’s wrong. Sometimes,

instead of trying to overstep boundaries and intervene where it’s close to impossible politically, the SDR leader

needs to stop playing the martyr and simply “let it burn.” This means AEs not hitting their numbers, the company

not hitting its revenue goals, and SDRs not generating enough leads.

If the problems stem from the things the SDR leader knows are broken but can’t fix because people won’t listen,

they need to express their opinion and concerns strongly and clearly rather than try to fight the tide at the expense

of their credibility and their job—then let events take their course.

The result—ultimately, damage to the company’s valuation—is not an end, but rather a beginning, where the SDR

leader can pick up where they left off. It’s important to refrain from saying “I told you so” in such cases, but rather

to recap what they believe the relevant issues were, then try to fix them.

BOTTOM LINE: When things are going badly, use it as an opportunity to attack big problems that would

be untouchable otherwise.


Strategic

“If one takes care of the means, the end will take care of itself.” —Mohandas Ghandi

SDR leaders have to fight for resources constantly, and with good reason. SDR teams are expensive, and getting

the tools and materials they need to do their jobs is one of the SDR leader’s top priorities. Make sure every request

is data driven. Numbers and a path to success should surround all requests and suggestions, and these requests

should be in writing, followed by 1) a meeting to walk through the numbers and the desired outcome, and 2) a

written follow-up on progress.

Teams appreciate it when they know that their manager is going to bat for them. Hence, the team should be given

as much information as possible regarding what the SDR leader asked for and what the outcome was.

BOTTOM LINE: Make your case for additional resources based on numbers, and be transparent about how

those resources will be used.

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“It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.” —Harry Truman

Sometimes things go well—projects work the way they’re supposed to, revenues go up, etc.—and it’s important in

these situations that the SDR leader give kudos to those who helped make the effort succeed. Successes are usually

documented and celebrated, in the form of a weekly report or a sales team meeting, for example. Recognizing

those who deserve it gives the SDR leader tremendous credibility, and it makes those who supported those efforts

far more likely to do so again in the future.

BOTTOM LINE: When you give credit to those who help you win, you’ll win more often.


Strategic

“If you really want to escape the things that harass you, what you're needing is not to be in a different place but to be a different person.”—Seneca

Things can be difficult for SDR leaders, but the problems they face are almost universal; only the degree varies.

Eventually, SDR leaders need to depersonalize the issues that bother them most, then ask themselves if these

same problems can be resolved—or at least addressed—using the tools they have at their disposal.

If the SDR leader can’t depersonalize the issues and tackle them objectively and dispassionately, it’s delusional to

think that the same challenges won’t dog them at another company, and they should consider getting out of the

SDR leadership business. If they can distance themselves from the things that bother them most, usually there’s

some sort of solution available; if not (and only then), it makes sense to look for another company where they can

support revenue goals.

BOTTOM LINE: Take a hard look at the problems you face and ask yourself if you’re really the problem.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“The greatest proof of superiority is to bear with impertinences.” —William Hazlitt

SDR leaders often receive rude emails and messages from every quarter of the company, asking, demanding, and

implying a variety of things. Worse, these messages often come randomly and unpredictably.

It’s best for the SDR leader to carry out their day-to-day work without letting themselves be distracted by these

interruptions. One of the most effective ways to do so is by setting up special folders for the most critical messages

and frequent offenders, then set aside time to read them, without responding in an overly reactive way. This makes

it easier to control your emotional response and the dynamics of the conversation.

BOTTOM LINE: Effective managers work around the shortcomings of their team members and their colleagues.


Strategic

“Where thou art obliged to speak, be sure to speak the truth. For equivocation is half way to lying; as lying, the whole way to hell.”—William Penn

The SDR leader must report to multiple parties within the company, via emails, meetings, and dashboards. The

SDR leader should strive to be consistent and transparent with all parties about what they know and see. If there’s

little good news and reasons for concern, these concerns should be messaged.

Credit should be given where credit is due, and silos and personnel within the company that are hindering progress

should be cited in an honest-yet-non-combative way. Communicating the same data to multiple parties creates an

atmosphere of trust and increases the probability that the SDR leader will succeed in winning the resources their

team needs to do their job.

BOTTOM LINE: In an era of easily accessible data, lies are hard to get away with.

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“They who are all things to their neighbors cease to be anything to themselves.” —Douglas Norman

The desire to please is common, and in a first-time managerial role—which is often the case for an SDR leader—this

desire can be especially acute. Ultimately, the SDR leader can only serve one cause, i.e., the company’s revenue

goals. This means consistently disappointing others by not diverting resources to their ends. If the SDR leader

hasn’t earned the displeasure of at least one or two other groups or people in the company, then they’re probably

not doing their job.

BOTTOM LINE: You can’t keep everyone happy, so don’t try.


Strategic

“One good way to extend one's lifespan is to not waste time.”—Lu Xun

Managing time effectively is one of the most important tasks for the SDR leader. Whenever possible, meetings

should begin and end on time, and other team members should be expected to adapt. The demands on an SDR

leader’s time are unlimited; knowing how to budget for those demands allows the leader to expand their purview

into the wide variety of issues facing their team. The SDR leader who says they’re overwhelmed and that there

aren’t enough hours in the day to deal with everything is a poor time manager, plain and simple.

BOTTOM LINE: Managing your time effectively, consistently, is key to maximizing productivity.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“One stops being a child when one realizes that telling one's troubles does not make it any better.” —Cesare Pevese

Nobody wants to hear the SDR team’s or leader’s sob stories. It might trigger the occasional sympathetic or

conciliatory response, but more often it just makes the team and the SDR leader look weak and ineffective. Others in

the company will whisper that the team “can’t handle the heat” or otherwise meet the challenges presented to them.

What’s much more compelling is a team that’s well versed on what they’re doing to get the job done and are

focused laser-like on that line of conversation when asked how things are going. Being able to communicate what

they’re doing to fix a problem is a skill at which the entire team should be well-practiced, along with staying on

message, especially when times get tough.

BOTTOM LINE: Whining only makes you look weak; talk about solutions, not problems.


Strategic

“Courage consists not in blindly overlooking danger, but in seeing it and conquering it.”—Jean Paul Richter

When presented with problems, SDR leaders and teams often react by simply attempting to bulldoze through

them. It’s a rational instinct, as the whole premise of sales development is based on the notion that the harder you

work, the more likely you are to succeed.

This instinct calls for caution. For example, the formula for many SDR teams when numbers are down is initiating

more activities to increase production. What often makes more sense is to examine the efficacy of the pipeline,

from lead sources and win rates to the territories they support and production from those territories.

Ultimately, the solution may lie in a smaller SDR team and a cleaner data set supported by a research team.

Having the SDR team focus on one particularly rich territory or vertical—and having the revenue producing sales

team reallocate their resources accordingly—can also be a viable response. Whatever solution is chosen, it should

always follow thoughtful analysis instead of simply pushing harder.

BOTTOM LINE: There are usually many solutions to a problem; don’t just choose the most obvious one.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“Obstinacy is the cheapest substitute for character.” —Christian Frieedrich Hebbel

Some people like to say “no” because it makes them appear wise, profound, or somehow discerning in judgment.

Sometimes these people are on SDR teams, or they might be in other areas of the company. While it's true that

consensus can rarely be reached on every issue, and it's almost never really needed, it can also be destructive to

have someone around who insists that every initiative is a bad idea, and then says “I told you so” when things don’t

work out.

When dealing with these “no-sayers,” it's good practice to ask them to submit their own ideas when they don’t

like other people’s ideas. If they refuse, then they should be excluded from future decision making processes as

they’ve demonstrated that they don’t have the ability to be open to potentially good ideas.

BOTTOM LINE: Don’t listen to people who always shoot down your ideas if they can’t come up with any of

their own.


Strategic

“The most important of all people is the one who abandons the certitude he has for an opinion people have.”—Abu al-Fadl ibn Ata'Allah al-Iskandari

Sometimes SDR leaders see things that no one else can see. They have expertise on the tools, data, people, and

processes that are used to uncover new opportunities, and they often have to make decisions that the rest of the

organization may not understand.

Over time, the SDR leader should develop a small “council” of colleagues whose judgment has proved sound.

When making difficult decisions, she should seek their advice individually, and if they all come down on the same

side of an issue—against the SDR leader’s position—it may be a good idea to listen to them and change course.

Having people whose judgment you trust can spare the SDR team from making costly mistakes.

BOTTOM LINE: Changing your mind about an issue you started out on the wrong side of is a valuable skill.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“A man achieves perfection by contenting himself with his own work.” —Gita Bhagavad

The SDR team can’t be responsible for the success of areas of the business outside their own, beyond the AE team

they’re charged with supporting. Although the team does need other groups’ help, it has to be satisfied with its

own success, as it’s more than likely that at least one other team will fail in some way.

When other teams are struggling, there are often opportunities for the SDR leader to help. However, it’s important

that whatever help is offered not hinder opportunity production. The best areas for offering help is where there are

natural synergies. For the sales ops team, this could include populating data in the CRM, and for the marketing

team it might be helping improve attendance at various events.

BOTTOM LINE: Help other teams, but not at the expense of your own.


Strategic

“The sage was asked 'How dost thou hide a secret?’ He replied ‘I make my heart its grave.’”—Solomon Ben Judah Ibn Gabirol

SDR leaders hear many things in confidence, including hiring plans, terminations, company goals, funding agendas,

and exit strategies. No one in the company can have as much short-term impact as an SDR leader. They can generate

large amounts of revenue in small amounts of time by changing certain variables; therefore, they’re privy to many

things that are sensitive in hopes that they’ll be able to impact an event or challenge.

The best way to ensure continued trust is to keep secrets except under extraordinary circumstances. There may

be times when the SDR leader is tempted, but if trust is betrayed, the source of that trust won’t make the same

mistake again if they hear about it, which they often will.

BOTTOM LINE: Keep your mouth shut about confidential matters.

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“Only when a man will not do some things is he capable of doing great things.” —Mencius

Companies have limited resources, but there’s a tendency to assume that the SDR team has infinite bandwidth

and can be called upon to complete any task. Often, these chores have nothing to do with uncovering new oppor-

tunities, and are simply data-cleanup projects, marketing initiatives that are focused more on branding than lead

generation, and errands that the AEs on the sales team should be doing for themselves.

The SDR leader must guard his team’s time aggressively. The default answer, when asked if his team can do something

outside of their core function should be “no.” He should guard against those who view his team as an ad hoc labor

pool and point out that the team is constantly working against the clock to hit their numbers so the company can

survive and prosper.

When asked if they can undertake some non-essential task, the SDR leader should explain how they are doing

against their quota and that they’ll need all their time to reach it.

BOTTOM LINE: Pick your battles carefully.


Strategic

“Indispensable men are decidedly unbearable.” —Maria Luisa Spaziani

The SDR leader’s goal should be to make sure he’s not indispensable. He should have a set of people, processes,

and procedures in place that ensures continuity if he were to get hit by a bus tomorrow.

If the SDR leader fails to create a process whereby the team can carry on without him, he’s doing a disservice

to himself and the company. The SDR function is necessary to the company’s survival, and holding that survival

hostage so the company requires his presence to flourish is selfish and thoughtless.

BOTTOM LINE: Even if you’re a rock star, nobody will like you if you act like a prima donna.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“We read the world wrong and say it deceives us.” —Rabindranath Tagore

Not every application has its place. A company develops a product on the basis of a hypothesis: that they’re

creating something to solve a problem. Often, this hypothesis is wrong, and the result is that those the SDR team

is reaching out to show limited, if any, interest in taking demos or discovery calls with the sales team. This situation

is usually accompanied by low amounts of inbound interest.

The SDR leader needs to quantify meticulously why prospects don’t respond to their outreach. It could be what

they’re saying or how they’re saying it. It may simply be that prospects don’t regard the application as having any

potential benefit to them.

The product and marketing teams will hope that the issue is with the messenger and not the message. This way,

they won’t have to undergo the hard changes and retooling that’s often necessary to fix the baseline issues. To be

able to speak honestly and authoritatively, the SDR leader needs to make sure the SDRs are dispositioning calls in

the CRM accurately after they take place. Also, calls and emails should be audited.

The outcome of this exercise, which should encompass a wide range of prospect-facing interactions over some

weeks, should be the SDR leader’s ability to sit down with the rest of senior management and point to why prospects

aren’t responding, based not on assumptions or hypotheses, but rather on the results of the data collection and

analysis.

The results may point to the SDRs needing more sales training; it may point to the product's position in the marketplace;

or it may indicate that the company needs to pivot entirely. Whatever the outcome, the SDR leader needs to go

through this exercise without prejudice or malice and see it, above all, as a business intelligence exercise that will

help the company as a whole get much better.

BOTTOM LINE: The SDR team can only do so much; recognize when the world just doesn’t need the product.


Strategic

“Waste no time with revolutions that do not remove the cause of your complaints but that simply change the faces of those in charge.” —Francesco Guicciardini

While it’s important that SDR leaders not blame others for the problems their teams face, there are cases where a

CEO or other senior manager is such a severe impediment to progress that it subverts the efforts of the SDR team.

The SDR leader may have taken pains to work around the person in question to no avail.

At this stage, one of two things needs to happen. The person in question has to be replaced, or the SDR leader

needs to find a new job. A commitment and an employment contract is not a suicide pact. The SDR leader should

have sense of loyalty to the company that signs his paycheck, but not to the point where it threatens their ability to

succeed. If the company can’t get out of its own way, then the SDR leader should leave.

BOTTOM LINE: Do everything you can to support the company’s success, but only if the company wants

to succeed.

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“There is no rule or prescription for saving yourself from a bestial and cruel tyrant, except the one that applies for the plague. Run as far and as fast as you can.”—Francesco Guicciardini

It’s hard to tell what the SDR leader’s manager is going to be like until the job begins. If the manager makes the

SDR leader crazy, the leader should do everything possible to fix the situation, including explaining why is the

manager is making her crazy. If the manager is simply awful and won’t even take feedback, the SDR leader should

consider resigning, and quickly.

Being an SDR leader is a difficult job to begin with, and working under a third-rate manager can make it nearly

impossible. The job market for high-grade SDR leaders is rich, and so investing time in a poor work experience

makes no sense.

BOTTOM LINE: If you have talent and your manager is terrible, leave.


Strategic

“Nature abhors a vacuum.” —Baruch de Spinoza

CEOs and executive staff team members are generally inclined to leave their teams alone except when they smell a

fire. A lack of transparency into the team’s performance and general trajectory is an invitation to intervene.

Lack of understanding in terms of how the team functions and performs will result in a perception, however unfair,

that the team needs help. In addition to being incredibly annoying, this can have the added effect of having a new

personality in the mix, and this new “chef” will likely add all sorts of ingredients that aren’t best practices for SDR

teams and will probably act to the SDR team’s detriment.

The SDR leader needs to dispel the myth by maintaining clear, candid, frequent communication to the executive

staff on the most major matters concerning the SDR team. This will dispel any rumors or imagined crises that

would otherwise inspire senior leadership from attempting to “rescue” the SDR team.

BOTTOM LINE: Let people know you’re doing everything you can to get the job done, or they’ll try to do it

themselves.


Strategic

Training

“Everything has been said before, but since nobody listens we have to keep going back and beginning all over again.” —Andre Gide

Training SDR teams is an iterative process. For old and new team members alike, recorded calls are useful coaching

opportunities, for example. If training is done individually, the SDR leader should follow up on each session with an

email, outlining the points discussed so the rep has them readily available.

If calls are played for the entire team, it can be helpful to let the team members whose calls are going to be played

know in advance so they’re not caught off guard. It’s also advisable to identify the good points of the calls as well

as areas for improvement.

Listening to recordings of their calls can be painful for reps, but it’s a productive training method. This same process

can be applied to prospecting emails. The SDR leader should audit email communications via the CRM and share

examples of both highly effective emails and those that could be improved.

BOTTOM LINE: Effective training can be an uncomfortable and repetitive process, but it’s also the most

productive.

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“Becoming accustomed to certain sounds has a profound effect on character; soon one acquires the words and phrases and eventually also the ideas that go with these sounds.” —Nietzsche

Perhaps the single most important aspect of communication for an SDR to keep in mind is that “it’s not what you

say, but how you say it.” For example, speaking too fast is the single greatest mistake that many SDRs make. Voice

inflection and tone are also key to SDRs’ perceived credibility, and, by extension, that of the company they represent.

Whenever possible, SDRs should be trained to speak to prospects as though English were the prospect’s second

language, emphasizing the importance of speaking clearly and slowing down. SDR leaders should always phone

screen SDR candidates before inviting them in for onsite interviews to ensure that they have this skill. While it’s

true that effective verbal skills can be learned, it’s always better when the prospective SDR has good phone skills

to begin with, thereby making the hill they need to climb that much less steep.

BOTTOM LINE: SDRs are selling themselves as much as they’re selling the company.


Strategic

“He that is much flattered soon learns to flatter himself; we are commonly taught our duty by fear or shame, and how can they act upon a man who hears nothing but his own praises?” —Dr. Johnson

One of the most challenging aspects of SDR team development is training elite performers. SDR leaders often

assume that they can just let these highly productive team members “do their thing,” without much guidance and

feedback. This is a mistake. However strongly these individuals may perform, there are always higher levels of

performance they can achieve. Moreover, when these high-performing SDRs move on to new roles, they’ll need

education and training, and it can be hard for them to get back into the habit if they haven’t had to do it for very long.

Generally, no matter how good an SDR is, there’s a good chance that they could improve their performance at

some aspect of the job. Worse, if they’re not corrected, other team members could take up their bad habits as best

practices, assuming that if the high performer is doing it, it must be good.

BOTTOM LINE: No matter how good an SDR is, there’s always room for improvement.

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“When people are free to do as they please, they usually imitate each other.” —Eric Hoffer

The worst-case scenario when SDR teams don’t get regular training is that they start imitating each other and

passing along what they interpret as best practices, which in reality are often bad practices. Examples include

poorly written prospecting emails, scripts that contain erroneous information about the company’s products and

competitors, and generally ineffective—if not outright detrimental—speech that the team picks up by listening to

each other talk on the phone.

At a minimum, when the SDR leader sees these mistakes being made, they need to speak up, not only explaining

why a given practice is ineffective, but also suggesting alternatives and asking the team to try them, at least for

comparison's sake.

BOTTOM LINE: Manage the SDR team closely because they’re not capable of managing themselves.


Strategic

“We never praise except for profit.” —Francois Duc De La Rochefoucauld

SDRs know they’re working in service of the company’s revenue goals, and it's condescending to them to pretend

that their efforts are geared toward anything else. However, it's important to remind them that their hard work and

efforts, even if things don’t go the way the company would like, are still aligned with their own best interests.

One of the most effective exercises that an SDR leader can undertake is giving the team as much exposure to other

companies and their teams and systems as possible. On the one hand, this exposure gives them visibility into best

practices, how their peers are going about doing the same job they do, and whether the grass really is greener on

the other side. On the other hand, the leader demonstrates that they’re not trying to quarantine the SDRs from

growing as individuals and professionals, and this increases the SDR leader’s esteem in the team’s eyes.

BOTTOM LINE: SDRs do a very compartmentalized job, but don’t let them feel too isolated.

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“Ah, it's like that: We learn from our mistakes so that we don't lose the courage to make new ones.”—Koos Van Zomeren

As part of the SDR training process, it’s essential that they take risks, and it’s OK if they fail as long as they learn

from their mistakes. Deviating from a process regularly is not ideal, but trying new things occasionally is fine as

long as the results are measured, quantified, and shared. Then, if something doesn’t work, the reps will know not

to repeat the mistake.

The SDR leader should avoid having SDRs do things that aren’t working and doing them without the SDR leader’s

knowledge. The process that everyone uses should be transparent, including both the things that are working and

those that aren’t.

BOTTOM LINE: Mistakes are OK; let them try new things, but steer the ship back on track quickly.


Strategic

“Enthusiasm is always right, even in the wrong place.”—Hermann Bahr

When speaking with prospects, always remember, it’s not so much what the SDRs say as how they say it. The old

sales adage—you’re not selling a product, you’re selling yourself—definitely applies here. Speaking with confidence,

clarity, and an even cadence is essential. SDRs should speak with the prospect as though English were the prospect’s

second language, e.g., speaking slowly and not overcomplicating the message. Prospects will listen if the SDR

slows down, while an overly rapid delivery can easily lose them.

BOTTOM LINE: Energy and heart are gold.

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“Activity is the only road to knowledge.” —George Bernard Shaw

There are many methods for training sales people and SDRs, including playbooks, classroom-style whiteboard

training, role playing, and processes created and refined by various industry gurus. Nothing, however, beats putting

SDRs on the phone with prospects and letting them learn by doing—and failing.

Within their first week on the job, SDRs should be emailing prospects and making cold calls. The sooner they start

engaging prospects, the faster they’ll learn. SDRs should be given low-grade, low-risk leads to start with, and sit

within sight and earshot of the manager so their mistakes can be observed and corrected. Every mistake should be

documented, reviewed, and discussed.

BOTTOM LINE: SDRs learn by doing, not by watching.


Strategic

“Nothing is so useful to the beginner as insults. The beginner who bears insults is like a tree that is watered every day.”—Christian Fathers

For new SDRs, few things are as beneficial as feedback around every aspect of their performance. Feedback

should cover everything from prospecting skills and CRM management to office decorum and appropriate peer

interaction.

The danger of not correcting new SDRs early and often is that as they progress in the job they become less receptive

to feedback and criticism. Therefore, they need to hear that there’s room for improvement right from the start.

Bad habits are much easier to break before they’ve become deeply ingrained. Once an SDR gets into the rhythm of

the work, having done it dozens of times per day, it becomes a much more difficult fix and takes a great deal more

energy to turn around.

BOTTOM LINE: Keep your team humble and honest.

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“To lead an uninstructed people to war is to throw them away.”—Confucius

SDR leaders often develop well-thought-out onboarding and training programs. They can get their SDRs up to

speed and prospecting within days, which is ideal. Over time, however, skills deteriorate, and the general efficiency

of the SDR declines unless they constantly develop new improvements and efficiencies in their process.

If the SDR leader takes a “set-it-and-forget-it” attitude toward training, the team will likely fail. Their skills will atrophy,

and they will become bored. They won’t be up to speed with the latest techniques and products on the market, and

the team’s overall productivity will decline.

A regular training schedule is ideal. This can take many forms—anything from 15 minutes per day to two 30-minute

sessions per week makes sense. The training should be highly practical, including call reviews, new tools to test,

role plays, process discussions, and occasional guest speakers from other parts of the company.

Whiteboard training, while often a favorite of SDR leaders, is virtually useless aside from the ego boost to the SDR

leader. Reps seldom apply what is “taught,” and the medium is too far removed from reality for the reps to benefit

from it.

BOTTOM LINE: Not training the team hard is stealing from them.


Strategic

“Be less critical more often.” —Brian Eno

SDRs have a surprising capacity for self-criticism. When training them, it’s productive to ask what they think they

did well and what they could have done better before making suggestions. Usually, they’ll identify about half of

what the SDR leader would have noted. Once the SDR has criticized their own performance, the SDR leader can

confirm the SDR’s observations instead of calling them out, which they might resist, if only because they didn’t say

it first.

If the SDR leader limits the number of criticisms they make, reserving their comments for the most pressing

issues, they’ll spend less time on training, and the issues identified are more likely to be corrected. It’s worthwhile

to go into a training session with a list of takeaways, but then try to get the SDR to identify as many items as

possible on their own. The SDR leader can then reserve their persuasive coaching skills for the things the SDR

doesn’t immediately grasp.

BOTTOM LINE: Be judicious with criticism; don’t go overboard.

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“As good sight means seeing what is very small, so strength means holding on to what is weak.”—Lao Tzu

Good SDR leaders terminate SDRs who perform poorly; great SDR leaders turn some of those poor-performing

SDRs around, through intensive call coaching and training. It won’t work for all SDRs, but helping a coachable SDR

is far more economical than terminating them and finding a new one. The downtime and recruiting costs alone

make saving them much more attractive financially.

Call coaching for an SDR is a time-intensive process. It usually requires three-to-four sessions, reviewing three-to-five

calls per session. The SDR leader should prepare for the session by reviewing the calls ahead of time and taking

notes on each one. This can take four-to-six hours total. After the first session, if the SDR leader sees no improve-

ment, they might question whether it’s worth continuing. However, if things improve, even a little bit, then the

process should continue.

BOTTOM LINE: Firing people is a crutch, albeit a necessary one; it’s better to help them improve if you can.


Strategic

“Immature poets imitate; mature poets steal.” —T.S. Elliot

There’s a tendency for SDRs to resist adopting verbiage that’s been created by someone else. They often want to

put it in their own words and make it their own.

Everyone has their own communication style, but the SDR leader should try to convince them not to try to reinvent

the wheel. The things that work for other SDRs are likely to work for them, too, and so it's their style that needs to

be flexible, not the existing templates. When the SDR uses their own words, it’s usually a contortion of the original

that doesn’t have the same impact or meaning. They’re better off applying what’s already proven effective.

BOTTOM LINE: Do what works.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“Advice is like snow—the softer it falls, the longer it dwells upon, and the deeper it sinks into the mind.” —Samuel Taylor Coleridge

When training SDRs, particularly with prospecting, conventional wisdom dictates that SDRs should either be told

by their manager how to do something or do what they feel is most natural and fits their style.

There’s a middle ground that’s more effective. If the SDR leader tells the SDRs what he thinks they should do and

asks them to try it, they can either accept that advice or decline and continue as they were. If the results are no

better than before the feedback, the SDR leader should meet with the SDR again and ask them to implement his

suggestions. The SDR should accept the advice and at least try it.

If the SDR isn’t willing to follow the SDR leader’s advice and is still missing their number, that SDR should probably

be terminated. The SDR leader owes it to the company to build a team that’s willing to try new things without having

them forced down their throats. If new methods do have to be forced, they probably won’t stick.

BOTTOM LINE: Yelling at people is yesterday’s style; asking people to accept advice is more effective.


Strategic

“As long as you are able to cross an empty street against the lights, there is still hope.” —Markku Envall

It’s good to have rules and guidelines in place for the SDR team to follow. Rules prevent the team from running in

every direction and allow centralized operational management of the team. However, the greatest innovators in

the sales organization are the SDRs themselves. This is a bit paradoxical given that they’re also the most in need of

guidance and management.

The SDR leader should create an atmosphere whereby the SDRs are free to experiment and share the outcomes of

their experiments with the rest of the team. The things that work can be added to the team’s bag of tricks, pending

the SDR leader’s approval. Things that don’t work should also be shared.

Ultimately, the atmosphere should be flexible, iterative, and transparent, so that the SDRs are comfortable trying

new things, provided they communicate to the SDR leader what they’re trying and what the outcome was.

BOTTOM LINE: Don’t be overly dogmatic about rules and procedures; if they’re being broken, find out why.

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“What can't be cured must be endured.” —Edward Fitzgerald

The object of SDR training is to instill best practices and quash bad habits. Unfortunately, this doesn’t always work.

There are some things that some SDRs will do that can’t be fixed, and the SDR leader needs to be able to work

around those things.

For example, some SDRs speak in a monotone, resulting in a lack of excitement in their presentation. The SDR

leader might work on this problem with the SDR at length to no avail. At this point, the SDR leader will just have

to see if the SDR can succeed despite their verbal handicap. The SDR leader should be as upfront as possible and

explain that this element is not ideal.

Hopefully, the SDR does something else really well, such as good email writing skills or strong research skills. The

SDR leader should be clear that they’ll need to use their other skills to make up for the shortcoming. SDRs appreciate

being told what their weaknesses are and can often overcome them when the situation is made clear to them.

BOTTOM LINE: You can’t always pick your team, and your team will never be perfect.


Strategic

“Talking without thinking is like shooting without aiming.” —Zbigniew Herbert

While SDRs can have many shortcomings as new members of the workforce, they often have certain advantages,

too. One is the ability to master multiple applications at once (“digital dexterity”). It means being able to, say, look at

a prospect’s website, research them on social media, review notes in the CRM, and manage their sales acceleration

tools—all at the same time.

The SDR leader should do everything they can to capitalize on SDRs’ technology skills and further enable them.

For example, a second monitor can be useful; getting the team laptops instead of desktops is good for when they

need to work from home; making sure they have smartphone apps for all the tools they use; and ensuring that the

Internet connection is stable and of the highest speed possible. All of these help maximize the skill sets that many

SDRs have today. Standing desks, high-grade headsets, and state-of-the art phone systems are also helpful.

BOTTOM LINE: SDRs can work a lot of applications; make use of that ability.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” —Aristotle

SDRs are creatures of habit. They do the same things, over and over, every day. The habits they get into are set

early, and so bad ones need to be broken fast.

The SDR leader must adopt a position of early confrontation in the face of bad habits. Ignoring them and hoping

they’ll go away as the SDR gets more comfortable or gains experience is usually unsuccessful. The things they say

and do after their second week usually reflect how they’re going to perform and act for the next six months.

The trajectory that’s set early on—holding SDRs accountable to standards clearly laid out for them in writing—will

determine their course. Therefore, the SDR leader must be on the lookout constantly for things that are out of

whack, early in the SDR’s tenure.

BOTTOM LINE: Fix problems early and stay on them.


Strategic

“Speech conquers thought but writing commands it.” —Walter Benjamin

The lead-gen process has changed over the past 10 years. Written communication is now a key component of

engaging prospects. Text, social media, and email are all acceptable ways to pursue prospects. Therefore, it’s

important to teach SDRs how to communicate not just on the phone, but also in writing.

The SDR leader should offer her services as an email ghostwriter. This gives the SDR team an effective training

mechanism for improving their notes to prospects, and it also helps the team uncover more opportunities. If an

SDR has a question about approaching prospects via email or replying to responses or objections, the SDR leader

should be ready to jump in and craft a response that helps guide the SDR in similar future cases.

BOTTOM LINE: Written communication is now a big part of prospecting; make sure they can do it well.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“No pressure, no diamonds.”—Thomas Carlyle

SDR teams should be given monthly quotas to maximize their productivity. The short length of the sales cycle

in uncovering an opportunity makes quarterly quotas impractical and unnecessary. Quotas should be mapped

directly to the needs of the AE sales team. If the team lacks the manpower or resources to meet these goals, then

the quota should be set as aggressively as possible. One bar is to set a number that about half the reps are able to

attain, while the other half has to reach.

There’s an instinct for some SDR managers to set their quotas in a way that everyone on the team can hit them,

but this doesn’t maximize opportunity creation as the top quarter of performers will barely need to exert them-

selves to hit their number. The result is that half of the team coasts while the other half, typically consisting of

second-rate reps, is not inspired to improve their performance.

BOTTOM LINE: Set quotas that maximize effort and force the team to exert themselves strenuously.


Strategic

Managing Change

“If I thought every day was a new start, I would kill myself. I would do so over and over again for as long as might prove necessary.”—Barbara Kruger

While it's important that SDRs understand that they’re only as good as their last quota attainment and that every day

is a new beginning, there must be repetition and continuity in terms of daily workflow and work experience. Constant

changes in territory, lead flow, rules, processes, and procedures are hugely detrimental to morale, preventing the

team from getting into a groove.

If changes must be made, they need to be “fully baked” before they’re presented to the team, then discussed and

explained in a meeting and followed up in writing. This allows the team to fully digest the changes and understand

the reasoning behind them.

BOTTOM LINE: Have your ducks in a row before presenting changes, and anticipate questions before

they’re asked.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“The ideal is a blueprint for failure.” —Theo Mestrum

Whatever plan is put to paper, no matter what facet or aspect of an SDR team it touches or covers, it will turn out

to be less clear in reality than it was in concept, almost without fail. However, this outcome should not be accepted

as a failure, but rather as inevitable for a new process designed for a new team, uncovering leads for an often new

technology. While it’s not necessary to devise a “plan B” beforehand, once the original plan or first iteration turns

out to not function as hoped, the original stakeholders need to be rounded up and the plan redrawn.

The SDR leader should be careful to avoid covering up or ignoring problems that crop up along the way. He should

speak out about the things that aren’t working, ask for help, and lead the charge to rebound.

BOTTOM LINE: Nothing works out quite the way it was planned, so don’t be startled or surprised when it

happens to you.


Strategic

“To improve is to change. To perfect is to change often.”—Edmund Burke

No matter what the state of the team, there are always opportunities to improve. Even if things are running as well

as can be imagined, it’s the SDR leader’s job to keep finding new ways to push the opportunity-creation numbers

as high as possible.

Constant change requires endless ideas, testing, and feedback. Daily communication is the forum in which these

things can be iterated on. Once conclusions are reached as to what improvements should be made, they can be

documented.

If there’s no obvious reason to change, the effective SDR leader creates a new goal. Winning a certain percentage

of customers in a given geography or category is an example; supporting a group of struggling AEs is another. It

may sound crazy, but there are times when volunteering to the VP of Sales or CEO to reach for a higher number

can drive change and benefit the SDR leader and the company in the long run.

BOTTOM LINE: “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” is fine, but be sure to A/B test it, and always be looking to

beat the baseline.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“Pioneers have left many people behind.” —Frans Hiddema

Teams can only move as quickly as their slowest members and partners. The SDR leader can control this facet of

their own team by making headcount and composition changes. However, this is not a luxury they have with other

teams that they may need for a given project or circumstance.

In cases where the SDR team’s progress is being held up by another team’s lack of effectiveness, the SDR leader

can do two things: 1) work with the other team and its leadership to fix the problem and 2) think of a way to accomplish

the same goal without the support and assistance of the team or person holding up progress.

The latter can be the more practical course. It could mean working outside the confines of the CRM, sourcing

data and lead sources on their own accord, comping the team on metrics other than qualified opportunities, and

expensing products or team awards, then getting reimbursement later. Whatever the workaround, sometimes

it’s simply a cost of doing business at a company where the SDR team isn’t respected and valued to the degree it

should be.

BOTTOM LINE: Part ways with your weakest link.


Strategic

“Before you'll change, something important must be at risk.” —Richard Bach

Challenges that require a company to generate more revenue are great opportunities for the SDR leader to take

their wish list off the shelf and ask for the things they think will improve the opportunity-creation numbers.

Should they be asked to “do more with less”—often the mantra for companies facing revenue crunches—the

SDR leader should present multiple options via written presentation as to what they need and the likely outcome.

There’s no better time to say, “I can’t get you the numbers you need,” than when the company has declined

requests for resources and support, but is nonetheless demanding the same results that those resources and

support mechanisms were designed to deliver.

BOTTOM LINE: Ask for what you need if what you need isn’t easily produced.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“Fortune favors the brave.” —Terence

Most organizations have processes and procedures for making changes. Usually there are stakeholders whose

buy-in is needed. There are circumstances, however, in which the SDR leader is justified in making changes unilat-

erally, even though they may impact others in the company outside the SDR team.

For example, sometimes people just aren’t thinking straight. In cases where the SDR leader’s colleagues can’t get

out of their own way, the SDR leader should do what’s best for the shareholders and investors. This could mean

working outside the CRM, giving the SDRs credit for opportunities they didn’t create, buying lead sources with personal

money and expensing them—whatever it takes to get the job done when reasonable heads are not prevailing.

Another example is when the SDR leader’s job—and the team’s existence—are at risk. If the SDR team isn’t working

out, then the SDR leader should start “coloring outside the lines.” This doesn’t mean completely tearing down the

company infrastructure, but rather initiating whatever projects, tools, methodologies, and risks the SDR leader

feels are reasonable under the circumstances.

It’s not easy to turn things around when everyone has concluded that the SDR team isn’t working out. Whenever

possible, SDR leaders should look for signs that popular sentiment has turned against them. When this is the case,

there’s no reason not to try anything that might potentially get things moving in the right direction again.

BOTTOM LINE: Do what you need to do, even if others don’t understand why.


Strategic

“Just go along with things and let your mind move freely. Resign yourself to what cannot be avoided and nourish what is within you—this is best.”—Chuang Tzu

There are things an SDR leader can control, and there are things that they cannot. Change is a constant at most

technology companies. SDR leaders spend their days trying to control people and numbers, so there’s a natural

instinct to also try to control things and people outside of the SDR leader’s domain. Oftentimes the SDR leader

can influence external people and events, but there are limits.

If there are things that the SDR leader feels passionate about changing, the odds are best that the opportunity will

present itself if they grind the decision makers down over the long run with their ideas and suggestions. If something

is broken, the only time the SDR leader should assume risk in trying to fix it is when the malfunctioning team or

mechanism impacts the success of the SDR team directly.

The SDR team and the SDRs themselves should expect that processes and procedures will change constantly to

some degree in the name of improvement. SDRs are creatures of habit, and if they get into the habit of adapting to

new circumstances regularly, then changes won’t be as disturbing and frustrating.

BOTTOM LINE: If you don’t get your way the first time around, keep at it, with data-driven messaging.


Strategic

Communicating for Results

“The most attractive sentences are not perhaps the wisest, but the surest and soundest.” —Thoreau

Whether communicating by email with prospects, colleagues, candidates, or team members, it’s good practice to

eliminate hyperbole. Don’t using words like “very” and “really,” or use bolds and underlines. The less dramatic your

writing, the greater your credibility. Eliminate exaggeration and appearing overly excited or frustrated. Remember,

like diamonds, emails are forever; they can’t be retracted or edited once they’ve been sent.

BOTTOM LINE: Everything you say and write should be understandable by a 13-year old.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“Summaries that contain most things are always shortest themselves.” —Samuel Butler

When emailing a report or summary, whether to your manager or your team, keep in mind that everyone is bombarded

with emails and documents. Keep your summaries short and to-the-point. Bullet points are good—no more than

1–2 sentences per bullet and no more than 5–10 bullets total.

BOTTOM LINE: Keep written communications short and sweet.


Strategic

“There are things which don't deserve to be said briefly.”—Jean Rostand

In many organizations, email and, to a lesser degree text/chat tools, are the primary forms of communication. This

is particularly true in companies with teams spread across multiple offices.

Keep written communications short. Longer communications have a way of “layering,” i.e., the reader can infer

things that the sender didn’t mean to imply. The more complex the communication, the more likely this is, and so

writing should be the last resort. If the communication is important, a phone call or in-person meeting or video call

are more effective options.

For the SDR leader, examples of things that shouldn’t be said via email or chat include concerns about a team’s

or team member’s performance (except as a meeting recap); frustration with attainment goals and quotas with a

senior manager; and doubts about an account executive that the SDR team is supporting, to that AEs manager.

BOTTOM LINE: If something is a big deal, saying it in person is best.

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“He whose face is inflamed with anger shows that the Evil Spirit burns within him.”—The Zohar

Running an SDR team can be frustrating. It’s a unique position as it’s wedged between prospects, senior manage-

ment, and the revenue-owning teams. It’s easy to feel “boxed in” or otherwise blamed for a failure that may not

have originated with the SDR team.

SDR leaders get a lot of emails from people in the company who are themselves frustrated. They can come from

marketing, sales, the CEO, and members of their own team. Managing these emails effectively is paramount.

It’s important for the SDR leader not to respond to emails immediately when angry. Write a draft, then wait an hour

or even a day, then reread it. This helps keep emails from sounding irrational.

Again, if you’re frustrated, it’s much better to communicate by phone or video call, or, if possible, in person. Emails

have a way of escalating tensions, and a sort of one-upsmanship ensues, where neither party wants to back down.

This dynamic is far less likely to develop when matters are discussed in person, and conversation can be much

more productive.

BOTTOM LINE: If people think you’re angry when you say something, they’ll disregard what you’re saying.


Strategic

“Everything is worthy of notice, for everything can be interpreted.” —Hermann Hesse

It might seem odd to include comments on data in a section about communications, but in reality, any information

is only as good as the clarity with which it’s communicated. Dashboards, metrics, numbers, goals, and observations

need to be collected and organized by a manager who serves as “one source of truth” for such information.

Depending on the size of the company, the SDR leader may be charged with assembling this data, or it may come

from the sales operations team. Whoever actually cobbles the numbers together from the CRM, the numbers need

to be paired with non-quantitative observations to help give them meaning. Non-quantitative examples include

new lead-generation sources and sales acceleration tools being explored; comments on team morale; working

relationships with other groups in the company; and numbers that aren’t immediately visible via the CRM, but can

be assembled manually.

Communicating and owning all this information must fall on the SDR leader in the form of daily or weekly reporting

to senior management, via email, in person, or via chat. Otherwise, someone else will fill the vacuum, the SDR

leader’s authority will be diminished, and they will lose control of the trajectory of the conversation around their

own team’s effectiveness.

BOTTOM LINE: Data is plentiful; be judicious in determining what you share because people have limited

attention spans.

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“Knowledge may give weight, but accomplishments add luster, and many more people see than weigh.”—Lord Chesterfield

When discussing the SDR team’s goals and achievements, all instances should contain some sort of data. The

data can be anecdotal or carefully assembled reports, but it should be numbers-based to more effectively justify

requests, describe how a specific venture or initiative turned out, and so on.

Without quantifiable information, an achievement becomes simply an opinion and is thus subject to contravening

opinions, which may be seen as valid in the absence of hard data. SDR leaders should avoid using knowledge and

experience alone as justification for trying or not trying something. When presented effectively, numbers speak for

themselves, and they can help turn mere opinions into “educated guesses.”

BOTTOM LINE: Talk about what you did, not what you think.


Strategic

“The best way to keep one's word is not to give it.” —Napoleon

SDRs ask their managers for many things, and they don’t forget the promises that are made in response. Too often,

SDR leaders commit to requests for the sake of expediency and then hope that it will be forgotten. This rarely happens;

SDRs end up keeping lists in their heads as to things that were promised, but never delivered. This results in de-

moralized employees who don’t trust their manager.

It’s not just SDRs that make these requests; other groups within the company often ask SDR leaders to use what

they see as pools of cheap labor for their various initiatives, some of which are related to opportunity creation,

others not.

A better practice is for the SDR leader to either ask for time to think about it, then bring it up at a later date after

deciding whether the request is viable, or simply be honest when asked and explain that they’re trying not to over

commit at the moment and please hold off until they have more bandwidth. The SDR leader can further explain

that they simply don’t want to make a promise that they’re not sure they can keep. People prefer candor and

transparency to being told what someone thinks they want to hear.

BOTTOM LINE: Only commit to that which you think you can do.

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“Remember that in giving any reason at all for refusing, you lay some foundation for a future request.” —Sir Arthur Helps

Should an SDR leader be asked for something by a member of the SDR team or another colleague, there are times

when a simple, definitive “no” is the best response. The request may not be well defined, or it may be irrational or

unsound. In any case, choose your words carefully. Take the time to consider the request on its merits, not just

the source, which may not be considered credible. In any case, it's worth explaining that, while the reason for the

request is understandable, it's not viable for reasons that you can clearly explain.

The worst-case scenario is getting a request that’s not a good idea and issuing a poorly thought out reply. This

encourages the person making the request to try again later, with an argument that pokes through the weak logic.

BOTTOM LINE: When you explain why you’re not doing something, give careful thought to that explanation

before you speak.


Strategic

“Promise is guilt—promise is the capacity for letting people down.” —Cyril Connolly

Every SDR leader needs to provide their team a vision and hope for the future. If they’re not careful, this can easily

lead to promises and commitments that they aren’t able to make or at least keep on their own accord. Therefore,

it's important that the vision be tempered with “if” statements, i.e., if the SDR team can hit certain numbers and

goals, then they can control their own destiny. No other team in the company controls its own future, or that of the

company, like the SDR team.

The only unequivocal promise that the SDR leader should make is that if the team executes against the plans that

it has agreed to, then there’s no limit to how much the team and the company can grow. However, first they have to

make an affirmation of ownership and responsibility for the future.

BOTTOM LINE: If you have to promise something and you can’t make good on it, be clear and transparent

as to why.

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“The best way to convince a fool that he is wrong is to let him have his own way.”—Josh Bilings

There are cases in which others in the company will advocate for an approach for the SDR team that, in the SDR

leader’s view, is clearly not a good idea. Sometimes these same advocates may pursue these approaches despite

how thoroughly the SDR leader may work to talk them out of it, often because of the very resistance that they are

receiving.

If the advocate for the bad idea has enough clout, the SDR leader may have no choice but to honor the request.

However, the SDR leader should attach a condition to complying with the request, e.g., that all parties review the

outcome at a specific future date. The result—if the SDR leader’s instincts are correct—will be that the proposal

was not effective and should be rolled back.

At this stage, the advocate of the failed effort should step back and accept that their proposal didn’t work. If they

still don’t accept that it was a bad idea, then the SDR leader needs to escalate the matter, possibly even to the CEO,

and communicate that continuing with the effort is detrimental of the company’s revenue goals.

BOTTOM LINE: Letting people try things, on the team or outside of it, is the best way to prove whether

someone else is right or wrong.


Strategic

“Brevity is power.”—Josh Billings

SDR teams adapt to change best when it comes as small increments. These adjustments are best communicated

in person, in an environment where the SDR team can make their own suggestions and requests. Hence, the best

way to make adjustments is through frequent short meetings.

These short meetings work well with tightly managed agendas. The SDR leader should always have a list of talking

points to cover and walk the team through them. Open-ended discussions typically result in non-productive

sessions. Preferably, the SDR leader should keep the meeting to no more than 20—25 minutes. If the agenda is

expected to take longer, be sure it’s not so complicated that it can’t be covered in less than 30 minutes.

BOTTOM LINE: Keep meetings short and well-managed, with a clear agenda.

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“A boss: the less he speaks, the more he is heard.”—Frederic Dard

Among all the communication attributes that a manager can have, economy of language is the most important.

This means not speaking at length once what needs to be said has been said, not talking over people, and listening

more than speaking. If the SDR leader follows these guidelines, they’ll be understood the first time around, without

needing to repeat and reiterate as often. Their words will have more gravity with both colleagues and subordinates.

BOTTOM LINE: Letting others speak more will improve how well you’re heard.


Strategic

“There's a great power in words, if you don't hitch too many of them together. —Josh Billings

When communicating, whether in writing, by phone, or in person, it’s important to be clear, succinct, and to-the-point.

For written communications such as reports or team emails of any substance, it’s best to write a draft, then put it

away for an hour or so, or preferably overnight. Inevitably, things will need to be removed, edited, or clarified, and

putting it away for a while helps you see your writing from your audience’s point-of-view. After a round of editing,

it'll usually be ready to send.

If an email is important, ask a friend or colleague to review it for clarity. The most important thing is to make the

email as short as possible, but still get your points across, and yet SDR leaders often write long, verbose emails

that are unnecessarily hard to read.

BOTTOM LINE: When writing emails, edit it down to the smallest number of words needed to get your

point across.

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“Don't be a bore. The person obsessed with one activity or one topic is apt to be tiresome. Brevity is flattering and gets more accomplished—it gains by courtesy what is loses by curtness. Good things, when short, are twice as good. Well said is soon said.” —Baltasar Gracian

Above all, meetings should 1) cover all necessary topics, 2) start on time, and 3) end on time. To help ensure that

these things happen, the SDR leader minimize small talk, long discussions about irrelevant topics such as people’s

weekend activities, upcoming birthday celebrations, etc. SDR leaders who waste time at team meetings talking

about things that aren’t work related need to get out of the habit. At first, SDRs might find this slightly abrasive, but

it’s ultimately about respect for people’s time. Chatting about non-work-related matters can be saved for after the

meeting.

For phone or in-person meetings, a written agenda is the way to go. Then, during the meeting, the SDR leader

should manage time to make sure they hit all the points they wanted to discuss. Sticking to a strict schedule keeps

things moving and allows the SDR leader to focus on priorities rather than diverging into tangential topics.

BOTTOM LINE: Keep your meetings moving; don’t stay on any one topic for too long.


Strategic

“Cautious silence is the sacred sanctuary of worldly wisdom.” —Gracian Baltasar

If the SDR leader doesn’t know the answer to a question immediately, it’s almost always best not to offer excuses,

arguments, or diversions. Refraining from interrupting team members and colleagues helps ensure that they

behave likewise, resulting in an atmosphere of respect, which is key to getting your opinions heard.

SDR leaders are often prone to boastfulness in their assessments of themselves and their teams. Resisting this

impulse, they can attain the same goals that such claims were meant to achieve, but with less energy and greater

success. Less is more.

BOTTOM LINE: Don’t brag; let numbers and accomplishments talk for you.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“Argue for your limitations and sure enough, they're yours.”—Richard Bach

SDR teams are asked constantly for all sorts of things, usually more qualified opportunities. They might also be

asked to penetrate a particular vertical or territory or company, or to support a marketing initiative.

The SDR leader’s instinct may be to play “Dr. No” on most of these requests, for reasons of bad timing or inadequate

planning on the part of the requester. A more effective method is to specify what’s needed for the SDR team to

accept the request.

Being positive (“we’ll be happy to consider doing this provided that [x, y, and z conditions are met]”) instead of

negative (“we can’t do this because [reasons]”) conveys more of a “can-do” spirit and forward-looking disposition

that makes the SDR team’s partners more likely to supply the necessary resources.

Of course it's always advisable to avoid “mission creep,” i.e., going outside the SDR team’s core goals, but it’s also

good to be agile enough to take on additional short-term projects. This helps create a perception of the team as

flexible and helpful instead of rigid and uncooperative.

BOTTOM LINE: Try to meet all challenges asked of you, within reason.


Strategic

“Not being able to write is like being buried alive.” —Elizabeth Bowen

In the past, sales happened over the phone or in person. Now, communicating effectively via email is an important

skill for all but the most transactional sales configurations, and it’s a must-have skill for both SDR leaders and

inside sales reps. Therefore, validation of writing skills should be part of the screening and recruiting process (e.g.,

reviewing candidates’ resumes and cover letters and perhaps exchanging emails).

For colleagues in other parts of the company who don’t communicate effectively via email, give them some slack.

Talk to them via phone or in person, as email has a way of layering in messages that weren’t intended, especially

with writers with limited skills.

BOTTOM LINE: If someone else in the company can’t write or communicate via email well, recognize it

and talk about it.

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“Several excuses are always less convincing than one.” —Aldous Huxley

Things can go wrong for many reasons, and sometimes a comprehensive report is warranted to detail the reasons.

There’s usually one fundamental reason why an SDR team isn’t achieving a given goal. While all the causes of a

failed month or quarter need to be addressed, the SDR leader should stand on the primary reason as a central

talking point. This facilitates communication, making the problem easy to understand by stakeholders who have

an interest in seeing the team succeed.

BOTTOM LINE: If something isn’t working, present a bottom line as to what the biggest blocker is, and

focus on that.


Strategic

“You prove your worth with your actions, not with your mouth.” —Jean Paul Richter

SDR teams and their leaders can be a boastful bunch. They have a tendency to talk about their achievements at

every opportunity. If possible, teams should avoid being overly verbose with their successes for two reasons:

1. If the AE team is missing its number, boastful chatter can be infuriating, and it’s also a sure way to build

resentment and get hit with a higher quota. The SDR team’s sole reason for existing is to generate revenue; if

that goal isn’t being met, and yet the team is still doing “victory laps” over how great they’re doing, then some-

thing must be broken.

2. A team that works diligently and lets the numbers speak for themselves commands greater respect than one

that brags continually. Bragging diminishes the victory being bragged about in the first place. If SDRs are truly

doing their job, their success will show up in the bottom line and cited by the SDR leader when the time is

right, and everyone will recognize the team’s value.

BOTTOM LINE: Teams and leaders that act instead of talk get the most respect.

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“It is a waste of time to try to destroy old things. If you are truly able to become new, the old has already been destroyed.”—Toson Shimazaki

Great SDR teams reinvent themselves frequently. New challenges and opportunities arise all the time, and effective

teams seek out these windows as opportunities for process improvements.

SDRs can be vocal about having to adapt to changes and may express frustration. Hence, the SDR leader needs to

explain the “why” around changes and how they’re meant to improve things. In parallel to that, particularly at an

early-stage software company, it must be accepted as a given that change is a constant and, therefore, to be expected.

The things being done away with and that the SDR teams dismiss (processes, tools, documents, systems) should

be seen as terminable from the beginning. Nothing lasts forever, least of all on an SDR team.

BOTTOM LINE: If you invent a better process or system and it truly is better, the team will stop using the

old one on their own accord.


Strategic

Managing Teams Effectively

“Bees are not as busy as we think they are. They just can't buzz any slower. “ —Kin Hubbard

SDR teams usually appear to be very busy at first glance. Calls, emails, research, and CRM management are all

important parts of their daily routine. However, unless the SDR leader monitors closely what they do day-to-day,

it’s impossible to say how they spend their time aside from activity dashboard monitoring, which doesn’t always

tell the complete story.

For this reason, it’s good to do a weekly, 30 to 60-minute “ride-along” with each SDR. This allows for a “deeper dive”

in terms of how they spend their time and reveals inefficiencies in their processes. Weekly one-on-ones also help

discourage SDRs from spending time chatting with friends and surfing the Web, which can look like productive

activity when observed from a distance.

BOTTOM LINE: Just because the team looks busy doesn’t mean they’re being productive.

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“In each of us there is a little of all of us.” —Litchenberg

SDR teams learn from each other more than from any other source, given their close daily proximity to each other.

Therefore, it’s important that the best things team members do be stored for easy access by other team members.

A “best of” or “hall of fame” folder is a great way to collect and store teams’ most effective prospect-facing calls

and emails. This serves not only as a learning resource for new and current team members, but also as a means of

recognizing SDRs for achieving excellence.

On the other hand, a “bloopers” folder can be created to highlight classic mistakes. The purpose isn’t to embarrass

the rep, but rather to have an easily accessible learning resource.

BOTTOM LINE: Hold “great moments” out as teachable examples of excellence.


Strategic

“A good indignation brings out all one's powers.”—Emerson

Contrary to popular belief, it’s OK for the SDR leader to get angry in front of the team. In fact, there’s value in letting

the team see that their manager is passionate about certain processes and goals and can share their frustration

when things don’t go well.

The manner in which anger is communicated makes all the difference. Raising one’s voice isn’t advisable, but being

candid about a failure and insisting on the team’s help fixing it is acceptable. The underlying message is that the

team leader takes their job seriously, and so should the team.

BOTTOM LINE: If you’re angry about something, speak up and let the team know.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“Most human beings have an almost infinite capacity for taking things for granted.”—Aldous Huxley

Generally, SDR leaders should not expect gratitude from their teams. The team seldom has a concept of how

much time and labor goes into making sure the right tools, people, and processes are in place to support their

success.

In fact, SDR leaders should seldom expect gratitude from anybody, including AEs and other areas of the business.

The teams they support and the revenue they produce are the oxygen that keeps the company moving forward

and pushes its valuation in the right direction. This shareholder mentality should provide the SDR leader with

validation of their mission.

BOTTOM LINE: Running an SDR team can be a thankless job, so don’t expect thanks very often.


Strategic

“What are the thoughts of the canvas on which a masterpiece is being painted? 'I am being soiled, brutally treated and concealed from view.' Thus men grumble at their destiny, however fair.”—Jean Cocteau

The goals of the company and the SDR team are not always in alignment. The company’s end-game is usually an

IPO or acquisition, while the SDRs are looking for financial incentives, learning opportunities, and career advancement.

Hence, the SDR team is often left feeling unappreciated.

There are ways avoid the resulting discord. First, not every company grants SDRs equity, but this can help reduce

dissonance, even if it’s a small amount. Also, communicating to the SDR team in weekly or monthly team meetings

how their work is impacting the company’s revenue goals (either by highlighting the story behind big wins the

SDRs uncovered or revenue goals that they helped achieve) can help them feel like they’re part of the company’s

overarching mission.

Finally, a simple “thank you” from senior leadership—someone outside the sales organization, such as the CFO or

CEO—goes a long way. This can come in the form of a congratulatory email or perhaps a team lunch with senior

executives.

BOTTOM LINE: Find ways to recognize SDRs beyond their commission checks.

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“An aspiration is a joy forever, a possession as solid as a landed estate.” —Robert Louis Stevenson

Most SDRs and sales people go into sales so they can control their financial futures. However, SDRs and their

teams should also have higher-level long-term goals, individually and at a team level. The SDR leader should make

frequent reference to these goals during team meetings and one-on-one sessions.

Beyond financial success, SDRs usually aspire to management—running their own businesses—becoming

revenue-producing AEs, other goals to which a successful stint in an SDR role might serve as a stepping-stone.

SDR teams are charged with uncovering opportunities to support the company’s revenue targets. However, SDR

leaders should also direct their teams’ performance to other ends, e.g., going public or being acquired, beating

direct competitors and winning their category, helping their prospects if the company is particularly mission driven,

or simply celebrating continuously the other SDRs’ advancement to bigger roles in the company when there’s a

strong career path mechanism in place.

BOTTOM LINE: Try to find multiple things to celebrate at different times.


Strategic

“Men’s passions are so many roads by which they can be reached.” —Vaugenargues

Companies often lack career paths for SDRs. There may be too great a gulf between the SDRs’ skills and those

needed for revenue-owning reps, or there may simply be inadequate open seats on the AE team to accommodate

SDRs looking to advance.

Despite these challenges, great SDR teams should try to retain their best talent as long as they can. The SDR

leader can help by stratifying the team into team-lead roles, “strategic SDR” roles, and possibly verticalized roles if

appropriate. These changes should come with at least minor incremental compensation.

Second, if necessary, an agreement can be reached with an SDR, wherein the SDR leader agrees to give them a

positive reference after a certain period—say 18 months—after which the leader will help the SDR look externally

for a job with higher pay if they’re unable to find one internally.

This may sound counterproductive, but consider that a strong SDR could leave much sooner than 18 months if

they perceive that the company doesn’t offer any viable career advancement. A great SDR team needs to graduate

its best performers into bigger roles, whether internally or externally.

Finally, SDRs value direct interactions with customers. If possible, it's productive to send them out for onsite

demos with AEs. In addition to building camaraderie with the AE team, this provides valuable learning experiences

for the SDRs.

BOTTOM LINE: Find out what makes your best performers tick, and let them know you care about that.


Strategic

“Many a man would rather you heard his story than granted his request.” —Lord Chesterfield

SDRs face rejection daily, generally talking to a lot of the wrong people to find a few of the right ones. This can be

mentally exhausting, and even the most thick-skinned SDRs need a vehicle for venting.

Meeting with each member of the SDR team once a week is a great way to do a “sanity check” to help bolster their

attitude and energy. Some SDR leaders combine weekly one-on-ones with discussions of quotas, training, and so

on, but it’s better to schedule these discussions separately. Then the one-on-ones can be devoted exclusively to

giving each SDR the opportunity to discuss problems, concerns, ideas, or even personal matters that are impacting

their performance.

The result will be stronger connections between the SDR leader and their reps, and problems such as sudden

resignations will be much less common.

BOTTOM LINE: Sometimes just listening to SDRs grouse is enough to make them feel better.

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“The world judge men by their ability in their profession, and we judge ourselves by the same test; for it is that on which our success in life depends. Yet how often do our talents and pursuits lie in different directions! The best painters are not always the cleverest men; and an author who makes an unfavorable or doubtful impression on the public may in himself be a person of rare and agreeable qualifications.” —Hazlitt

Good people don’t always make good SDRs, and good SDRs aren’t always good people. There’s often a disconnect

between how a person lives and acts outside work and how they engage colleagues and prospects at work.

The SDR leader needs to look past what the SDR’s life is like outside work. An SDR can be a great person, but still

not perform well. In such cases, the job is probably not a good fit and an adjustment needs to be made. On the

other hand, an SDR can have questionable attitudes and activities outside work and yet still be a strong performer.

In this case, the non-work persona needs to be looked past, or ignored entirely.

BOTTOM LINE: Take the SDR’s work presentation at face value.


Strategic

“Men shut their doors against a setting sun.”—Shakespeare

If the team or other coworkers think you’re going to quit or give up, they’ll generally give up on you as soon as this

becomes apparent. Don’t expect sympathy from the rest of the company just because you don’t think you can

execute on the job you were hired for. Rather, you’ll be subject to “lame duck” syndrome, written off as someone

whose days are numbered and whose authority can safely be dismissed.

If you do think you can’t do your job, get out quickly. Be clear and transparent about it, and find something else to

work on as soon as possible. Remember when asked, to talk about the positive things that you could have done to

fix the situation rather than just harp on whatever made things go sour.

BOTTOM LINE: Even if you’re going to give up or quit, don’t let your team know.

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“Ambition often puts men upon doing the meanest offices; so climbing is performed in the same posture with creeping.” —Swift

SDR teams often lack even the most basic support they need to do their jobs, and the SDR leader often needs to

fill the gap. Examples include pulling data together for lists of prospects for the SDR team to engage; generating

reports and views in the CRM so the SDRs can see them; ghostwriting and editing email templates so the team

has coherent messaging; and even helping assemble computers and desks for new team members.

At the end of the day, SDR leaders need to see themselves as enablers of their teams at all levels, regardless of the

challenges they face.

BOTTOM LINE: Much of the work needed to run an SDR team successfully is menial.


Strategic

“Never claim as a right what you can ask as a favor.”—Churton Collins

Like most employees, SDRs are required to do what their managers tell them to do. However, rather than simply

issuing orders, asking SDRs if they’d be willing to try something can elicit a much more positive response.

Positioning demands as requests has a variety of benefits. In 95 percent of cases, the SDR will still comply, even if

they think they don’t have to. Also, the SDR might point out problems that their manager hadn’t thought of, leading

to rethinking whether it was the right thing to do in the first place.

If the “request” is sound and the SDR declines, it can give the SDR leader added insight into the SDR’s personality

and judgment, and help with future assessments as to whether the SDR is flexible enough to take on further levels

of responsibility.

BOTTOM LINE: You’ll often get a better response if you ask someone to do something than if you tell

them to do it.

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“Eighty percent of success is showing up.”—Woody Allen

SDRs tend to want to come in late, work from home, take excessive time off, and so on. Each of these problems

presents its own challenges, but the bottom line is that team members need to be at work, on time, regularly;

otherwise they’re not a good fit for inside sales.

Letting SDRs work from home is a bad idea; the SDR leader needs to be able to see and listen to them. Of course

their activities can be audited, but direct observation is a much more effective way to determine whether they’re

fully present when doing their work.

Coming in late means they’re probably not catching prospects early in the morning, which is the best time. It also

means being late to team meetings and standups, which hurts team morale and communication as they have to

be caught up on what happened during a meeting.

Many companies have “take time off as you need it” vacation and sick-day policies. If a rep takes time off from

work, the message should be that they’re doing so with the understanding that they’re still going to hit their

number. In other words, they should only take time off if they’ve already reached their quota. Taking time off and

missing their number is not permissible for scaling a team, and shouldn’t be tolerated except in rare circumstances

(vacations planned in advance, serious illness, etc.).

BOTTOM LINE: Good teams spend very little time outside the office, whether it’s sick leave or vacation.


Strategic

“The more you judge, the less you love.”—Honore de Balzac

The SDR leader doesn’t have to like their own team—teams are often composed of individuals with varying levels

of maturity, integrity, and likeability—but they do have to love them. These are the people who are responsible for

the company’s long-term success, and the opportunities they uncover are critical to that success. If they fail, the

company’s chances are slim-to-none.

Companies often engage in compulsive criticism, but no matter how frustrated an SDR leader may be with their

team, it’s their job to make sure the criticism is tempered, thoughtful, and justified; that it’s delivered in a constructive

manner; and that the team isn’t caught in the midst of a “circular firing squad.”

BOTTOM LINE: It’s very hard to change people; you can only make them work within the confines of

necessary boundaries.

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“There is much to be said for failure. It is much more interesting than success.” —Max Beerbohm

Most SDR-related lead generation initiatives fail. Tools don’t work as intended, lead sources prove faulty, and

processes end up being misguided. The team and the SDR leader need to commit to doing everything they can to

improve the effectiveness of their efforts. Even if only one-in-ten initiatives proves fruitful, that’s a success. Trial

and error is no different from prospecting: most tries will fail, but even occasional success is still success.

BOTTOM LINE: Use failure to point out that something else clearly works better.


Strategic

“Advice is like castor oil, easy enough to give but dreadful uneasy to take.” —Josh Billings

SDR leaders, like most sales leaders, are in the business of giving advice. Their job is to train and manage their

teams and make sure the tools, processes, and procedures are in line with best practices. However, SDRs often

have good ideas of their own, and the SDR leader should ask for their feedback on the leader’s ideas and how new

endeavors are working. This should be done one-on-one rather than in a group setting to avoid “groupthink.”

Most importantly, SDRs shouldn't feel like their voices aren’t being heard when something isn't working. SDR

leaders are often reluctant to roll back new processes and projects for fear of being proved wrong. While it’s true

that the SDR leader sometimes needs to ignore criticism if they’re reasonably confident that an effort will succeed

once the kinks are ironed out, they should know when to listen to feedback from trusted team members.

BOTTOM LINE: SDRs have surprisingly good ideas—listen carefully.

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“There is no greater evidence of superior intelligence than to be surprised at nothing.”—Josh Billings

SDR leaders are hit regularly with surprises, which can be a jarring and unnerving experience. Ideally, even if the

SDR leader is blindsided, it instills confidence in others if the leader can accept these developments in a level-headed

way. If the SDR leader feels like they might “lose it,” they should take pains not to do it in front of the team.

Appearing stable and steady despite frequent challenges is a tremendous asset when managing a function that’s

so important to the company’s fortunes.

BOTTOM LINE: Practice emotional regulation when hearing bad or distressing news.


Strategic

“I could do great things, if I weren't so busy doing little things.”—Andrew Brie

SDR leaders are generally very aware of the most important things they need to do, usually involving training and

imparting best practices to their teams, among other things. However, the volume of distractions they get is typically

significant enough, e.g., questions from the team, requests and suggestions from others in the company, and so

on, that they find themselves unable to carry out some of the most basic aspects of their job.

To mitigate this challenge, the SDR leader should ask the team to save non-time-sensitive questions for weekly

one-on-one meetings. This helps prevent trivial questions and requests from taking up too much time. Also, a FAQ

or cache of documents needs to be available that addresses common questions that the SDR leader gets.

If the SDR leader holds daily team meetings, the agenda should be visible and open to contributions by all team

members so that when they have questions, ideas, and suggestions, they can be shared with everyone and the

SDR leader won’t have to repeat the same things over and over.

BOTTOM LINE: Accessibility should be bucketed into specific timeslots.

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“Hard-and-fast lines ever cut the fingers of those who draw them.” —Samuel Butler

SDR teams need rules and guidelines; otherwise, they’re sure to fail. The rules should be written down, easily

accessible, and subject to change as circumstances require. However, every SDR team constantly runs into cases

to which no existing rule applies.

Unique situations include opportunities that were sent to the AE team that weren’t clearly qualified, ownership

of leads due to uncertainty around territory, and compensation questions regarding quota attainment. For all

of these issues, the SDR leader can set aside 30-60 minutes each week to hold a “kangaroo court” judgment to

address issues that don’t come under any existing rule.

Ideally, if more than one party is present (e.g., two SDRs or an SDR and an AE), they can both present their cases.

It’s best to maintain complete transparency, keep discussions short, and think about how the issue might serve as

a precedent for similar future cases.

BOTTOM LINE: Allow mechanisms to clarify things that aren’t clear, and make judgement calls.


Strategic

“You are a victim of the rules you live by.”—Jenny Holzer

SDR teams need rules, and while it’s permissible and even advisable to make occasional exceptions, they do need

to constitute the “law of the land.” It’s important that the team knows that the same rules apply to everyone. The

SDR leader often has team members that are favorites for whatever reason, but if they’re going to be taken seriously,

they still have to avoid letting people break the rules.

The difference between a true SDR team and a loosely defined group of sales reps is that the process, rules, and

procedures are well documented and uniformly enforced.

BOTTOM LINE: Generally speaking, rules need to be adhered to closely, except under special circumstances.

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“It is easy to form a chain from a string of zeroes.”—Jerzy Stanislaw Lec

The first version of an SDR team doesn’t have to be great in terms of talent. It doesn’t even have to be very good.

What it does need is basic structure and guidelines, and close daily management. If the SDR leader can deliver

these things, then at least a baseline can be formed in terms of efficacy, performance, and team expectations.

Even with an ecosystem of SDRs that aren’t considered excellent at the beginning, high performers will emerge.

These reps can form the next phase of the team—“version 2.0”—which will evolve as the team becomes more

sophisticated and gains resources.

BOTTOM LINE: Limit expectations early on; focus instead on building out the framework.


Strategic

“The strongest brakes fail on the path of least resistance.” —Jerzy Stanislaw Lec

SDRs love sending emails. There’s good reason for this; the world has changed in the past 10 years; now, many

prospects respond more readily to emails than they will to phone calls. However, there are still prospects who are

easier to reach and more responsive via phone.

At many companies, the SDR team is located with other groups, such as engineering and customer success,

where there’s very little phone activity. The result is that SDRs become heavily email centric. SDRs often become

self-conscious about picking up the phone and making calls, and the company ends up with far fewer prospects

than it would have otherwise because the SDR team is suffering from “phone fear.”

The best way to eliminate phone fear is to locate SDRs in a section of the office that’s at least somewhat isolated

so they won’t feel self-conscious when calling. You can also mandate that the team not become email dependent

and require a tethering of calls to emails, usually with a dedicated cadence for each lead.

BOTTOM LINE: SDRs have to make phone calls, not just send emails.

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“Prosperity is the best protector of principle.”—Mark Twain

Generally speaking, SDRs go into sales so they can control their financial futures. When the team hits its number,

the SDR leader can do no wrong in their eyes. Therefore, this is a good time to get the team’s buy-in on other

things that are important to the company, such as commitment to winning the category, vision for the product in

the space in which they’re competing, etc.

The SDR leader needs these moments in their back pocket when slow times come, and the SDR team may not be

happy with fewer inbound leads or a higher quota. If the team has affirmed that the job is about a long-run vision

and not just a paycheck, then the SDR leader has a better chance of retaining them when they hit the inevitable

rough patch.

BOTTOM LINE: When the SDR team isn’t making money, other mechanisms are needed to keep their

heads in the game.


Strategic

“The more energetic and talented a man is the less he can be restrained at any stage.”—Mikhail Weller

Many SDR teams are lucky enough to have reps with boundless energy and plenty of talent. For such reps, this will

usually be their first and last SDR job, and the SDR leader is lucky to have them. It’s also important to keep in mind

that these highly talented SDRs will have a lot of opportunities outside the company, and so it’s important to give

them some visibility into what the company can do for them.

Exceptions need to be made for exceptional reps. While the company may or may not have a defined career path

available, and there may be limited training and incentives, the SDR leader should try to help. For example, allowing

them to work the booth at trade shows is often an easy option. Another is sending them out with the sales team to

meet customers and prospects.

Most important, the SDR leader needs to treat SDRs with respect, recognizing that the SDR has chosen the company

as their employer, not the other way around. The leader should take care not to treat them in a disparaging or

condescending manner. Respect is worth more than anything.

BOTTOM LINE: In a liquid labor market, high performers need to be accorded extra respect.

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“I criticize by creation, not by finding fault.” —Marcus Cicero

SDRs are usually reluctant to provide direct feedback and criticism to management. They might be intimidated, or

maybe they lack the communication skills, or they may simply be lazy or immature.

The SDR leader should take care to watch the daily work flows and look at the hacks and workarounds that the

SDRs develop. These are criticisms of the process and procedures that the SDR leader and the company have put

in place.

The things that the SDR is doing aren’t necessarily “wrong”; rather, they’re identifying and dealing with inefficiencies

that management hasn’t noticed. The SDR leader should take the time to learn about these self-prescribed

processes and then determine how the problems they’ve evolved to overcome can be addressed across the team.

BOTTOM LINE: SDRs often do things they’re told not to do because they actually have a better way of

doing them, and that has to be investigated.


Strategic

“Nothing is so often and so irrevocably missed as the opportunity that crops up daily.”—Marie Von Ebner-Eschenbach

SDR teams need a sense of mission that has to be renewed daily. SDRs work against daily, weekly, and monthly

goals. They have little incentive or reason to think long-term or strategically, but they appreciate it when their

peers and leaders remind them of the value they bring.

It’s the job of the SDR leader to “make each day new again.” This can take the form of a five-minute morning stand-up

meeting, visits by company leaders, quick time-outs for recognition and awards, or simple notes articulating a

great opportunity or a win that the team scored.

SDRs and their leaders live in world of numbers, and the SDR leader needs to make those numbers come to life in

tangible ways that the team can recognize and feel, beyond just what shows up in their paychecks. If this is done

successfully, the job of the SDR feels like a mission.

BOTTOM LINE: Excitement doesn’t come from gongs or music, but from seeing that the leadership is

focused and fully present every day.

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“Think about what has to be accomplished; forget what you have already accomplished.”—Marie Von Ebner-Eschenbach

SDR teams are only as good as last month’s numbers, and they should be measured and scored monthly, not

quarterly or annually. This keeps the team producing at a high level, without falling into the habit of waiting until

the end of the quarter or the year to make their numbers, which in a highly transactional environment like sales

development, is nearly impossible.

Leaderboards, spiffs, goals, and quotas should all be reset each month. This reminds high performers that they

need to do it all over again and allows laggards the opportunity to finish at the top.

BOTTOM LINE: Don’t let the team stand on past glories.


Strategic

“The chains of habit are too weak to be felt until they are too strong to be broken.”—Samuel Johnson

Records are made to be broken, but bad habits last forever, unless they’re caught early. When SDRs, either individually

or as a team, begin acting in a way that’s contrary to what the SDR leader regards as general best practices, they

need to act immediately.

Usually, the best way to take up this challenge is to address the bad habit directly (e.g., a commonly misused bit

of verbiage on the phone), and tackling it with each SDR on a case-by-case basis. When everyone agrees on the

mistake, the SDR leader can codify it in a team meeting, followed by an email, and then follow up with individual

reps until the behavior is eliminated.

BOTTOM LINE: Bad habits that aren’t challenged early and often are hard to turn around.

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“Who can act or perform as if each work action were the first, the last, and the only thing in his life is great in his sphere.” —Johann Lavater

One of the few skills that’s usually not teachable to SDRs is being “fully present,” i.e., taking care to approach each

activity with care and diligence. This means taking coaching and advice to heart; logging activities consistently

and accurately within the CRM; speaking and writing clearly and concisely, without taking shortcuts for the sake of

getting on to the next activity; and being timely in their responsiveness to colleagues.

A less elegant way to describe this attribute is the “give-a-shit factor,” and it’s presence is typically one of the leading

indicators that an SDR can migrate successfully to other roles. The SDR who will one day become VP of Sales or

CEO is seen clearly doing these things and is thus easy to imagine in such a capacity.

BOTTOM LINE: Behave as though the team and the number are the only things you think about.


Strategic

“The world is nothing but chatter.”—Michel De Montaigne

There’s no shortage of distractions for SDRs, including chat, usually on their cell phones or the company’s chat/

instant message client. For products that the company supplies for employee communication, there are typically

mechanisms for measuring the time and volume of messages, and for comparing team members.

The SDR leader may want to use such rankings to draw correlations among time spent chatting and performance,

and bring it to the SDR’s attention. It may seem like “micromanaging,” but it's acceptable and desirable to measure

the time SDRs spend on activities that work against opportunity creation, not just those that support it.

Use of non-company equipment such as smart phones isn’t easy to regulate, but the SDR leader can observe reps

who spend excessive amounts of time texting and otherwise wasting time. If a rep is below their number and yet

can’t seem to stay off their cell phone, the SDR leader should bring it to the rep’s attention a couple of times, and

then terminate the rep if the behavior persists.

Reps can’t be fully present if they’re texting and chatting constantly, and it should be clear in any case that they’d

prefer to be doing something else.

BOTTOM LINE: If you see reps chatting or texting repeatedly, call them out on it.

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“One who imposes on himself can impose on others.” —Marquis de Vauvenargues

SDRs know when their managers are working hard and when they aren’t. They know when the manager is stressed

and under pressure. They can see the long hours spent uncovering new ways to increase opportunity production.

It’s unrealistic to expect SDRs to work hard if they don’t see their leaders doing so. You can push them to be more

productive in the short run, but they’ll default back to working no harder than the manager. On the other hand, if

the SDR leader exerts significant effort to get the job done, then the SDR team can be expected to follow suit.

BOTTOM LINE: If the team sees its leaders busting their butts, they’ll do likewise.


Strategic

“Clearness is the ornament of deep thought.”—Marquis de Vauvenargues

It can be hard to concentrate when sitting with an SDR team. The questions come fast and furious, and the SDRs

are often on the phone. And while it’s advisable for the SDR leader to sit with the team so they can watch and

listen, there are times, especially when making substantial changes or decisions regarding the team, that working

outside the office makes sense.

Working outside the office shouldn’t happen for more than several hours at a time, and not more than once every

two or three months, but outside the immediate office is often where some of the SDR leader’s best thinking gets

done.

BOTTOM LINE: Finding a quiet place to work once in a while brings perspective.

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“We are not always that which we appear to be most often.” —Marie Von Ebner-Eschenbach

Conventional wisdom among managers is that, to be effective, they need to “get to know” their reps and develop

personal relationships with them. The reasoning is that reps respond better when the manager knows them in a

more intimate, less strictly professional capacity.

For SDRs, this is not necessarily the case. An SDR role may be the person’s first role on a sales team or even their

first job of any kind. Giving them the opportunity to reinvent themselves without questioning their presentation at

work too deeply can allow them to grow into the way that they envision.

Being accepted at face value, without the boss pushing for access to their non-work selves is a great relief to many

SDRs, giving them the confidence to take their workplace demeanor to another level when they find out that they

can be taken seriously.

BOTTOM LINE: Let SDRs reinvent themselves if they need and want to so they can succeed.


Strategic

“Too many ideas, no idea.”—Francesco Burdin

There’s no shortage of ideas about what SDR teams should do and how they should do it. They come to the SDR

leader in all formats and from a variety of sources. In deciding which suggestions are appropriate, the SDR leader

needs to visualize their objectives clearly, from both a “how-many-opportunities-might-this-generate” standpoint

and the leader’s conception of how the team should function.

The SDR leader who takes any and all suggestions without any preconception of how the team should function and

be organized will be left guessing what works best. The net result will be a hodgepodge of projects without a clear

objective.

BOTTOM LINE: Be discriminating with what you try and transparent with what you choose not to try.

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“Patience is strength in the highest degree.”—Gertrud von le Fort

SDRs spend their days trying to get reactions from people, and this doesn’t stop when they stop prospecting. They

look for reactions from those around them continually, perhaps above all from the SDR leader.

The SDR leader, no matter how irritating SDRs may become, needs to keep the SDRs from knowing that they’re

getting to them. The best way to do this is to control communication. SDRs should email, not text, their managers,

thereby allowing the SDR leader to respond in a more relaxed fashion than the perceived immediate response

texts require.

Non-urgent issues should be addressed not on the fly, but rather in weekly one-on-one meetings, when the SDR

leader has the bandwidth to address them.

BOTTOM LINE: Don’t let the team know how irritating you find them.


Strategic

“Nobody is bored when he is trying to make something that is beautiful or to discover something that is true.”—William Ralph Inge

It is often said that being an SDR is a boring job, and people often feel sorry for them as a result. The fact is, if SDRs

are bored, it's because the SDR leader is boring, which speaks directly to the leader’s lack of belief in the product.

Or maybe they’re unable to convey their excitement to their team for whatever reason. Either way, they’re in the

wrong role.

If the SDR leader sincerely believes that their company’s better mousetrap will help customers, taking on the task

of spreading the word can be tremendously exciting. This excitement will be evident in how hard they work and

how focused they are on succeeding for the company, the team, and themselves.

BOTTOM LINE: Big missions should never be boring.

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“There are people whose watch stops at a certain hour and who remain permanently at that age.”—Charles Sainte-Beuve

Not every SDR progresses in their career. Some remain in front-line lead-generation capacities for much of their

working lives. There’s a tendency to undervalue SDRs who haven’t progressed to other revenue-generating roles,

but they can actually be very good workers.

Oftentimes there’s a deficiency with ”career SDRs,” and the SDR leader would do well to know what that deficiency

is. It could be mental-illness or a substance-abuse problem, for example. While knowing all the details isn’t neces-

sary, and it’s likely an HR violation to ask for them, it’s a good idea to at least have a general idea.

Career SDRs can serve a particular function, i.e., taking on the most rudimentary and least complex tasks facing

the team. They usually need careful direction, with all the details spelled out, preferably in writing. Bottom line: if

the career SDR is on time and trustworthy, they can be a productive, long-term employee.

BOTTOM LINE: Career SDRs can be good SDRs, but they need a lot of direction.


Strategic

“There are few sorrows, however poignant, in which a good income is of no avail.”—Logan Pearsall Smith

SDRs talk a lot about the importance of culture and mentoring when asked what makes them happy at work. It’s

true that these things can be meaningful, but typically they become far less important when their compensation is

at or above the targeted earnings that they signed on for when they were hired.

Above all, the SDR leader needs to make sure the SDRs are paid on time and that they have a thorough under-

standing of their commission structure. If they’re getting what they expected, any other shortcomings that the

company might have will weigh less heavily. When their compensation falls short of expectations, however, or if

they don’t understand the commission structure, all of those otherwise “little things” become major problems.

BOTTOM LINE: If the team is making good money, they’ll put up with just about anything.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“We choose the first chord, all the others just follow.” —Witold Gombrowicz

It’s very hard to determine an SDR’s talent or work ethic through interviews alone. Only after the SDR starts

working can the SDR leader know these things and proceed to train and manage the SDR, who may be a star or,

possibly, a failure.

Overinvesting in poorly performing SDRs is a mistake. People don’t change fundamentally, at least not within the

short time needed for an SDR to turn things around if they are failing. It’s best to avoid throwing good money and

effort after bad. Make a clean break by terminating the poor performer and giving someone else a chance.

BOTTOM LINE: Many hires won’t be good ones, but don’t let that stop you from fixing those mistakes.


Strategic

“Don't gather birds together if you fear the sound of wings.” —Ahmadou Kourouma

Gatherings of SDR teams are not ideal settings for extended discussions about strategy, goals, tools, and other

such topics. While it does make sense to have a regular forum to solicit the team’s feedback and opinions, meeting

with SDRs individually is much more effective for getting candid feedback on ideas and issues. In group settings,

SDRs tend to gravitate toward each other’s opinions and settle into “groupthink” quickly.

It’s especially inadvisable to field grievances in a group setting. Typically, no answer the SDR leader offers will be

good enough, and the result will be inflated expectations that the SDR leader will struggle to meet. Getting to the

heart of a serious concern is best done one-on-one; it may be more time consuming, but the resulting consensus

will be more achievable and sincere.

BOTTOM LINE: Talking about issues one-on-one gets a lot more done.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“If you pretend, out of discretion, not to notice a shameless man's fart, he'll just assume you've no sense of smell.” —Ahmadou Kourouma

When SDRs violate company policies and procedures, or the team’s guidelines and principles, they need to be

called out for it. It doesn’t have to be in public, but the SDR leader needs to let the SDR communicate awareness of

the transgression and what actions, if any, will be taken.

If the violation happens repeatedly and the SDR leader does nothing, it’ll detract from her credibility with the rest

of the team and, eventually, the company overall. It’s not rational or reasonable to hope that SDRs will think that

the SDR leader didn’t notice the infraction. They’ll know she did and will be waiting to see what she does about it.

BOTTOM LINE: Be vocal when you see the team doing things that need to be fixed.


Strategic

“It's not how old you are, but how you are old.” —Jules Renard

There’s usually an age disparity between the SDR team members and the SDR leader. There’s some variability,

usually depending on the size of the team and seniority of the SDR leaders, but it’s important for the SDR leader(s)

not refer to the SDRs dismissively based on their age, e.g., referring to them as “kids.”

There are young men and women carrying rifles into combat, not to mention serving as CEOs of highly successful

startups, that are the same age as the average SDR. Focusing on SDRs’ youth only puts up a wall between the SDR

leader and the team, which can poison trust and communication.

BOTTOM LINE: Although they may have less work experience, SDRs can be every bit as innovative and

responsible and others in the company.

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“A man never discloses his own character so clearly as when he describes another's.”—Jean Paul Richter

Every company and team has its own performance-review procedures. In some cases, it’s a formal process that

happens quarterly or annually. SDRs, who are generally new to the workforce, value high-frequency feedback. Even

if the company doesn’t have a formal process, the SDR leader should hold weekly one-on-ones at a minimum, and,

if possible, issue written reports quarterly or semi-annually.

Conventional wisdom says that the numbers never lie. However, qualitative feedback on non-numeric performance

metrics such as coachability, ability to work with others, attention to detail, and general leadership is often relevant

to SDRs and can feed directly into their opportunity-creation numbers, which should remain their top performance

metrics.

BOTTOM LINE: Communicate with SDRs in terms of their potential, not just their shortcomings.


Strategic

“We are tired of not being intense.” —Jean Toomer

Contrary to popular belief, SDRs want managers who push them and drive them to achieve all that they can. For

many SDRs, it may be their first or second job, and it's a great advantage to learn all they can and be able to point

out in future interviews how hard they worked early in their careers.

SDR leaders who don’t push their teams are seen by SDRs as weak and lacking in confidence and authority. They’ll

be disappointed that they work for a leader who doesn’t ask them to give everything they can to the moment that

defines their earliest work experience.

BOTTOM LINE: SDRs want tough-but-fair managers, not new friends.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“Whatever happens, there will always be people who say: It's all completely awful, and others who say: It's all a complete joke.” —Koos Van Zomeren

There are people for whom nothing is ever good enough. No matter how well things go, and no matter how hard the

SDR leader works, they’ll still complain at every turn. Generally speaking, even if these people are high performers,

they need to be terminated. Otherwise they’ll hurt morale and productivity.

Before terminating complainers, it’s a good idea to ask them to please keep their negativity away from the sales

floor. They’re entitled to their opinions, but they still have a job to do, and it’s best for all if they refrain from dragging

down morale while the rest of the team is trying to do its job.

Typically, negative SDRs have been told at other points in their lives that they’re being difficult. Hence, the message

won’t come as a surprise, and they’ll usually honor it.

BOTTOM LINE: Difficult team members appreciate being told how hard it is to work with them.


Strategic

“Love, friendship and respect do not unite people as much as a common hatred for something.”—Bertolt Brecht

If the company has a direct competitor, the things that competitor does should be front and center in the minds

of the SDR team. Salespeople are competitive, none more so than SDRs. Having a competitor in the space that’s a

threat can be an enormous gift to an SDR leader.

To take full advantage of the competitive spirit that an aggressive rival can inspire, the SDR leader should talk

about competitor’s product and feature enhancements, marketing campaigns, and hires second only to their own.

The notion that one should not talk about a competitor may be acceptable in a public, customer-facing capacity,

but internally, the team should be focused on putting a bullet in its head, figuratively speaking.

The competitor should never be dismissed, diminished, or otherwise disregarded; rather, it should be presented as

an ongoing mortal threat, to the team and the company.

BOTTOM LINE: Competitors should push the team to run harder.

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“They would need to be already wise in order to love wisdom.” —Freidrich von Schiller

The SDR leader should temper his expectations in terms of what approval should come from the SDR team.

Generally, SDRs have limited work experience, and while some may have sound judgment, for the most part their

opinions as to the SDR leader’s effectiveness probably aren’t relevant.

The proof of the SDR leader is in his team’s numbers and whether senior management sees fit to invest further

resources in the team. These are the ultimate measures of whether the SDR team and its leadership are succeeding.

BOTTOM LINE: The SDR leader should not look to his team for approval.


Strategic

“No man can be a pure specialist without being in the strict sense an idiot.” —George Bernard Shaw

SDRs do the same thing day in and day out. They’re specialists in the strictest sense of the word, and the division

of labor between them and the sales teams they support is one of the things that makes for a successful sales

organization.

Some SDRs enjoy their work, others not so much. Those who enjoy it are usually good at it, and those that don’t

usually aren’t. However, there’s also a class of reps who really don’t like the job, but are still good at it. These reps

often come from eclectic and diverse backgrounds and have wide-ranging talents that allow them to do many

things in addition to being good SDRs.

Good SDR leaders can keep these reps engaged in their roles, even if it’s not their ideal job. The SDR leader needs

to make sure they’re providing useful career path feedback, engaging the SDRs on matters that aren’t immediately

relevant to their work, and allowing them a bit more leeway in learning about other roles and opportunities. If the

SDR leader doesn’t recognize this interest, another employer will, and the company will have lost a potentially

effective employee for another role.

BOTTOM LINE: Top SDRs may have multiple and varied interests, and the SDR leader shouldn’t see that

as threatening.

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“Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth.” —Oscar Wilde

For the most part, anonymous feedback is not a great idea when soliciting general thoughts and feedback from

an SDR team. Putting their name on it encourages accountability and compresses the amount of hyperbole and

drama that new employees in the workforce are prone to.

Anonymous feedback does have its place. Perhaps once a quarter, a survey that blocks the team member’s name,

but still allows for a numerical rating as it relates to their overall happiness as a team member and an employee,

along with a space for free form commentary, can allow those who may not be comfortable sharing feedback in a

group setting, or fear retaliation (imagined or otherwise), to be heard. It also provides directional data; over time,

the SDR leader can see if the team is happy, or at least which direction the general vibe is trending.

BOTTOM LINE: Anonymous feedback hurts and should be taken with a grain of salt, but it’s worth listening to.


Strategic

“Never give up, because it ain't over 'til it's over.”—Yogi Berra

SDR sales cycles are incredibly fast. The SDR can speak to a prospect on a Monday, and it can be a qualified

opportunity by Tuesday. Or even Monday afternoon.

Things move fast for an SDR team, and an SDR leader can make big pushes to hit big numbers in the final days of

the month. Making deals with high-performing reps to pull out all the stops to beat their number and help the team

win are a great way to catch up when there isn’t much time left. It also makes sense to do “flash contests,” whereby

the team can earn big spiffs if they hit certain attainment metrics over a 48 or 72-hour period.

The opposite can also happen. Months that started out strong can fall apart at the end. For this reason, the SDR

leader needs to be expert at reporting daily. Both the number of qualified opportunities and the number of pending

qualification calls scheduled should be known at all times. Knowing the conversion rates allow the SDR leader

to know at a high level of certainty how the team will finish and what actions, if any, are necessary at the home

stretch.

BOTTOM LINE: Optimism is one of the most important ingredients in successful SDR leaders and their teams.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“To straighten the crooked you must first do a harder thing—straighten yourself.” —Buddha

Great SDR leaders can turn around second-rate SDRs, sometimes through intense coaching, other times by auditing

written communications or better daily CRM management.

In some cases, bringing out the best in an SDR can only be accomplished if they’re assigned to a manager they

really want to perform for, one who can bring out the best in them by virtue of the SDR wanting to emulate that

manager. For this reason, the SDR leader needs to always bring their A game and be fully present and running hard

while on the sales floor.

In doing the job at the highest level, the SDR who may not be giving their all can often turn things around on their

own. For the talented-but-underperforming SDR, this can be a life-changing event. They may never have had the

opportunity to work for a high-performing leader. This experience can change their careers and their lives; hence,

bringing out the best in an SDR has significant personal and professional implications, and it’s one of the most

gratifying things that an SDR leader can do.

BOTTOM LINE: There’s great value in being able to turn around underperforming team members, but it’s

not easy.


Strategic

“The price of inaction is far greater than the cost of making a mistake.” —Johannes Eckhart

Terminating an SDR can be an agonizing experience. Basic expectations should be set during the interview as to how

long the rep has to get up to speed. Also, the SDR leader should coordinate with HR in terms of what the termination

process will look like, and also whether and at what point an SDR should be put on a performance-improvement plan.

The biggest obstacle to removing sub-par SDRs is a lack of viable candidates to replace them with. In the same

way that SDRs constantly think about how they’d be better off working at another company, the SDR leader

should develop a steady stream of replacement candidates. Near-term turnover is inevitable, and the decision to

terminate an SDR becomes far easier when there’s a promising candidate waiting in the wings.

BOTTOM LINE: Get rid of underperformers so you can bring in better talent.

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“Cut a vital connection.”—Brian Eno

Like any great sports team, a great sales team usually has a couple of key players who consistently over-deliver on

their numbers and give the sales leader the volume they need to reach their goals. Sales development teams are

no different. It’s important that these marquee SDRs are happy, and there are a variety of tools and mechanisms

for accomplishing this.

Great SDR leaders know how to develop promising talent into superstars, and they don’t live in fear of one great

rep leaving. When an SDR outgrows the role, for example, they should be promoted within the company, and the

SDR leader should help make this happen. It’s a huge morale booster for the rest of the team, and it gives them

something to aspire to. When this happens, it’s incumbent on the SDR leader to recruit and develop new elite

performers to take the star performers’ places.

The SDR leader should avoid making endless concessions to keep the elite performer on the team. They should go

through a familiar process: recruit, refine, and nurture superstars; have a productive run; then help them move on

and bring in the next star player.

BOTTOM LINE: Teams that depend on a couple of stars, and aren’t able to replace them when they leave,

are second-rate teams.


Strategic

“Wake early if you want another man's life or land. No lamb for the lazy wolf. No battles won in bed.”—Havamal

SDR teams are most effective during the morning hours. Connect rates with prospects are higher, conversion rates

are higher, and response rates to emails are higher. Of course SDRs need to be active throughout the day, but the

morning hours are golden.

SDRs might complain that a 7:00 or 8:00 a.m. is too early. The only option is to call prospects that are in a later

time zone; that way, they can come in at 9:00 and still get prospects between the 8:00–11:00 a.m. window.

If an SDR can’t handle early morning hours, they might not be right for the role. Starting the day at 10:00 or 11:00

is a formula for failure. Even if coming in late does work for the SDR, the SDR leader may still want to replace them

with a rep who can also work the early morning hours to create additional opportunities.

BOTTOM LINE: Great SDR teams come in early and hit the phones hard.

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“The greatest carver does the least cutting.” —Lao Tzu

SDR teams usually have a huge range of talents and skills. Typically, there are reps who have many conversations

every day and can gain prospects’ trust quickly. Other reps can do deep research on a company, write a thoughtful

and complex email that make a powerful business case as to how the prospect can benefit from the company’s

technology, and use social media data to bolster their case.

The SDR’s leader’s instinct may be to try to hammer these reps into fitting a “cookie-cutter” position and action

the same number and types of activities daily. It often makes more sense, though, to stratify the team so that reps

who are highly transactional conversationalists focus on high-volume, broadly casted efforts and those who are

good at attacking the top end of the market—where the most valuable opportunities lie—focus on that territory.

This division of labor allows for maximum productivity by applying the reps’ skill sets and talents effectively.

BOTTOM LINE: Teams have very diverse talent sets, and good leaders try to find ways to make the best

use of those talents.


Strategic

“Trust in God, but tie your camel.” —Muhammad

Trusting SDRs is a complex proposition. They need to be monitored constantly, but if they’re going to grow as

employees, they need to be trusted to do the right things without the SDR leader looking over their shoulders.

If there’s an action or activity they’re undertaking that isn’t measured or monitored by the CRM or other reporting

mechanism, giving them the benefit of the doubt is usually the way to go, as long as they’ve earned some trust by

virtue of their longevity and work habits. Still, it's always a good idea to spot check them.

For example, if you ask an SDR to staff a trade show booth, there’s no need for sign-in sheets and nanny-cams, but

their colleagues should be asked for feedback on how they did, how hard they worked, and so on. Another example

is if they’re asked to evaluate a sales acceleration tool, their overall feedback is the most important indicator, but

asking them to share numbers to back it up is a good idea.

Most things SDRs do every day can be measured easily, but for the things that can’t be measured, they’ll appreciate

being trusted to do things right. Moreover, they’re much more likely to do so if the SDR leader isn’t looking over

their shoulder every minute. Again, spot checking can help make sure they’re doing their jobs.

BOTTOM LINE: Trust SDRs, but not too much or too often.

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“Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thine hand to do it.”—Proverbs

The SDR leader should take every opportunity to promote an SDR, as long as it's appropriate. Career tracks for

SDRs don’t come easy, and promoting them into another area of the company is a huge morale boost to the rest of

the SDR team. It also has a positive impact on recruiting.

No SDR leader wants to lose strong performers. Hence, in the same way the SDR leader needs to be constantly

recruiting to backfill for termination, they need to do the same for promotions. The worst possible thing an SDR

leader can do is deny a deserving SDR an available promotion because they don’t want to drag down the SDR

team’s numbers.

BOTTOM LINE: Take every opportunity to promote a high performer.


Strategic

“Tears despise their sympathizer.” —Rene Char

Being an SDR isn’t easy, nor is being an SDR leader. Both roles require resilience and patience. However, neither

should expect sympathy from the other, and neither will respect the other if sympathy is offered.

SDRs will take all the sympathy they can get, and they’ll use it to their advantage. They won’t appreciate their SDR

leader more; rather, they’ll conclude that they can deceive him into lowering their numbers and making conces-

sions on compensation, hours, and activities. They’ll say that if they only had this or that tool, they’d be able to get

the job done. The SDR leader who expresses pity or sympathy for the team because their job is so hard has little

recourse when they complain for that very reason.

On the other hand, SDR leaders who expect sympathy from their teams are seen as weak by everyone. While it

may be a thankless job, the SDR leader is expected to suffer in silence and project a winning attitude that can help

the team bust down doors. This doesn’t work when the SDR leader mopes around expecting people to feel sorry

for him.

BOTTOM LINE: Hear SDRs out when they’re upset, but then ask them to get back in the saddle.

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“Dirt glitters when the sun happens to shine.” —Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Sometimes a company has a product with tremendous market fit and large amounts of inbound interest. These

organizations are typically heavily engineering and product-driven, with great applications. This scenario—high

inbound interest and good word-of-mouth support—makes the SDR’s job much easier.

The SDR leader needs to avoid thinking that just because all of his reps are hitting their numbers that all of them

are good. There are likely poor performers on the team who simply coast on the company’s coattails. In this case,

the SDR leader should ask for a higher quota number.

It may sound counter-intuitive, but if the SDR leader doesn’t raise the number on their own to shake out the weak

SDRs, it’ll be done for them by senior management, in a manner and time that the SDR leader will find far less

attractive than if they were to manage the process proactively.

BOTTOM LINE: Don’t confuse your good fortune with skill.


Strategic

“Growth is barely controlled damage.” —James Richardson

SDR teams perform hundreds of activities every day, most of which are geared toward persuading prospects to

listen to them and engage the company. This is necessary for the team and the company to grow.

Inevitably, some prospects will be irked by the SDRs’ persistence. Complaints about SDR teams are common, with

everything from angry notes to the company’s CEO to posts on social media to calls to the SDR leader.

The SDR leader needs to walk a fine line when fielding complaints from prospects, whether they come directly

from the prospects or from others in the company who prospects reached out to. In such situations, the SDR

leader needs to let the SDRs know that they did nothing wrong and to keep doing their job. They may want to audit

communications between the SDR and prospects just to make sure they’re within the boundaries of common

sense and decency.

When a prospect complains, some sort of apology is usually in order. The SDR leader can explain that the SDR

meant no harm and was only following instructions, and then make sure to put that prospect on a “do-not-contact”

list, which needs to be adhered to carefully. Complaints made on social media can be especially damaging. A box

of doughnuts or other peace offering sent to the prospect’s office will go a long way toward getting the complaint

either removed or softened.

In any case, it’s a good idea for the SDR leader to take a look at the cadence of messaging between the SDR and

the prospect. Often, it’s not so much what was said, but rather how many times the SDR reached out to the pros-

pect.

BOTTOM LINE: If your SDRs generate a small number of occasional complaints from prospects, it’s actually

a good sign.


Strategic

“The hope, and not the fact, of advancement is the spur to industry.” —Henry Taylor

SDRs need a fast, continuous feedback loop on their performance. In sales, numbers tell the tale, and there’s

often little more by which to judge an SDR or sales person than how they perform against their quota. Most sales

organizations don’t do performance reviews. There are, however, less tangible metrics that they can be reviewed

on, which in turn feed into their performance that results in their attainment and quotas. These things can include

coachability, willingness to help others, attention to detail, creativity, ability to follow directions, timeliness and

consistency in work attendance, problem solving ability, and interpersonal-relationship management.

SDRs should not assume that their career trajectory is a given. They should understand that many SDRs never

make it past SDR, spending most of their careers in lead generation. While this isn’t a bad thing, it communicates

to SDRs that their success depends on their continued improvement.

BOTTOM LINE: Team members shouldn’t assume they’ll graduate to the next level unless they perform well.

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“The man who insists upon seeing with perfect clearness before he decides, never decides. Accept life, and you must accept regret.” —Henry Frederic Amiel

Recruiting SDRs, like sales itself, is a numbers game. It’s hard to tell who’s going to be a high performer. SDR leaders

should have their SDRs meet other SDRs and perhaps other leaders in the company, check references, and then

make their best guess as to whether each candidate will be a good team member.

When hiring a high-performing SDR team, the SDR leader must be willing to take risks. Highly promising candidates

turn into disappointments all the time, and long-shots turn out to be super-stars. The SDR leader should try to

give decent candidates a shot, then move on to new candidates if the previous hires don’t work out. Agonizing over

which SDRs to hire guarantees a slow, inefficient process and slow or no growth for the company.

BOTTOM LINE: Recruiting SDRs is always risky; to get good ones, you have to take a lot of risks.


Strategic

“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.”—Aristotle

All ideas coming from the SDR team should be heard out. SDRs crave recognition and feedback, and they spend

their days getting precious little of either. If for no other reason than to satisfy SDRs’ desire for input, the SDR

leader should give them a regular forum for sharing concepts and suggestions.

The SDR leader should also give honest, timely responses, without being overly reactionary, as to why SDRs’ ideas

may not be timely or sound. The act of engaging SDRs regarding the procedures and methods they use will elevate

the SDR leader greatly in the SDRs’ eyes.

BOTTOM LINE: Let people know that you at least considered their question before giving them a “no.”

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“There are good and bad times, but our mood changes more often than our fortune.”—Thomas Carlyle

SDR teams have many questions, and they need considerable support and guidance from their managers. They

will ask better questions more often if they know what to expect. This means that their managers must display and

provide some level of emotional consistency. It’s better that the SDR leader take the day off or come to work later

if they’re feeling short-tempered.

If the SDR team doesn’t know what “version” of their leader they’re getting on any particular day, they may be

reluctant to ask them things or tell them things that are important. They might turn to other team members, who

could give them bad suggestions, with negative consequences.

BOTTOM LINE: Be consistent with how you present to the team.


Strategic

“The great use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it.” —William James

Great SDR leaders build teams that function well even when they’re not there to manage them. The people, processes,

resources, and leadership should all function in such a way that if the SDR leader gets hit by a bus, there will be

almost no interruption in opportunity delivery.

Key to making this happen is documenting processes carefully; hiring A players who can take on further responsibilities

and help train new team members as they come on; clearly delineating the lead lifecycle and CRM operations;

ensuring smooth, continuous flow of data and leads into the CRM, and providing ready-to-go scripts and email

templates for new and current SDRs. If these things are all in place, the SDR leader can rest assured that they’ve

built a machine that will operate in their absence.

BOTTOM LINE: Build a team and a process that will continue long after you’ve left it.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“Wisdom is learning what to overlook.”—William James

SDR teams are imperfect. Sometimes reps don’t listen; the AEs they support make mistakes; sales operations and

marketing groups can have uneven periods of success; and breakage points are frequent.

The SDR leader can’t control everything. She can fix the biggest problems and then decide what else needs atten-

tion. The issues that deserve the most attention are those that threaten near-term opportunity production daily or

weekly. Big-picture problems often require big fixes, and SDR leaders have to pick their battles. Hitting the number

trumps everything else.

Once the number is being hit, the SDR leader can move on to bigger issues. For example, when choosing between

a lack of clean data in the CRM and sales operations not updating the pick-list in the CRM with reasons to disqualify

leads, the data comes first. When choosing between getting recruiting to source more and better candidates or

making sure AEs are showing up for calls on time and keeping their calendars updated, fixing the issues with the

AEs comes first.

BOTTOM LINE: Use your time to tackle the big problems before worrying about the small ones.


Strategic

“Everything that is exact is short.” —Joseph Joubert

Meetings are a necessary evil for SDR teams. There are times when email is insufficient, and there may be so many

moving parts that need fixing that meetings might even be needed daily for 20–30 minutes.

The cost of running meetings is high. If the SDR team has eight members and the meeting is 30 minutes, that’s like

losing half a day’s production for one rep. To get the most out of meetings, the SDR leader needs to come with a

clear agenda. The agenda should be written down beforehand and shared with the team, and they should have the

option to add to it. If people know what they’re going to discuss and know when the discussion is over, the meeting

will be much more productive. If there’s no agenda, the meeting will likely careen in multiple directions, with tangents

overrunning the original purpose.

BOTTOM LINE: Meetings are important, but keep them brief.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“Violence must be inflicted once for all; people will then forget what it tastes like and be so less resentful. Benefits must be conferred gradually and in that way they will taste better.” —Niccolo Machiavelli

If an SDR leader needs to let go of more than one SDR, whether for financial or performance reasons, it’s best to

get it over with on the same day, at nearly the same time. You can talk to the SDRs individually, but they should all

be let go on the same business day. Otherwise, the rest of the SDR team will wonder if their jobs are also in jeopardy.

Fear and insecurity will spread like a virus, and they’ll spend their time updating their resumes and looking for jobs

instead of opportunities.

Conversely, rewards such as spiffs and bonuses should be doled out gradually. If given out all at once, the mileage

in terms of gratitude and appreciation will be far less than if these rewards are granted over a longer period of time,

thereby painting a picture of consistent incentives, rather than a one-off nicety that’s soon forgotten.

BOTTOM LINE: Terminations should be quick and decisive, while rewards can be drawn out.


Strategic

“What do you despise? By this you are truly known.” —Michelangelo

SDRs watch their managers closely. They note and catalog their manager’s “pet peeves” and will take pains to

avoid these things. If a manager is known for getting upset about the petty and ridiculous—e.g., not saying “good

morning,” or forgetting their birthday, or not joining the team for happy hour, the manager will be thought of as a

thin-skinned social clown who needs the team’s affirmation to bolster their own self worth.

On the other hand, if the manager is known for getting worked up for the right reasons—people coming in late,

taking long lunches, not work hard, forgetting what they were just told, etc.—the manager will be known as a

hard-driving sales leader who’s focused on winning and broaches no nonsense in getting his team across the finish

line.

The SDR leader needs to choose their battles carefully. Spending capital on anything other than issues impacting

productivity and performance is the only way to make sure it’s invested profitably. He needs to take care not to

become personally involved with his team and to see it as a means of helping the company achieve its financial ends.

BOTTOM LINE: Avoid getting bogged down in petty quarrels with those around you.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“We are always the same age inside.”—Gertrude Stein

Conventional wisdom holds that there are a great many differences between the generations. It’s often said that

those just coming into the workforce have an entirely different set of wants, needs, and desires from those with more

experience. Usually these items include a faster feedback loop, more work/life balance, and a viable career path.

For the SDR leader, this can pose interesting challenges. There can be considerable disparity in age between sales

leadership and the teams that they manage. The reality is less complex. People in the workforce generally want the

same things, i.e., respect, transparency, and a structured work experience. These have been aspirational goals for

salespeople for many years, and it’s not specific to one generation. If these things are provided by the SDR leader

to his team, it usually applies to other items on the newest workers’ wish list.

BOTTOM LINE: The more you focus on the team’s age, the bigger a hindrance it will be.


Strategic

“It belongs to human nature to hate those you have injured.”—Tactius

Sales reps who don’t perform either need to be terminated or given opportunities to improve via a

performance-improvement plan. These are uncomfortable situations. The sales leader needs to give the SDR a set

of metrics and a timeline for achieving them to save their job.

Most SDRs don’t succeed in their performance-improvement plans. Usually, they use this grace period to update

their resumes and find other extraneous tasks to work on. It’s bad for morale to have reps around whose jobs are

in jeopardy, not to mention putting data in the CRM at risk.

If the SDR leader isn’t serious about finding the core reasons for an SDR’s underperformance, the

performance-improvement plan should just be skipped and, for the reasons described above, the SDR terminated.

Otherwise, it’s just a waste of everyone’s time. If the SDR leader is, in fact, committed to helping the SDR keep

their job, then the performance improvement plan should be accompanied by a supplemental training regimen

designed to turn things around.

If supplemental training doesn’t work, then the SDR and SDR leader can at least agree that they did everything

they could to get the SDR to where they needed to be. This is the only way to avoid a rep simply biding their time

on “death watch” while looking for something else, and the SDR leader looking for their replacement. When both

parties are honest about their ends, the integrity of the role and the company are maintained, along with what

they’re willing to commit to get there.

BOTTOM LINE: Failing SDRs aren’t bad people, so don’t treat them as such.


Strategic

Supporting AEs and Field Reps

“We take issue even with perfection.” —Pascal

The volume and quality of leads the SDR team produces is often not enough to satisfy the AE team’s needs. There

are a few reasons for this:

1. Many AE teams have goals that are, by design or circumstance, barely if at all attainable, with the result that

the demands placed on the SDR team are often not reasonable, even if the team is doing everything right.

2. Even if the AE team generally hits its number, there are always exceptions. One of the most difficult things for

an SDR and an SDR leader to work with is an AE who’s missing their number. Oftentimes for these AEs, nothing

is good enough.

3. Companies tend to take a dim view of their SDR teams, no matter how talented or well run they are. There’s a

tendency to denigrate these employees, if no other reason than their newness to the workforce or, sometimes,

their silly habits and behaviors.

In all of these cases, it’s the SDR leader’s job to separate the valid concerns from those rooted in their colleagues’

prejudices and being projected onto the SDR team unfairly.

When listening to complaints, the SDR leader should remain calm and not take them personally. The more reactive

the SDR leader appears to be, the more righteous the person voicing the concerns will become, regardless of reality.

BOTTOM LINE: To some, people nothing you or your team does will be good enough.


Strategic

“No easy fine, no mere apology or formal expiation, will satisfy the world's demands, but every pound of flesh exacted is soaked with all its blood.” —William James

The SDR team exists to support the company’s revenue goals and the AE team’s quota. If an AE isn’t hitting their

number, the SDR leader needs to make some changes. The most obvious change is terminating an SDR, particularly

if the AE is supported by one specific SDR. However, before that step, other measures can be taken.

A performance-improvement plan is an option, but it may make more sense to first switch territories between the

failing SDR and a well-performing SDR. This A/B test will help determine whether the problem lies with the territo-

ry, or with the SDR or the AE.

One way to reduce the AE’s dependence on any given SDR is to simply have the SDR team pool all the leads and

distribute them via round robin. This requires that the AEs not be territory-specific as well, but if that can be

agreed by all, it has the advantage of avoiding people being assigned to weak territories, SDRs, or AEs.

BOTTOM LINE: Highly publicized headcount changes are sometimes necessary.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“It is not impossibilities which fill us with the deepest despair, but possibilities which we have failed to realize.” —Robert Mallet

The SDR team’s highest goal should be to address the entire market for the category in which the company competes.

This means that the team needs the data to find all the prospective accounts they can sell to, along with the tools

and data they need do so effectively.

If the team doesn’t do this, the natural result is that someone else will. If the category is a lucrative one, another team

with another product will reach out to those accounts and win their business. The result will be that the company

finishes second at best, with catastrophic results for the company’s valuation.

BOTTOM LINE: If the team doesn’t get the job done, they’ll have to watch someone else do it.


Strategic

“What is best about a great victory is that it liberates the victor from the fear of defeat. 'Why not be defeated some time, too?' he says to himself; 'Now I am rich enough for that.”—Nietzsche

Once the SDR team is hitting its number, the next task is to make sure the volume of opportunities assigned to the

team matches the AEs’ revenue goals. Often, there’s a disparity between the two numbers, and it’s the SDR leader’s

job, along with the sales operations team if there is one, to determine how many qualified opportunities the AE

team needs to hit their numbers.

If it turns out that there’s a major difference between what the AE team needs and the SDR team’s goal, the SDR

leader should take the number of qualified opportunities the AE team needs as his quota, even if he doesn’t have

the headcount to fill it. In such cases, the SDR leader needs carte blanche to maximize the team’s productivity, by

allocating the SDR team’s budget as he sees fit, on tools, less-expensive SDRs, more researchers, etc.

It may seem odd to sign up for an unrealistically high quota, but the alternative is much more dangerous, i.e., ques-

tioning the SDR team’s value if they’re not able to at least try to deliver the volume of opportunities the company

needs. It’s much better to agree to address this problem, illustrate what’s being attempted to attain the goal, and

then be prescriptive in what’s needed to get there.

BOTTOM LINE: Use great months or quarters to challenge the team further.


Strategic

“A man with a career can have no time to waste upon his wife and friends; he has to devote it wholly to his enemies.” —John Oliver Hobbes

Of all the teams the SDR leader is likely to have the most conflict with, the revenue-carrying reps and their leadership

are the most likely. Bitterness and disagreement between these two groups is common, and full-on animosity is

not unusual, which can poison the entire sales organization. At its worst, this situation can become the SDR leader’s

full-time preoccupation.

There are things that can be done to minimize conflict. First, both sides should have the “rules of engagement” in

writing, outlining the lifecycle of a lead and what constitutes a qualified opportunity.

Second, the SDR leader should make sure they’re on the same page as the AE team leadership. This means

understanding what their goals are, how they’re performing against those goals, and how the AE leadership sees

the state of their own team.

Third, discussions with the AE team around leads and reps are best done in person or over the phone. Email

threads often escalate into heated arguments given that people’s incomes are at stake. These misunderstandings

and escalations are much less likely when discussed in person.

BOTTOM LINE: Fighting with your internal customers is sometimes inevitable, but you can caution the

damage done.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong.” —H. L. Mencken

There’s a phenomenon wherein SDR and AE teams make assumptions about how the other does and should be

doing their job. Second guessing is common, and it’s often misguided. SDRs accuse AEs of not closing or following

up, and AEs accuse SDRs of not thinking strategically.

The SDR leader needs to take the lead in getting out in front of this to prevent teams from building up too much resent-

ment and animosity. For the AEs, the SDR leader needs to meet not just with their leadership, but also with disgruntled

AEs, and explain calmly the means by which the SDR team goes about its efforts and the challenges they’re facing.

It’s a good exercise to have an AE walk the SDR team through the sales cycle to help them understand why some

leads close and others don’t, and what pitfalls can appear early on that might discourage the AE from qualifying a

lead that the SDR otherwise assumed was a strong one.

BOTTOM LINE: Avoid the temptation to give simple explanations just to make people happy.


Strategic

“In war the result is never final.”—Marcus Cicero

Sales is a kind of war, sometimes waged against a direct competitor, and other times just in the way the industry as

a whole ebbs or flows with little rhyme or reason. The AE team’s revenue goals dictate the company’s success, and

the SDR team often drives much, if not most, of that revenue.

The SDR team is charged with maximizing not just the AE team’s numbers in good times and bad, but also its

morale. If the AE team has a bad month, it’s the SDR team’s job to do everything it can to support the AE team in

making up for lost ground. The SDR leader needs to send this message loudly and clearly to the AE team. The SDR

shouldn’t necessarily expect gratitude from the AEs, but it should earn their respect and cooperation.

BOTTOM LINE: Run the SDR team with the long-term in mind, not just the current month or quarter.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“All that is buried is not dead.” —Olive Schreiner

One of the most useful functions of an SDR team is following up on opportunities that are considered stalled or

closed/lost by the AE team. These opportunities, except for inbound contact requests or demo requests, usually

have the highest win rates and fastest sales cycles of any prospects.

Oftentimes, opportunities are lost simply because the prospect had other, more pressing priorities, or the timing

just wasn’t right for whatever reason. In all likelihood, they still have a problem that needs solving. Therefore, having

the SDR team follow up with these prospects can yield a steady stream of high-grade opportunities.

BOTTOM LINE: Nobody is better positioned to get opportunities back into play like the SDR team.


Strategic

“It is impossible to produce something good by following models as it is to feed oneself with the food someone else has eaten.”—Multatuli

Inevitably, particularly at startups, there’s endless “we did this-and-that at such-and-such company …” or “here’s

what some other company does …” These statements are meaningful and relevant, and they provide a blueprint for

supporting the AE team, but they’re just data points.

No two companies are the same. Processes for SDR lead generation may be similar from one company to the

next, but it’s folly to try to implement a system or a model in a new company without considering the nuances that

make the product and the company unique. Dogmatically adhering to what worked at another company without

allowing for customization is a recipe for failure.

AEs have very specific ideas as to what SDR teams should be doing. When a new AE joins a company, the SDR

leader should meet with them and get a sense of what sort of experience that AE may have had with their SDRs or

if they’ve even had experience with SDRs.

The SDR leader may need to reset expectations with the AEs and acclimate them to the current process. AEs may

also bring good ideas to the table by virtue of other models they’ve seen, but they must also be tempered by the

realities that company lives with today.

BOTTOM LINE: What other people did at other companies are good data points, but the exact same model

rarely works twice.


Strategic

“People say time heals all wounds. They forget to say that time also inflicts all wounds.” —Koos Van Zomeren

Speed of communication between SDR teams and the AEs they support is critical. When prospects cancel or

reschedule, opportunities go silent, or something changes that one side or the other needs to know about, any

delay in that communication cycle is dangerous and can risk the successful penetration of an account.

Neither the AE who doesn’t work in the office nor the SDR who works from home has an excuse for not getting

back to the other in a timely manner unless they’re engaged in a customer or prospect-facing conflict. Effective

communication between the parties is what makes an SDR/AE support mechanism work, and if they aren’t in

frequent contact, then something is broken.

By the same token, speed-of-response to inbound leads and demo requests is a well-known metric by which SDR

teams should be measured by. Within one hour is ideal, and within five minutes is even better.

BOTTOM LINE: SDRs need to respond to both prospects and colleagues very quickly to be credible.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“States of need are gift-laden carpets.”—Abu al-Fadl ibn Ata'Allah al-Iskandari

AE team demands are often unending. They will constantly ask for more opportunities, better opportunities, and

more help qualifying and pursuing those opportunities.

Although AEs can be annoying, their requests should never be denied; rather, they should be answered with

counter-requests that make the process better and the SDRs lives easier. Counter-requests can come in the form

of spiffs and incentives to the team, more timely reporting from the AEs on the status of opportunities, increased

headcount requests to senior management, and sales-acceleration tools that the team has lobbied for previously.

BOTTOM LINE: The revenue-carrying reps are the SDR team’s customers, and have to be treated as such.


Strategic

“Avoiding something brings it about.”—Bert Hellinger

The most difficult meetings and interactions the SDR leader has are almost always with the AE team leadership.

The best she can hope for is that they don’t go badly. The AE team rarely feels that their SDR support is adequate,

and even if they do, it’s usually a short-lived opinion, as their quotas are likely to increase in the near future.

Despite the difficulty of these meetings, the SDR leader needs to maintain regular contact, usually weekly, to

discuss how things are going, areas that need improvement, upcoming hires and terminations, etc. This is the SDR

leader’s most important meeting of the week, and careful preparation is important, including being well versed on

numbers and data, along with anecdotal evidence to support his position. Not attending or cancelling this meeting

regularly is toxic to the relationship, and the SDR leader will soon find herself on the defensive with the customer

they’re charged with supporting.

BOTTOM LINE: Hoping a problem with an AE just goes away guarantees that it won’t.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“Good fences make good neighbors.” —Robert Frost

SDRs and AEs have symbiotic and complementary relationships, alternately filled with tension, appreciation,

respect, and resentment. No other two teams in the company have the sort high-stress interactions that these

teams do.

To minimize the challenges, clear parameters are necessary. These are known as the “rules of engagement” and

need to be no longer than 5-10 bullet points of 1-3 sentences each. The rules of engagement should define what a

qualified opportunity is, who follows up with what prospects, and at what stage. This simple document will solve

countless arguments and disagreements between the two teams.

BOTTOM LINE: SDR teams need clear, written documentation on who’s doing what.


Strategic

“You cannot feed the hungry on statistics.”—Heinrich Heine

When AE teams complain that they’re starving, most SDR leaders respond by pulling statistics on the number of

leads they’ve produced to demonstrate that they’re producing enough qualified opportunities.

This is probably the single most ineffective way that an SDR leader can counter the charge. First, the SDR leader

needs to note how many deals the AE team is actually winning, win rates, average deal size, etc., and then note

their own team’s productivity. If the SDR team is hitting its number, but the AE team is missing theirs, usually the

SDR team’s only recourse is to increase its own goals. The SDR team won’t win the argument that the AEs aren’t

winning enough deals. That’s a decision for senior management.

The SDR leader can audit the qualification calls and demos the SDRs are setting up for the AEs if he’s not already

doing so. This provides firsthand visibility into whether the AEs are executing. This should be done after the SDR

leader makes a concession in terms of increasing the SDR team’s goals.

By doing this research, which should be performed in a broad and continuous manner—say over the course of 2–4

weeks—the SDR leader can reply that she’s taken steps to improve the situation by increasing the SDR team’s

goals, but has deep concerns about the AEs’ execution on the opportunities already provided. This is a far more

credible approach.

BOTTOM LINE: If the AE team is not hitting its number, the only thing that will be good enough is generating

more opportunities.

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“Nothing is beautiful from every point of view.”—Horace

The SDR leader should not expect much from the relationship between the SDRs and the AEs they support. It’s

not necessary or even advisable to attempt to build camaraderie between these two teams. Conventional wisdom

holds that it’s necessary to know each other’s families, have pancake breakfasts, go to lunch and happy hours

together, and spend quality time getting to know each other.

This is not a good idea. The AEs will often simply use this familiarity to complain more, there will be inadequate

separation between the two teams, and it will blur of the rules and norms that the two groups have agreed to live

by. Tearing down these fences will result in an environment in which AEs ask more and more of the SDR team until

their asks are impossible, and the SDR team will lack the distance from the AE team to push back and say “no.”

BOTTOM LINE: Being extra-friendly with the AE team won’t make things better if they aren’t going well to

begin with.


Strategic

“Each imagines himself the strategist as he observes the battle from the sidelines.” —Shota Rustaveli

It’s easy for SDR leaders to judge from afar the interactions between SDRs and AEs. Both groups are accustomed

to diminishing the efforts of the other and denigrating each other’s efforts behind their backs.

The SDR/AE relationship needs to be monitored closely by the SDR leader. He should sit in on as many discovery

calls and demos as possible, thereby seeing firsthand the quality of the leads his team is bringing to the AEs, and

the AE team’s efforts to uncover opportunities during those calls. This takes all the guesswork out of the “he said/

she said” dynamic that tends to characterize these relationships. The SDR leader can say with authority what’s

taking place and what’s broken.

BOTTOM LINE: SDR teams are second-guessed a lot; hold your ground if you feel that you’re right.


Strategic

Getting the Most from Cross-functional Teams

“Why shouldn't things be largely absurd, futile, and transitory? They are so, and we are so, they and we go very well together.” —Santayana

The SDR team is surrounded by supporting groups and technologies that help the SDRs better support

revenue-generating sales reps. Much of the supporting cast for the SDR team has shortcomings of its own, and

the SDR leader needs to view these issues as things that need to be fixed.

Sales ops, marketing, and IT are the groups besides the AEs that the SDR team interacts with for the most part.

When something is needed from these groups and it can’t be delivered immediately, the SDR leader needs to set

up a cross-functional working group, along with a mechanism other than email through which the working group

can communicate.

The working group should consist of an SDR who can validate the quality of the fix; at least one member of the

team that needs the fix (e.g., sales ops if it’s a CRM issue); and possibly an executive sponsor, such as the SDR

leader’s manager or perhaps the manager of the person in sales ops in this example.

A 15-30-minute weekly meeting to review progress is usually sufficient, and no more than five members of the

group are needed. Six turns it into a committee, which usually impedes progress.

The value of such a working group is that, in addition to keeping everyone focused on the issue at hand, the SDR

team knows that, even if a fix isn’t in place, the SDR leader is working on it and keeping them apprised of project

status. SDR teams appreciate this kind of transparency.

BOTTOM LINE: Keep task-forces small and focused.


Strategic

“Obstacles are those frightful things that appear when you take your mind off your goals.”—David Byrne

A company is a project. It starts with an idea, i.e., that a certain technology will accomplish a certain task. Executing

on the idea is a long-term project, and as with all projects, there are long-term and short-term goals.

Keeping a team focused on short-term goals helps them avoid them becoming discouraged when challenges

emerge for either objective. If the company is looking to go public, win its category, achieve market share, beat a

competitor, etc., the high-level objective can help offset the frustration of a bad month, losing a major client, or

having a valued team member depart.

The reverse is also true. A bump in the road to any long-term goal can be offset by a reminder that the day-to-day

things that the team can control—e.g., opportunity creation and big wins or revenue attainment—are on the right

track. Keeping the team’s eyes on both lets them be optimistic while staying realistic.

BOTTOM LINE: Celebrate victories where you find them to help keep morale on track.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“Genius is initiative on fire.” —Frank Mckinney Hubbard

There’s usually no shortage of ideas in an SDR team. The team itself, and those around them, are constantly coming

up with new ways to do things. SDR leaders need to decide which things make sense to try, and then embrace and

execute those things wholeheartedly. Even if they don’t work, experiments can generate a sense of excitement

that’s contagious, providing a sense of hope for the team and the company as a whole.

BOTTOM LINE: It’s OK to try something that’s doomed to failure if the team is excited about trying it, and

they’ll learn while doing so.


Strategic

“The second step in the right direction is the most difficult.”—Theo Mestrum

Initiatives are easy to start. There’s usually a big kickoff, emails, and a few follow-up meetings, but then these

efforts often stall. People revert to the existing state of affairs and nothing changes. Tools fall into disuse, processes

are forgotten, and sometimes things just never progress after the initial excitement.

The SDR leader should want to be known as someone who follows through. If a new process or tool falls out of favor,

be upfront about it. Was it ineffective? Hard to use? Did it not work as people hoped? Either fix the things that held

up progress or admit that there were shortcomings and scrap the idea.

The danger of not speaking up when progress stops is that it’ll be harder the next time a good idea or initiative

comes along. The team will simply assume that it’ll be one more false start, and then that’ll be the end of it. Closing

the loop on ideas that don’t work out gives credibility for new initiatives. The team will know that, if nothing else,

everyone is learning and moving forward.

BOTTOM LINE: Keeping up the things that appear to be working takes continued effort after kickoff.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“Let not they will roar, when thy power can but whisper.” —Thomas Fuller

The fewer actions that an SDR leader takes, the more significant and weighty those actions will seem. The SDR

leader who hops from task to task without thinking about what they’re doing or how they’re doing it will be regarded

as lacking any reasonable planning or process.

If necessary, block out 30 minutes between meetings to regroup, document what you just did, and prepare for the

next discussion. This kind of time-management translates into authority whereas relying on frenetic activity and

issuing on-the-fly decrees to get the job done makes you look like a flake.

BOTTOM LINE: Try not to through your weight around just because you can.


Strategic

“That ought to be long considered which can be done at once.” —Publilius Syrus

The easiest changes to enact are often the hardest to reverse, and in some cases they’re irreversible. Nowhere is

this more true than for objects and processes relating to the CRM. Before any data-related change takes place,

it’s a good idea to run it by one or two reasonably reliable members of the SDR team to get their feedback. Similar

situations can also arise with sales tools. Purchase and cancellation decisions can have huge repercussions, and

yet they’re often made with little thought given to long-term consequences. Again, conferring with the SDR team is

the best way to avoid mistakes.

BOTTOM LINE: Treat CRM usage as sacred, and make process changes carefully.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“Problems worthy of attack—prove their worth by hitting back.” —Piet Hein

Many things appear to be perpetually broken when managing an SDR team, some more serious than others. The

things that the SDRs are most vocal about aren’t necessarily the same things that the SDR leader spends the most

time fixing. The things that are broken are often clear to the SDR leader, but aren’t problems to the team in general.

The SDR leader should fix the things that pose the greatest long-term headaches. For example, not having a mech-

anism to check for duplicate leads in the CRM and upload leads is a serious problem. The SDR team may not care

about this; they may be pushing for a new sales-acceleration tool, for example.

Good communication is key; the SDRs need to understand that the SDR leader is spending his time to find a way

to check for duplicates. They also need to understand why this is a significant problem. He can even propose a

date when they can start looking at the new sales-acceleration tool, after the bigger problem has been addressed.

The team will likely understand, and the SDR leader can get on with fixing the long-term headache. Going for the

quick win might feel good, but delaying a much bigger issue is never a good idea.

BOTTOM LINE: Explain why you’re focusing on the things you’re focusing on.


Strategic

Leading Like a General

“Never look down to test the ground before taking your next step: only he who keeps his eye fixed on the far horizon will find his right road.” —Dag Hammarskjold

The SDR leader shouldn’t question the rationality of what they’re doing. A company that’s going to win in its category

needs to have a sense of its own inevitability, which stems from an engine that stops at nothing. That engine needs

to be the SDR team.

There’s a dissonance in knowing that, on the one hand, the team may only be one month away from a revenue

disaster if they don’t continue to get it right, and on the other, asking the team to take it on faith that the company

and the team will succeed in the long run.

It’s the SDR leader’s job to balance these things. This confidence comes from committing to installing an ever-evolving

framework of testing and process improvement and iteration, while believing in the product’s value in the marketplace

and in their ability to uncover the entirety of the addressable market.

BOTTOM LINE: Don’t try to plan out long-term success too much.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“The test of a vocation is the love of the drudgery it involves.” —Logan Pearsall Smith

Running an SDR teams involves endless minutiae, including day-in-and-day-out measuring, reporting, managing

petty details and squabbles, and fixing problems that should resolve themselves, but never seem to. The reward for

all this is to be the engine that moves the company forward, and the personal and professional opportunities it can

lead to are nearly unlimited.

The SDR leader needs to avoid being a futurist and must enjoy the daily grind. There might not ever be a glamorous

exit, and the next phase of one’s career can take some time to reveal itself, if that’s what the SDR leader is looking

for. It’s better for the SDR leader to be a numerologist—one who loves numbers and can read value into their

continual transformation and growth. If you revel in the numbers, everything else will take care of itself.

BOTTOM LINE: Running an SDR team well involves a lot of petty work.


Strategic

“Ten wise men cannot move a stone that one fool has thrown into the garden.” —Karol Irzykowski

There are times when an edict subverts the SDR team’s success and even its survival. In such times, it might be

necessary to go to upper management, including the CFO and CEO, and ask for a edict to be overruled.

This is a dramatic gesture and should always be an action of last resort. Otherwise, going straight to the source

of trouble may be the best course, uncomfortable though it may be, and making it clear that you plan to take the

issue to top management if it isn’t resolved.

Going over people’s heads is obviously an awkward thing to do, and it’s a good idea to plan carefully what you’re

going to say. There are two advantages to doing so:

1. The person causing the problem may change tack and give the SDR leader what they’re looking for. It’s possible

that the person causing the problem doesn’t recognize the trouble and frustration they’re causing for the SDR

leader and team.

2. Establishing transparency beforehand helps avoid having the person being overruled feel slighted if the CEO

ends up agreeing with the SDR leader’s position. Knowing in advance that this was in the works gives the

manager time to think over the issue and prepare a response. This kind of clear, open communication is what

every company and team should aspire to.

BOTTOM LINE: If you think something is happening that’s going to destroy team productivity, let the

most senior management know.


Strategic

“The world is disgracefully managed, one hardly knows to whom to complain.” —Ronald Firbank

SDR teams have a monthly or quarterly number that they’re expected to deliver, and if they don’t, the company

will often fail. Therefore, if other groups are creating roadblocks to the SDR team’s success, the team needs to

work around them.

It’s also imperative that the SDR leader have open communication with someone, even the CEO, when another

manager is hindering the SDR team’s success.

This conversation is best conducted in person, outside the office, not via phone or email. The SDR leader should be

prepared with specific examples and supporting data about the damage being done.

The SDR leader should also be prepared for the possibility that nothing will change and even that the person

they’re complaining about might get wind of the conversation. The latter concern shouldn’t really matter, though;

if nothing changes, the company’s prospects are going to be limited, and the SDR leader may want to consider

leaving.

BOTTOM LINE: Tell bad managers why you think they’re hurting your team, and then work around them.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“Don't despair; not even over the fact that you don't despair.” —Kafka

Qualified opportunities are the lifeblood of the sales organization, the revenue that supports the entire company. If

the company gets this piece of its sales process wrong, nothing else matters.

With this in mind, the SDR leader must never give up, or at the very least, not admit it publicly. If the team isn’t hitting

its number, it’s important to make that clear in the forecast, but it also needs a plan to make up for lost ground and

create new systems and processes that will prevent a recurrences.

BOTTOM LINE: Stay as positive as possible.


Strategic

“You are the problem. No scholar to be found far and wide.”—Kafka

The SDR leader is the ultimate owner of the opportunity number, and they’re responsible for achieving that number,

just as the AE is responsible for achieving their number. When the numbers are down, the SDR leader needs to

start the conversation with senior management, their partners, and even their direct reports, about what can be

done to turn things around.

It’s unreasonable to ask colleagues, team members, and others to take responsibility for their parts of the system

that aren’t working if the SDR leader doesn’t do so. If the SDR leader thinks they have no fault, they should think

further, as it’s unlikely that there’s nothing they can improve.

BOTTOM LINE: If the team is failing, ultimately the SDR leader has nobody to blame but themselves.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“It is easier to cope with a bad conscience than with a bad reputation.” —Nietzsche

SDR leaders are often asked to do things that no one else in the company is asked to do. They have to terminate

underperformers, field complaints from prospects about SDRs’ attitudes and activities, hear about lack of support

or volume from senior management or the revenue-carrying team, and take on quotas and goals that may be

unachievable.

The SDR leader needs to respond to all of these demands. Part of the job is accepting the impossible, which often

results in difficult challenges. Over the long term, however, the SDR leader who succeeds despite the challenges

will be known as someone who gets the job done, and their career will progress accordingly.

BOTTOM LINE: Don’t freak out when asked to do the impossible.


Strategic

“Character calls forth character.”—Goethe

SDRs watch their managers very carefully. They can see when the manager is fully present and running hard and

when they’re biding their time waiting for a better role to come along, or simply focused on the upcoming weekend.

If the team sees that the manager is struggling to reach quota and doing everything they possibly can to hit their

number, they’ll follow the manager and apply themselves accordingly. SDRs work very hard when their manager

shows the same resolve and discipline that’s being asked of them.

BOTTOM LINE: Keep your game face on.

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“The moment you enter society, you draw the key from your heart and put it in your pocket. Those who fail to do so are fools.”—Goethe

It’s important that SDR leaders resist taking negative feedback personally, no matter where it comes from. They

need to appear calm and neutral when criticized and not react defensively. This is a practiced skill and often

doesn’t come naturally.

Managing SDRs is the first management job an inside sales manager might have. It’s important to make all parties

feel like they have a say in the team’s direction, and the SDR leader needs to act as the arbiter of what’s rational

and what isn’t. This requires distancing themselves from the team and the organization they’ve built. It requires

the SDR leader to appear not to be vexed by feedback, even if this is not really the case.

BOTTOM LINE: Don’t take professional criticism personally.


Strategic

“One must not depend on one thing or trust to only one resource, however pre-eminent. Everything should be kept double, especially the causes of success, of favor, or of esteem.”—Gracian

The systems and people surrounding the SDR leader and their team need to be kept in a constant state of redundancy.

This means having new data sources available in case the current ones go dry; finding better sales tools than

the ones they’re currently using if pricing changes or functionality decreases; having a pipeline of outstanding

candidates if one or more top-tier SDRs moves on; and having working relationships that can be leveraged should

needs arise that can’t be serviced as a result of colleagues lacking the bandwidth or willingness to continue to offer

assistance.

BOTTOM LINE: Keep looking for the latest and the greatest.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“Do your work with your whole heart, and you will succeed–there so little competition.”—Elbert Hubbard

Sales teams are often poorly run, with little in the way of leadership, process, or general sales ability, and it’s amazing

how many teams and companies succeed as a result of engineering acumen and strong product-market fit.

If the company can build a reasonably competent sales organization, it will succeed, as long as the product works

as advertised and solves a problem that needs solving. Very few technology companies are led by great sales orga-

nizations; having one is a rare benefit, and the SDR leader who can help produce one is of the highest value.

BOTTOM LINE: Making the team reasonably good is sometimes good enough.


Strategic

“The greatest mistake you can make in life is continually fearing that you'll make one.” —Elbert Hubbard

One of the SDR leader’s main jobs is to take risks in hiring, new-processes, evaluating and deploying new tools,

and deciding what to report and what not to report. Seeking to minimize risk is not the best approach; rather, the

leader should explain to stakeholders that the outcome is not assured before the risk is taken. They should also

formulate a recovery plan if a risk doesn’t work out and how to message that.

At the end of the day, risk is necessary and good, provided that even a rudimentary contingency plan is in place

and the SDR leader has generated appropriate messaging as to what could go wrong and, if it does, why.

BOTTOM LINE: The team has to make mistakes in order to take risks, and risks are a must.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“Thus speaks the career: "Thou shalt have no other gods before Me...." —Gabriel Laub

Running an SDR team can feel like an all-consuming job, and at its best it should be. SDR leaders have lives outside

of work, but they should understand the gravity of the role they’ve signed up for and grasp that being fully present

and committed is part of the job.

The most important aspect of committing to run an SDR team is to always be thinking of ways to improve and

looking to share those ideas and concepts with the rest of the team. This is true regardless of whether the SDR

leader is sitting within the confines of their workspace. They can jot down ideas and bring them to team meetings.

The team will love the fact that their success is such a high priority for the SDR leader. If SDRs see that their leader

is fully invested in their job, they’ll follow suit and give everything they’ve got.

BOTTOM LINE: Live your job.


Strategic

“Enthusiasm is the most beautiful word in the world.”—Christian Morgenstern

The SDR leader, like the SDRs they lead, can do basic things wrong, but if they do them with excitement and heart,

it can generate a sense of camaraderie and mission that’s contagious. It pushes the team to work harder, employees

to stay longer, and everyone to get a sense that everything is going to be OK. Nothing raises the morale of a company

like an SDR team that’s running hard and will stop at nothing to get the job done.

BOTTOM LINE: Being genuinely excited about the company and the team is half the battle.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“He who wants to remain true to himself cannot always remain true to others.” —Christian Morgenstern

Being on an SDR team isn’t for everybody, whether as an SDR or a leader. There’s a lot of repetition and frustration.

If a person doesn’t enjoy the role, they’re not doing anyone any favors by staying.

Indeed, it’s perhaps one of the most destructive jobs a person can do if one doesn’t care about it. In addition to

depriving someone else of an opportunity, the SDR or SDR leader who isn’t fully present is basically stealing revenue

from the company by not doing their job as well as it could be done. This isn’t true of other roles and functions,

where second-rate performance is less destructive.

The bottom line is that employees who don’t like being on an SDR team need to be removed as soon as possible

and replaced with someone who finds the role more appealing.

BOTTOM LINE: Being an SDR is a tough job, and it’s not for everyone.


Strategic

“Success is the ability to go from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.” —Edmund Burke

During difficult times, the SDR leader’s primary job is to convey an attitude of “never give up,” by engaging in idea

after idea and initiative after initiative, until something works. Everyone in the organization, from the CEO to the

SDRs, will have only the deepest respect for the team leader who pulls out all the stops to hit the numbers.

This is often a very difficult time for SDR leaders, as they themselves may feel that the numbers are too high to hit

and that the goals are unrealistic. The leader should be sure to remind the team that their number is her number,

and they if they don’t hit it, neither does she.

Avoid relying on team lunches and happy hours to build trust and camaraderie. These things will appear to SDRs

as consolation prizes for unattainable goals; plus, they may feel good for the moment, but they don’t last.

BOTTOM LINE: The team likely won’t fail if they keep trying new things.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

“To lose patience is to lose the battle.” —Mohandas Ghandi

SDR leaders aren’t allowed to freak out publicly, despite irritating SDRs, incompetent AEs, weak marketing partners,

and unresponsive sales operations personnel. If blowing up is truly unavoidable, the SDR leader should leave the

office and work from a café or at home, where their frustration will be less visible.

Even though working remotely is not ideal, it’s far worse to be seen losing one’s composure. It might generate

some sympathy and support in the short term, but over the long run it’ll be seen as weakness, and the SDR leader

will gain a reputation as unable to handle the pressure.

BOTTOM LINE: Never let the team see you coming unglued.


Strategic

“It is common sense to take a method and try it. If it fails, admit it frankly, and try another. But above all, try something.” —Franklin Roosevelt

When things aren’t going well and the SDR leader mentions the fact, the next words need to be, “What we’re going

to try is ...” or “The way we’re trying to fix this is ...” If the SDR leader cannot follow up a statement on how things

aren’t working with how they’re planning to fix them, he’ll seem like a helpless victim of circumstance. He should

be on the offense all the time.

BOTTOM LINE: Be vocal on what the next iteration is.

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“If you could kick the person in the pants responsible for most of your trouble, you wouldn't sit for a month.”—Theodore Roosevelt

Over the long run, the only person the SDR leader can blame for not hitting their number is themselves. While

there may be circumstances that cause near-term misses, the bigger picture is one that the SDR leader alone

paints.

If the SDR leader hasn’t figured out what resources they need to hit their number, they should find out. If they have

figured it out, but haven’t asked for them, they need to ask. If they did ask for them and were denied, they should

have reset expectations for the opportunities they’re expected to produce.

If they did all these things and were ignored, they should take their case to the CFO or CEO. If they still don’t get a

positive response, then they should question the rationality of the company’s leadership.

BOTTOM LINE: Don’t project failure onto other sources.


Strategic

“Pray not for lighter burdens but for stronger backs.”—Theodore Roosevelt

There are times when quota reconsideration makes sense. Before that step is taken, however, the more likely near-term

culprit for a team’s failure to hit its number is the SDR team. If the team isn’t turned over, probably by at least 50

percent, there’s no way of knowing whether stronger or harder-working reps could make the numbers. Rather than

first asking for a lower number, the SDR leader must demonstrate that they’ve maximized the quality of the reps

on the team.

BOTTOM LINE: If the current team can’t get the job done, get a new team.

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“Undertake not what you cannot perform but be careful to keep your promise.” —George Washington

Taking the job of SDR leader means committing to feeding the top of the revenue team’s funnel and supplying the

traffic needed for the company to hit its revenue goals. This is a big job, and before taking it, the SDR leader should

confirm with the CFO that financial resources will be available for hiring; with marketing leadership to understand

what kind of support will be available; with sales operations to learn what reporting and CRM management support

will be available; and with AE leadership to know what they expect in terms of opportunities needed to satisfy their

goals.

Once these conversations have been had and the job accepted, the “bet is made.” The SDR leader will be expected

to meet the requirements laid out for them and have the knowledge and data to do so. If there are any reservations

about meeting the expected numbers, the time to voice those concerns is during the interview cycle, so that either

the resources can be made available or expectations modified at the outset.

BOTTOM LINE: Keep the promises and commitments you made at top of mind.


Strategic

“To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it.“ —Gilbert Chesterton

SDR leaders have plenty of authority to exercise over their teams, along with those who work nearby. They control

the lifeblood of the company. This leverage is best used only when it’s really needed. The more actions they take that

aren’t necessary, the more they’ll be disregarded when they actually need to exert control to improve opportunity

production.

BOTTOM LINE: Make demands rarely.

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“First be master of yourself if you would be master over others.” —Gracian Baltasar

Emotional self-regulation is one of the most important points of credibility when managing an SDR team. Managing

one’s own demeanor when speaking in front of the team builds trust, confidence, and respect.

SDR leaders often lack experience speaking in front of large or small groups, so running meetings and presenting

to their own teams and those that support them may be new. There are many public speaking courses available

that can have a majorly positive impact relating to managing meetings and giving leadership talks. Mastering this

facet of team management will have exponential benefits over the course of the SDR leader’s career.

BOTTOM LINE: Be seen as someone who stays level-headed and well-prepared.


Strategic

“Ignorance of your faults is a greater evil than the fault itself.” —Muhammad al-Siqilli

It’s not easy for SDR leaders to get feedback they can trust. The AEs, SDRs, prospects, senior management, and

other groups within the company are often inadequate sources of constructive criticism as they all have their own

agendas.

The best source of feedback for the SDR leader is industry peer group gatherings, where they can meet others who

do the same work. You don’t even have to seek out actual feedback, just observe how other managers run their

SDR teams to get a handle on the similarities and differences.

It could be that the SDR leader is an elite performer and doing a remarkable job. It could also be the case that,

while the SDR leader considers themselves the star of the show, they’re actually mediocre.

Try to get onsite to see how other teams operate in their own environments. Seeing their physical layouts and

reviewing their metrics and their style can be very useful to the SDR leader.

BOTTOM LINE: It’s OK to admit that there are things you don’t like doing or aren’t good at.

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“You'll learn most when you play against an opponent that can beat you.” —Richard Bach

There’s a phenomenon wherein companies—particularly technology companies—have a competitor going after

the same customers in the same category. Those companies may or may not choose to deploy SDR teams at the

front end of their sales cycles as part of their customer acquisition efforts.

If the competitor uses an SDR team, the SDR leader should do everything they can to learn as much about it as

possible. This means understanding their metrics, goals, methodology, tool set, and general modus operandi.

If the competitor doesn’t employ an SDR team, that’s also hugely important to know. How do they find customers?

Are the AEs doing all their own prospecting, and if so, how efficient is that?

Just because a company does or doesn’t use similar tactics doesn’t mean it’s the right course. It does mean that

it's bound to come up in conversation frequently, and the SDR leader should be ready to talk about it with some

depth and intelligence, and also to action any learnings that may be beneficial.

BOTTOM LINE: Take a close look at how competitors manage their SDR teams.


Strategic

“Obstacles never come from below but from those who never managed to reach the top and are blocking the way.” —Marcel Bealu

Many companies have a “great obstructor,” who’s reached their level of seniority by either having been at the company

for a long time, or being connected to senior leadership, often having known them from a past professional life.

These obstructors are often impediments for the SDR leader to get the things that they need to get the job done.

The SDR leader has two options: They can explain in person, in clear, non-threatening, non-defensive terms to the

person in question why they’re asking what they are asking for. This works surprisingly well. Often, obstructors

are so used to people not even trying, or simply attacking them when they do try, that this approach is new and

refreshing to them.

If this fails, the SDR leader should develop a work-around. Going above the obstructor can work and should be tried if

the SDR leader’s manager is logical and responsive. Unfortunately, this is often not the case. The workaround should

be done with the obstructor’s full awareness and updated regularly in terms of how it’s going. If it works, great; if

not, it opens an immediate path back to the obstructor, who will now feel that they’ve been made part of the team

trying to solve the problem and will be considerably more likely to help fix it.

BOTTOM LINE: Those who are blocking you from getting something done should try to co-opt that source

as best they can.

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“It is ruin to a main to be lost in admiration.” —Muchmmad Shems Al-Deen

SDR leaders are often eager to bask in praise from their SDR reps. Usually this happens when the team is hitting

its numbers easily; a sense of camaraderie begins to form between the SDR leader and the SDRs, and the barrier

between manager and rep begins to break down.

Good times never last forever. At some point, inbound leads decrease, quotas rise, the space becomes more com-

petitive, or some other change occurs that suddenly requires the SDR leader to start asking more from his team. If

this request comes from a friend, the SDRs won’t take it seriously and will simply dismiss it.

However, if during the good times the SDR leader has successfully maintained the demeanor of a manager and not

a drinking buddy, the requests made of the SDRs will be taken seriously. They’ll recognize that their jobs could be

at stake.

The SDR leader who falls prey to rock-star like treatment from reps during the good times will inevitably lose their

job or get a new manager themselves when times get tough.

BOTTOM LINE: Don’t let praise make you overconfident.


Strategic

“Your work is to discover your work and then with all your heart to give yourself to it.” —Buddha

One cannot pretend to enjoy running an SDR team. The SDRs can tell, the AEs can tell, and so can the rest of the

company. Managing the front end of the sales cycle is a fascinating business problem, with hundreds of variables

that can be adjusted to improve output.

If SDR teams were machines, SDR leaders are the designers and engineers. And like any good mechanical engineer,

the SDR leader needs to find their work fascinating at some level if they’re going to succeed. If they simply see it

as a stepping stone to something else, they may indeed achieve that goal, but it might not be as fast as they’d like,

and the role might not be what they think they’re entitled to.

BOTTOM LINE: To be great at lead generation, you really have to like it at some level.

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“The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favor to men of skill. For time and chance happeneth to them all.” —Ecclesiastes

The world isn’t fair, and neither is inside sales and sales development. SDR leaders commonly observe their peers

running similar teams at other companies. Inevitably they’ll see SDRs and SDR leaders who appear to be unstoppable.

Sometimes these are excellent teams, but in other cases they’re leadership and personnel are mediocre at best. In

the latter case, the success is due to great product-market fit, broad acceptance of the application in the market-

place, and a steady stream of inbound prospects that can’t wait to be qualified.

Seeing an inferior SDR operation succeed simply by having a great product to offer can be infuriating. However,

the SDR leader can take solace knowing that if he’s got the basics right, eventually he’ll find his way to a company

that he deserves and vice versa, with spectacular results.

The frustration of watching other SDR leaders succeed without even trying is also tempered by knowing that this

is probably the high point of their careers. Moreover, they very likely haven’t even built a process that they can take

with them. The SDR leader who has to fight for every inch of territory is creating a methodology that will serve her

well throughout her career if she can stick to it and make it work. It may be harder in the short term, but it will pay

huge dividends in the long term. There’s great value in an extremely challenging first experience as an SDR leader.

BOTTOM LINE: Sometimes people at other companies appear much more successful at doing the same

job, but that doesn’t mean they’re better at it.


Strategic

“Beware of someone who wants to teach you something.” —George Ivanovitch Gurdjieff

Beware “the mentor.” There are plenty of people who want to be mentors; unfortunately, very few of them are qual-

ified to teach anyone anything about building sales development teams. Often, they simply want to pontificate on

matters of all sorts and get paid for it. Hence, beware at all costs anyone who wants to commandeer a whiteboard

and start “teaching.”

If the SDR leader feels that he needs advice, he should seek out peers doing the same job at other companies in the

same geographic area—or someone who has recently completed the same type of mission. These peers’ feedback

will be timely, relevant, and meaningful.

BOTTOM LINE: The best people to learn from usually have to be sought out.

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“The direct path sometimes takes longer.”—Bert Hellinger

Outsourcing sales development is an often-discussed idea for generating leads. Conventional wisdom holds that

outsourcing can jumpstart an outbound lead-gen function without needing to invest in the tools, people, and tech-

nology required to do the job in-house, saving time in the bargain.

If the company is in it for the long haul, outsourcing sales development rarely makes sense. However well an

outsourced team performs, an in-house team will have access to the expertise and driving spirit that spur the

company onward and be far more motivated and productive than a team working remotely with only a passing

knowledge of the company.

An outsourced team that performs as well as or better than the in-house team only speaks to how poorly run the

in-house team was to begin with.

BOTTOM LINE: Outsourcing looks good on paper, but it rarely works.


Strategic

“With blinders on, one runs faster.”—Bert Hellinger

Cross-functional relationships are overrated. The highs and lows, and failures and successes of teams outside the

SDR team—with the possible exception of the AE team—are not important. Other teams’ successes are no reason

for SDRs to feel complacent. They still need to hit their number consistently. Conversely, if the other teams falter,

it’s no reason for the SDRs to panic. They need to focus on generating new opportunities regardless of what’s

going on in other areas of the company.

During the onboarding process, there’s value in having the SDR team meet with leaders from other areas of the

company to gain perspective. However, attending quarterly business presentations, product launches, sales

enablement calls, forecast meetings, demo training, and anything else besides all-hands meetings, is almost

always a waste of time.

BOTTOM LINE: Keep the team focused on its goals, not everyone else’s.

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“Let not the day fall upon thy eyes til thou hast thrice reviewed the transactions of the past day. Where have I turned aside from rectitude? What have I been doing? What have I left undone, which I ought to have done?”—Pythagoras

SDR leaders and SDRs spend their days running hard, trying to hit their numbers. At the end of each day, they

should spend 15 minutes or so reviewing what they did and what they would’ve liked to do. This way, they can plan

the next day’s schedule and leave work knowing how the next day is going to begin.

SDRs should come to work with a planned set of activities they can jump into right after they’re settled in, thereby

avoiding wasting time trying to figure out what they’re going to do. The SDR leader should do likewise, finalizing

scheduling of any meetings or events that need to take place, for example.

BOTTOM LINE: End each day knowing what you’re going to do tomorrow.


Strategic

“It has long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let thing happen to them. They went out and happened to things.”—Leonardo Da Vinci

The SDR team’s job is to make things happen. When they walk through the door, things aren’t moving. The company

may have some momentum from other teams and groups, but it’s up to the SDR team to push the company

forward every day.

The SDR leader should always assume that if her team isn’t uncovering opportunities for the AE team, then no one

else is going to do it, and the company will come to a grinding halt. That’s the risk of the SDR team’s failure—not

that the rest of the company won’t do their own jobs, but that there won’t be any jobs for anyone else to do unless

the SDR team does theirs.

BOTTOM LINE: Stay on offense, all the time.

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“It is easier to resist at the beginning than at the end.” —Leonardo Da Vinci

Some ideas are clearly bad from the get-go. They come from all quarters and usually represent ill-thought-out

attempts to increase opportunity production. If such ideas aren’t called out as mistakes from the start, SDR

leaders will find themselves facing projects and initiatives that suck up time and resources that they can’t afford to

waste.

What’s more practical than just saying “no,” however, is to first understand how the idea even got started. Why was

it proposed? What problem was it meant to solve? Once the SDR leader understands these things, she should

then follow “no” with an idea of her own, hopefully a more practical one.

BOTTOM LINE: It’s hard to turn off a bad idea once it has found its footing.


Strategic

“Strike the iron while you're hot.” —Marcel Marien

For the most part, SDR teams are starved for resources. There are occasionally phases of adequate funding, when

support is easy to come by, but this is usually during the initial stages of rapid growth, when the company has

raised plenty of money.

Inevitably, things get leaner, and SDR teams will typically be asked to do more with less. When the SDR leader finds

a combination of elements that gets the company back on track, that’s the time to ask for more resources, and it

should come quickly on the heels of the early promising data points.

If the SDR leader waits too long to lobby for resources, the data may turn against him and the moment will be lost.

He should claim victory early, use the good results to justify proposed follow-on projects, tempered of course with

the disclaimer that past results do not guarantee future returns.

BOTTOM LINE: Get what you need while people are offering.

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“Walker, there is no path. The path is made by walking.”—Antonio Machado

Great SDR teams have a sense of their own inevitability. They’re composed primarily of “A players” who will go on

to do impressive things in their careers. They lead the way at companies not by following a blueprint or frenetically

seeking answers from those who may have done it before, but by testing, measuring, and validating results, and

then trying to beat their own baseline.

Each company in each category is different. The things that make one company’s SDR team great aren’t necessarily

relevant at other companies. A hybrid is stronger than a purebred. Great SDR teams take their lessons from many

places and synthesize them into their own processes.

BOTTOM LINE: Avoid trying to find the answer in what to do from a single source.


Strategic

“Those who increase their stature in the world by debasing the world do not rise.”—Charles Peguy

SDR leaders have many things to complain about, but they should resist doing so, especially regarding how unfair

everything is and how incompetent others are.

The deck is always stacked against SDR teams. That’s what they sign up for when they get into the lead-gen business.

The company will usually do what it can to make things right, but the reality is that no matter how dire the situation,

the SDR team is expected to perform.

If the SDR leader can’t resist griping about the teams and people making his job impossible, the SDR team itself is

probably his worst audience. They’ll take it as their cue to do likewise when they don’t hit their number.

BOTTOM LINE: Try to avoid complaining publicly too much.

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“A likely impossibility is always preferable to an unconvincing possibility.” —Aristotle

SDR leaders need to make forecasts, and their forecasts need to be credible and consistently accurate. Forecasting

how a month will finish should be straightforward, based on the number of qualified opportunities generated and

the number of calls pending.

If the team hasn’t reached its number, the SDR leader must have a deep enough understanding of her team's

metrics and numbers that, if asked what it would take to reach a given number, she can report back quickly with an

answer, explaining what inputs (data, tools, people, efficiencies, etc.) are necessary to get there.

Even if those needs appear extraordinary, they still need to be spelled out clearly for senior management to convey

that the issue is available resources, not the SDR leader who’s asking for them.

BOTTOM LINE: Say what needs to happen to achieve really ambitious goals.


Strategic

“Pray to God that you are always on the winning side, for you will get credit for things in which you had no part. If, on the contrary, you are a loser, you will be blamed for an infinite number of things of which are you are entirely innocent.” —Francesco Guicciardini

There are things very much outside the SDR team’s control that can impact the company’s trajectory. Weak

product-market fit, high customer churn rate, and competitors with superior teams and offerings can all impact

performance. As a result, the SDR leader and her team will face criticism, often unwarranted, that they simply

aren’t able to get the job done.

In reality, the team may have done everything they possibly could, but the deck simply wasn’t stacked in their favor.

The SDR leader should be prepared for this eventuality and recognize that it’s part of what they signed up for when

they got into the SDR team management business in the first place. He should avoid appearing bitter even if he is

and, when explaining the experience to others, describe the things he could have done to get the team closer to

victory. In such cases, it's appropriate to discuss briefly some of the strategic aspects of the company’s shortcomings

that may have led to failure.

SDR leaders who work at companies that appear bulletproof should also recognize the fortuitous set of circum-

stances under which they work. They should not feel invincible when leaving as they will be dooming themselves

to failure. If they don’t recognize the factors outside a great SDR team that made their last company successful,

they’ll be unlikely to look for those same attributes at their next stop.

BOTTOM LINE: You can do everything right, and the team and the company could still fail.


Strategic

Productivity Tools

“The value of a thing sometimes lies not in what one attains with it, but in what one pays for it—what it costs us.” —Nietzsche

SDR incentive programs come in many forms. The two most popular are financial rewards and/or time off if

certain goals are achieved. There’s also significant value in creating a plaque or trophy of some sort that can be

transferred from rep to rep, depending on their performance during a given month or quarter. Having a company

leader, such as the CEO or VP of sales, comment and congratulate the winner in a public forum increases the

award’s value and prestige.

Ideally, an SDR team will have an ongoing set of rewards, prizes, and contests, between reps and, in bigger SDR

teams, between groups on the team. This creates a competitive spirit that highlights the skills of elite performers.

BOTTOM LINE: Create constantly evolving rewards programs that keep the team motivated.

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“Prizes bring bad luck. Academic prizes, prizes for virtue, decorations, all these inventions of the devil encourage hypocrisy, and freeze the spontaneous upsurge of a free heart.” —Baudelaire

Gamification is all the rage with SDR teams. When done within reason, there are benefits. Competition can bring

out the best in sales environments, and it can highlight skills and efforts and achievement in circumstances where

it might otherwise go unrecognized.

However, there are limits to what prizes and awards can do. If given out too frequently (every week or month), they

lose their meaning. If everyone gets one to make sure no one feels left out, it just confirms that “everyone is above

average” and the impact is lost.

A monthly award for a top performer, with some sort of quarterly recognition, along with a contest or two per quarter,

will maximize effectiveness, without it becoming expected and mundane.

Make sure the awards actually result in higher overall achievement. Spending company resources to encourage

competition and recognize talent doesn’t make sense if it doesn’t increase productivity. It’s good to spend prolonged

periods of time without and prizes or incentives on the table, just to get a baseline on what the team does without

awards.

BOTTOM LINE: Don’t get too obsessed with prizes and treats, or they lose their impact.


Strategic

“Action is consolatory. It is the enemy of thought and the friend of flattering illusions.”—Joseph Conrad

Historically, activity levels are the primary mechanism by which SDR leaders measure their teams. This is still an

important metric, but less so than ever before, for several reasons:

First, sales acceleration tools make activity level an easy statistic to rig. It’s nearly impossible to tell, without a

nearly daily audit, the level of quality an activity actually conveys. Second, because it’s easy to action large numbers

of activities, again, thanks to the tools available, this data does not translate into hard work or efficacy even if the

activities themselves are decent.

The only way to determine if a rep is working hard and working smart is to watch the raw activity levels and run

regular audits of them, including emails, phone calls, and social media activities. If an SDR leader isn’t regularly

reviewing recorded calls and reading emails sent to prospects, they may as well not be managing the team at all.

This combination of qualitative and quantitative measures gives the full story as it relates to productivity, not just a

static scoreboard that leads only to confusion and failure.

BOTTOM LINE: Activity levels rarely tell the entire story.

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“Need what recently didn't exist.”—Andre Boyd

New tools and sales-acceleration products come onto the market constantly. Resistance to these tools often

comes from finance and sales operations teams, who fear that the SDR leader is working to build a “tools empire,”

which they assume to be a substitute for hard work and process-driven teams.

The message from the SDR leader needs to be that she is working constantly to do more with less, and this needs

to be illustrated carefully with data around how new products will enhance her team’s speed and efficiency.

Ultimately, successful deployment of tools should result in either a surge in the number of qualified opportunities per

SDR or a reduction in the number of SDRs needed to produce the same number of opportunities that are there today.

If the budget request speaks to these goals, it should be easily understandable to other groups in the company.

No matter what, the SDR leader should never apologize for working to maximize their team’s efficiency with a con-

stantly evolving, experimental framework for tools and applications. They should explain to their colleagues never

to expect a “static state” where there’s no need for further improvement. Testing and searching for the latest, most

effective technologies should be the only constant.

BOTTOM LINE: Think about what the team needs, not what’s available.


Strategic

“The distance a goldfish swims is not controlled by the bowl.” —Les Coleman

The SDR leader has the responsibility to communicate to the team that it’s not the size of the space or location

of the company or the building where they work, but rather the overarching goal of winning the category in which

they’re competing. Their achievements are every bit as remarkable as those of any other company that grew to

tremendous size or won a high valuation, no matter how modest their beginnings were.

This type of imagination can best be conveyed if there are colleagues at the company who worked at a company

that came from modest beginnings; then they can understand that they too can have a transformative experience.

Great SDR leaders revel in the “here and now” and are clearly fully present, conveying to the team that they’re part

of something important.

BOTTOM LINE: Measure success by comparing the team to the best in the world.

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“A failure is a man who has blundered, but is not able to cash in on the experience.” —Elbert Hubbard

Reports and reflections on failure are much more interesting than those on success. If carefully documented, they

give all parties in the organization confidence that continued investment in the SDR team and the tools and appli-

cations it uses is well spent, even if those tools and applications don’t work.

To maximize the value of a failure, a careful summary of the experience, backed by visibility into the deployment

and stages of the process, is essential. Numbers on cost, operational procedures, and how goals were not met all

give needed color on what went wrong. This is usually best done via bulleted list, shareable via cloud-stored docu-

ments or email.

The point of documenting failure is to close the loop. Businesses run well when initiatives are eventually regarded

as successes or failures. Credit and celebrations of success are much more robust and sincere when the failures

are also highlighted instead of being swept under the rug.

BOTTOM LINE: If things don’t work, talk about what you could have done better.


Strategic

“Technological progress has merely provided us with more efficient means for going backward.” —Aldous Huxley

Generally, sales acceleration tools improve team efficiency. There are varying degrees as to how much and for how

long, but in the end, they enable the SDR team to reach more prospects faster and increase the number of oppor-

tunities generated. There are, however, two pitfalls to this.

First, just because the team is more efficient doesn’t mean that the total number of opportunities they generate

goes up. Often, it means simply that the team is producing the same number of opportunities as before, but with

less work. For this reason, the SDR leader should tether deployment of a sales-acceleration tool to an increase in

attainment and/or quota. If the SDR team is clamoring for a tool, they should be asked how much their productivity

will increase if it’s deployed.

Second, the team often becomes unable to operate without these tools. This isn’t a great concern unless the tool

has substantial downtime or is discontinued, or the contract terminates and the company decides not to renew.

This last item is the most likely scenario, and if a decision is made to not renew a tool, the team should be made

aware well in advance; alternatives should be sought; and if the SDR team protests, they should be charged with

helping build a business case for keeping the tool in place.

BOTTOM LINE: Sales tools are great, but good teams can get by without them.


Strategic

“Everybody gets so much information all day long that they lose their com-mon sense.”—Gertrude Stein

Data comes to SDR managers from a wide variety of sources. The CRM produces activity numbers, the phone system

provides data on calls, and the email tool relays information on email success rates. The team itself provides

information from a qualitative standpoint regarding its behavior and general disposition. The marketing and sales

operations teams provide yet another layer of communication, usually from their own tools and data sources.

There are literally hundreds of reports an SDR leader can look at, some numeric and some anecdotal, resulting in

a cacophony of information. The only reports the SDR leader should care about are those that allow her to forecast

how many qualified opportunities she will generate that month and those that track SDR daily activity and production

numbers, preferably by rep. Everything else is noise.

Things like success rate by lead source type, what regions and accounts the team is focusing on, call quality,

behavior on the floor, A/B email tests, etc.—all these things are important, but they should be spot checked and

used occasionally to make decisions on direction. The SDR leader cannot get bogged down in daily minutiae that

distracts her from the team’s hour-by-hour results.

BOTTOM LINE: Pick a few reports and focus on those.


Strategic

Anticipating, and Benefitting from, Crises

“The deeper my crisis, the clearer my choices” —Andrew Boyd

It’s a near certainty that if the company grows, it will reach an inflection point at which it doesn’t produce enough

leads to support its sales organization. At this point, the SDR leader needs to present action plans to senior lead-

ership as to what can be done. Generally, these plans should not be contingent on the success or activities of any

other group in the company; rather, they should be things the team can do that are immediately within the SDR

leader’s control.

The most important thing the SDR leader can do is forecast the coming crisis correctly. She should have a deep

understanding of the company’s revenue goals, the average deal size produced from a given opportunity from the

SDR team, and the win rate. With this information, the crisis can be channeled into a set of well-defined activities

to head it off. Typical action plans usually involve increased headcount, tool optimization, new data sources, and/or

intensive training.

BOTTOM LINE: Tell people as soon as you can when it looks like disaster will strike.

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“Playing it safe can cause a lot of damage in the long run.” —Jenny Holzer

Lead shortages are inevitable. They usually occur when the AE team is well fed and hitting its number and the

SDRs feel like they can do no wrong. At this point, the company leadership and investors will almost always either

increase quotas drastically or expand the sales team, or both. SDR leadership is then taken aback by the new goals

and, in the name of not fixing what was not broken, is left without recourse.

The only fix for this situation is to find new ways to uncover opportunities for the AE team regardless of how well

things appear to be going. This can be accomplished by developing a constantly evolving framework of experi-

mentation and risk-taking. If the SDR leader doesn’t engage in this process, it’s inevitable that when the goals get

bigger and teams more complex, a leader will be sought who favors change and iteration.

BOTTOM LINE: Let people know that they need more leads, and show what you’re doing to get them.


Strategic

“Hunger is the handmaid of genius.”—Mark Twain

Desperate SDR teams are the most creative and the most ready to embrace new ideas and solutions. They should

try everything they can think of to hit their numbers. Many of these ideas should come from the SDR team itself;

they’ll have surprisingly good ideas around scripting, tools, emails, and general tactics that might change the

game.

In lean times, the SDR leader should hold a daily 15-20 minute meeting, with a clear, transparent agenda on what

they’re trying, what the outcome is, and what they plan to try next. This kind of hyper-iterative approach provides

the best chance to increase the numbers, not waiting for other groups to come to the rescue.

BOTTOM LINE: The SDR team can be surprisingly innovative; be sure to tap them for ideas.

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“The art of living lies not in eliminating but in growing with troubles.” —Bernard Baruch

SDR teams are built to fail. How they fail differs only in terms of timing and scope. The failures may be brief, thanks

to great product-market fit and abundant resources, or it may be a long, lethal drought resulting from a poorly sup-

ported SDR team and lack of marketplace relevance.

The SDR leader’s job is to avoid being surprised by these difficulties, by always expecting them and always thinking

of prescriptive solutions. Appearing to be the victim of circumstance is one of the worst mistakes an SDR leader

can make. He needs to forecast how he’ll finish the month and the quarter from the beginning and then run at all

times to minimize the risk of missing the number. The SDR leader should be the biggest resource hog in the company

in the name of articulating what’s needed to achieve the revenues the company seeks.

BOTTOM LINE: Ask for what you need, and keep asking for it.


Strategic

“The way to be safe is to never be secure.”—Benjamin Franklin

It’s in the SDR leader’s best interest to be paranoid about everything, including running out of leads, losing

high-performing SDRs, seeing revenue goals increased (along with demand for qualified opportunities), new tools

making their current stack obsolete, competitors getting to prospects first, or any other potential threat to the

SDR team’s success.

Whatever downtime the SDR leader has is well spent if at least part of it involves evaluating “what-if” scenarios and

how they might already be relevant. If this leads to testing a contingency plan, all the better. These plans are often

best created in collaboration with the marketing and sales operations teams, provided the threat is real enough to

pose a near-term danger.

BOTTOM LINE: Think about worst case scenarios often because they usually happen sooner or later.

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“The greatest foresight consists in determining beforehand the time of trouble.”—Gracian Baltasar

The problems hurtling toward an SDR team are usually evident if the SDR leader looks for them. They usually come

in the most mundane forms, such as lead shortages, SDR departures, quota increases, and so on. If these and

other problems can be anticipated, their impacts can be minimized before they occur. The key is to seek them out

and be realistic about their probability.

Oftentimes, problems are inevitable well in advance. If the SDR leader wants to know about imminent failings, she

needs only to look to peer companies at more advanced stages and discuss with them what has gone wrong and

why. She’ll find that steady-state periods are short lived, and if nothing else she should dive in, in anticipation of the

next problem. The problem is inevitable; only the direction is unknown, and if she’s fortunate, her hunch will be right.

BOTTOM LINE: Look at other companies to see when their SDR teams came unglued, as that’s a good

data point.


Strategic

“Wise men say nothing in dangerous times.” —Arthur Schnitzler

There are many times when the SDR leader should avoid taking on unnecessary risk for himself or his team. When

personnel changes in other departments occur, or when the company goes through multiple leadership changes,

it's generally best to let events run their course and keep one’s personal opinions to oneself. The SDR leader

should try to be as apolitical as possible and not get emotionally involved in the affairs of other teams. Remember,

if you say nothing, nothing you say can come back to haunt you.

BOTTOM LINE: Don’t get involved in company politics.

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“Dispatch is the soul of business.”—Philip Stanhope

Companies do all sorts of things when their sales numbers are down; they terminate reps, change sales leaders,

change their configurations, and blame themselves and other parts of the company, such as product and marketing.

Sometimes they do nothing at all. SDR teams are a lighting rod for blame when the sales numbers are off, and the

SDR leader should always expect to be at the center of the issue.

It’s important for the SDR leader to be clear in taking action and communicating those actions rather than wait for

the rest of the company to act. They need to do it with haste and urgency, and they need to be obvious. This is not

the time to defend the team, but rather to be clear as to what things can be improved and what’s being done to

improve them.

Once the SDR leader delineates the steps being taken, a counter attack can be leveled at the other teams, wherein

the SDR leader shares the things that he believes the other teams need to do better. However, the SDR team

needs to show clearly how the adjustments they’re making will allow confidence to be restored and others to begin

accepting their share of responsibility.

BOTTOM LINE: Try to be clear in what’s not working before other people tell you.


Strategic

“If a man takes no thought of what is distant, he will find sorrow near at hand.” —Confucius

The SDR leader should always be preparing for the next big-picture problem. These problems can take many forms,

but they usually come in one of a few different formats.

There can be size constraints to the space in which the company competes. While the size of the total addressable

market is usually the purview of marketing and the executive team, the SDR leader is on the front lines of the matter

and should provide constant feedback to all interested parties as to the rate at which prospects of sufficient size

and configuration can be found.

Inbound marketing has its limits. If the SDR leader works with a talented, well-run marketing team, they should

assume that marketing is doing everything it can to bring in qualified leads. Should these leads dry up, the SDR

leader will need to redirect the SDR team to outbound activities. Blaming marketing isn’t a viable strategy. This is

not a trivial maneuver, and the SDR leader should think about it as soon as it becomes a possibility, which can be

early on in the company’s lifecycle.

The field team may not be following up on the leads the SDR team produces. This should to be tackled early on

with the revenue-carrying side of the business. If the leads are not being followed up and closed, the SDR leader

and SDR team will be out of their jobs soon, as they exist only to support the company’s revenue goals.

BOTTOM LINE: The more you think about potential problems, the less likely they are to come up.


Strategic

“If nothing else is available, clutch at straws.” —Jack Gardner

If absolutely nothing else is working and the situation is dire, sometimes you have to guess. If the company’s survival

is on the line, trying anything is better than trying nothing.

The sort of “Hail Marys” that usually make the most sense include A/B testing the SDR team by outsourcing lead

gen to a third party; having the AEs do their own prospecting to see how effective they are compared to the SDR

team; turning the bottom half of the SDR team into researchers to generate higher quality data for the top half; or

simply reducing the size of the SDR team to free up more funding for the marketing team.

New tools are almost never game changers for failing SDR teams. If a team is reasonably successful, new tools can

improve performance significantly. However, if the team is failing outright, expectations should be modest.

The most likely, most logical change for the SDR team is to replace the SDR leader with someone who can get

the job done. If the SDR leader’s team is considered a failure, they should look for another line of work or another

company with better prospects.

BOTTOM LINE: Trying something is better than doing nothing.


Strategic

“He is everyday condemned who is always in fear.” —Publilius Syrus

Some companies are continually in crisis mode. Their products don’t work as advertised, their CEOs are incompetent,

they have high churn rates, and they lack effective marketing and sales operations teams. These companies often

have toxic work environments and are an absolute nightmare for an SDR leader, who can count on being blamed

for almost everything.

In this situation, the SDR leader has two options: put her head down, work as hard as she can, and build a wall

around herself, her team, and the rest of the company. This isn’t easy, and it takes a very mature mindset to

accomplish. It’s not overkill for the SDR leader to seek a therapist or coach outside of work to discuss the often

absurd and irrational work environment she finds herself in, as it can spillover into the rest of her life.

The second option is to find another job. Unfortunately, the SDR leader may have a vested financial interest in the

company, which makes leaving an unworkable option.

The conventional wisdom is to go on at least some interviews to see what else is available. The problem with this

is that it makes executing on the first option less likely. Looking for other opportunities depletes the massive

reserves of energy and focus that are needed to stick things out, and what began a casual, opportunistic job

search becomes a necessity. Before going on interviews, it’s best to have already made the decision to leave.

BOTTOM LINE: If the company feels like a train wreck, take a look at other companies to make sure that’s

really the case.


Strategic

“Adversity has the effect of eliciting talents, which in prosperous circumstances would have lain dormant.” —Horace

No matter what direction the company takes, there will be times when the SDR team is under massive duress.

These times might be before or after an IPO, during a fundraising cycle, or after a big miss on the company’s revenue

goals.

Crises can bring out great things in people. Hence, the SDR leader should see the challenge as a resume builder

and the lens through which future employers will see her. How the SDR leader responds to major challenges will

define who she is as a manager and what she’ll do next.

Complaining endlessly and avoiding what needs to be done will help ensure that SDR manager is never at the highest

level of management she can achieve. Should she meet the challenge head on and lead the charge, then she’ll

have an opportunity to progress to the next stage in her career, no matter how the charge turns out.

BOTTOM LINE: Try to use difficult times to find new skills for both you and your team.

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“It is the mountaintop that the lighting strikes.”—Horace

It’s OK if the SDR leader is being blamed for everything. That’s actually a good sign. It that means that the people

surrounding him feels that this is a person who can address their concerns and make things right. It’s a backhanded

affirmation of confidence. If people are searching elsewhere for solutions to problems that would normally be

under the purview of the SDR team, this demonstrates a lack of faith that he has the determination and resources

to fix problems. To be seen as part of the solution is no insult; it’s a great complement.

The SDR leader should be concerned if others voice their concerns to those outside the SDR team, asking that

they help solve the issue. This means they don’t have faith in the SDR leader to fix these things. In such cases, it's

advisable that the SDR leader seek out those with the concerns and offer to work with them, provided they have

relevance to the SDR team and opportunity creation in general. Perhaps those who were frustrated will find a level

of resilience and leadership in the SDR leader that they didn’t know existed.

BOTTOM LINE: If everyone is calling on you to save the day, that’s a good thing because they think you can.


Strategic

“Some things like faith, cheer, courage, you can give when you do not have them.” —James Richardson

SDR teams are under constant siege, and this can wear them down. The numbers might be low, morale might be

bad, and turnover might be high, and the SDR leader isn’t always immune from these problems. However, part of

being a manager is keeping one’s game face on when things aren’t good. Even if the SDR leader feels like the world

is ending, part of the job is to give his team the support they need to do their jobs.

Rather than commiserate, the best the SDR leader can do is list the steps he’s taking to improve the situation.

While guaranteeing a turnaround is neither appropriate nor necessary, asking the team for suggestions and

making sure they’re participating in the various efforts in progress to improve their numbers is very appropriate.

Refining the process with new tools, ideas, and methods generates hope.

BOTTOM LINE: Acting upbeat and optimistic, even when you’re not, is sometimes necessary.

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“An uneducated person accuses others when he is doing badly; a partly educated person accuses himself; an educated person accuses neither someone else nor himself.”—Epictetus

When the sales organization is going through hard times, people look for answers, which often involves placing

blame and what’s referred to somewhat benignly as looking for “bottlenecks” or “breakage points.” SDR leaders are

often on the receiving end of these designations. It’s important not to behave in kind by casting counter-accusations.

The most productive thing the SDR leader can do is collect data, look at the numbers, and diagnose the issues

dispassionately. The SDR leader, while under the gun, should aspire to be impartial on the matter and come up

with data-driven solutions and ideas. Not reacting to attacks is key to maintaining credibility and leadership.

BOTTOM LINE: Whenever possible, try to avoid the blame-game with others in the company.


Strategic

Getting in the Trenches with Sun Tzu

Sun Tzu, in his seminal work, The Art of War, wrote about the practices that lead to a successful outcome in a military

conflict. Sun Tzu’s observations have been applied widely to the competitive landscape of modern business.

Indeed, no part of business resembles armed conflict as closely as sales, especially inside sales. The following is a

selection of postulates from each of The Art of War’s 13 chapters and how they apply to the inside sales manager.

“Thus in military campaigns I have heard of awkward speed but have never seen any skill in lengthy campaigns … One who excels in employing the military does not conscript the people twice or transport provisions a third time.” —Sun Tzu

Inside sales is expensive. Leads, reps, marketing support, CRM licenses, and management all increase the

company’s operating expenses before a single dime of revenue is generated from these efforts. It is important for

the lead-gen team to uncover opportunities early and often. Hence, sales managers should try to configure their

teams and processes carefully before proceeding. If these elements end up needing to be retooled multiple times

shortly after launch, the original sunk costs cannot be recovered, and the executive team’s faith will be shaken.

BOTTOM LINE: Let people know how the money you spent worked out.

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“The general is the supporting pillar of state. If his talents are all-encompassing, the state will invariably be strong. If the supporting pillar is marked by fissures, the state will invariably grow weak.” —Sun Tzu

Great inside sales teams lead their organizations, and great ISMs lead their teams. At small companies, there are

very few layers to dilute management’s directives, good or bad. ISM is perhaps the most highly visible position

within the early-stage ISV and often the most closely watched. Therefore, the ISM’s mistakes and weaknesses will

be impossible to obfuscate to the inside sales team and the executives who are invested in their efforts.

A great ISM is a tremendous source of motivation, creating a feeling of invincibility throughout the organization.

The ability to produce a steady stream of opportunities translates into a grand vision of the future and a positive

outcome from everyone’s efforts.

BOTTOM LINE: Take advantage of opportunities to lead.


Strategic

“Thus the highest realization of warfare is to attack the enemy’s plans; next is to attack their alliances; next to attack their army; and the lowest is to attack their fortified cities.” —Sun Tzu

Startups often compete head-to-head in their categories, are looking to unseat an incumbent technology, or both.

The Internet has produced a huge range of options in terms of tracking the deployment landscape of many of

these offerings. Knowing where competing technologies are installed—and where they are not—can be extremely

valuable in deciding where to focus the team’s prospecting efforts. Also, the locations of the deployment of com-

plementary technologies that integrate and support the ISV’s product can be just as important, since mentioning

this integration or partnership to a prospect can open doors that would otherwise stay closed.

BOTTOM LINE: Try to be aware of where competing or complimentary products are deployed.

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“For this reason, the victorious army first realizes the conditions for victory, and then seeks to engage in battle. The vanquished army first fights, and then seeks victory.” —Sun Tzu

Aligning successfully attained objectives with the lead-gen team’s goals and efforts should be discussed and

agreed before expending time and effort. There may be a huge disparity between executive team expectations and

what the lead-gen team can deliver, and the earlier that gap is closed, the better. At the same time, if those objectives

are achieved, it’s obviously beneficial to call that out as an important achievement and then decide whether the

bar should be raised to even greater revenue potential.

BOTTOM LINE: Know your goals at all times.


Strategic

“In general, in battle one engages with the orthodox and gains through the unorthodox. Thus one who excels at sending forth the unorthodox is as inexhaustible as Heaven, as unlimited as the Yangtze and Yellow rivers. What reach an end and begin again are the sun and moon. That dies and are reborn are the four seasons.” —Sun Tzu

The ability to change is paramount to the inside sales team’s longevity. What worked in one category may not work

in another, and what worked during the inception of an inside sales effort is sure to fail once that particular technique

or vein of traffic has exhausted itself.

The relationship between marketing and inside sales becomes of paramount importance as time goes by. A/B

testing can be most accurately measured via campaigns in the CRM and through the various email vehicles that

measure response and open rates. Great inside sales teams are constantly working to find unusual ways to surpass

their own most successful efforts.

BOTTOM LINE: Teams that don’t change and lead with innovation get beat by those that do.

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“Thus critically analyze them to know the estimates for gain and loss. Stimulate them to know the patterns of their movement and stopping. Determine their disposition of force to know the tenable and fatal terrain. Probe them to know where they have an excess, where an insufficiency. Thus the pinnacle of military deployment approaches the formless. If it is formless, then even the deepest spy cannot discern it or the wise make plans for it.”—Sun Tzu

It is unusual for two organizations competing in the same category to build out large lead-gen machines. Typically,

one will create highly skilled and expensive field reps who own a set of target accounts, and the other will attack

the market with a high-speed assault featuring close coordination between marketing and inside sales. While the

former often wins a higher percentage of opportunities, the latter has a much greater number of opportunities,

so that the field-team’s percentage advantage is often completely negated. It is not important to be the best or

cheapest product on the market, only that the sales team be involved in every available opportunity.

BOTTOM LINE: Watch what your nearest competitor does with its SDR team, but that doesn’t mean copy it.


Strategic

“Thus the army is established by deceit, moves for advantage, and changes through segmenting and reuniting. Thus its speed is like the wind, its slowness like the forest; its invasion and plundering like a fire; unmoving, it is like the mountains. It is as difficult to know as the darkness; in movement it is like thunder.” —Sun Tzu

Great lead-gen teams assume a life of their own. They have a momentum that is self-perpetuating and largely

impervious to extraneous shocks such as the loss of landmark customers, major wins by competitors, failures and

shortcomings in the product and engineering teams, changes in the economic landscape, and the ebbs and swells

in senior leadership support. Perhaps the most important characteristic of this momentum is consistency. Lead-gen

teams don’t change tactics, strategy, or methodology without testing them against another approach. This singu-

larity of effort breeds a sense of tradition and heritage that make change a process of deliberation. As a result, the

best ideas survive.

BOTTOM LINE: Great SDR teams carry their own momentum.

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“Thus generals have five dangerous character traits:One committed to dying can be slain.One committed to living can be captured.One easily angered and hasty to act can be insulted.One obsessed with being scrupulous and untainted can be shamed.One who loves the people can be troubled.” —Sun Tzu

These rules can be applied to the inside sales managers as follows:

• The SDR Leader who is determined to not be fired can be and should be.

• The SDR Leader who wishes only to survive his or her team’s failures never will.

• The SDR Leader who cannot control their own messages in meetings and emails will be seen as weak.

• The SDR Leader that seeks to be seen as blameless of their own team’s transgressions will be seen as the

cause of them.

• The SDR Leader that loves the prospects will be unable to uncover opportunities among them.

BOTTOM LINE: recognize that what drives you may make you vulnerable.


Strategic

“One whose troops repeatedly congregate together in small groups here and there, whispering together, has lost the masses. One who frequently grants rewards is in deep distress. One who frequently imposes punishments is in great difficulty. One who is at first excessively brutal and then fears the masses is the pinnacle of stupidity.” —Sun Tzu

Inside reps spend their days looking for weakness, via phone and email. They are constantly on the lookout for

opportunities. Reps carry this behavior into the world immediately around them, and the SDR Leader would do

well to remember that fact. If reps have to guess what the company and the manger are thinking or doing, this can

significantly undermine both team morale and the SDR Leader’s efficacy. Open communication with the reps and

with the team overall, is the only way to avoid this.

Rewards such as spiffs or being given Friday afternoons off should be used only to recognize effort and achievement.

If they are seen as a consolation for poor working conditions or incompetence, or as an apology for some error,

they will be seen as a sign of weakness and end up discouraging the behaviors they were meant to encourage. If

the SDR Leader or the company has made a mistake of some sort, being honest and forthright about it is much

more effective.

BOTTOM LINE: Try to communicate with your team one-to-one as much as possible.


Strategic

“If the Tao of Warfare indicates certain victory, even though the ruler has instructed that combat should be avoided, if you must engage in battle it is permissible. If the Tao of Warfare indicates you will not be victorious, even though the ruler instructs you to engage in battle, not fighting is permissible. Thus a general who does not advance to seek fame, nor fail to retreat to avoid being charged with the capital offense of retreating, but seeks only to preserve the people and gain advantage for the ruler is the sate’s treasure.”

—Sun Tzu

No one at the company has a better view of the efficacy of the lead-gen team’s efforts than the SDR Leader. Well

meaning, yet poorly conceived suggestions will often be made by the CEO or CRO/VP of Sales. If the ISM is reasonably

certain that following such suggestions will waste time or money, then it is perfectly reasonable for the ISM to say

so. If management insists, then the ISM should pursue these projects only to the point of collecting adequate data

to validate their wisdom or folly.

Thinking like a shareholder is key, and bottom-line revenue impact should drive every decision. Do not implement

programs or processes that look good on paper, but are certain to fail for whatever reason. If, despite evidence

that the effort is a fool’s errand and management insists that it still be executed, then the viability of the enterprise

should be questioned. This is a good reminder as to why most startups fail.

BOTTOM LINE: Be honest about what’s working and what isn’t.


Strategic

“Cast them into hopeless situations and they will be preserved; have them penetrate fatal terrain and they will live. Only after the masses have penetrated dangerous terrain will they be able to craft victory out of defeat.”—Sun Tzu

It is striking the extent to which a highly trained and cohesive lead-gen team can be counted on. Imparting to the

team the significance of their efforts and the ramifications of their failure can have a galvanizing effect. The SDR

leader should communicate clearly to the team that the company’s successful IPO or acquisition depends on their

deep penetration of the addressable market quickly and their uncovering of opportunities with the largest, most

strategic prospects in the categories in which the ISV competes.

BOTTOM LINE: let the team know how much is counting on them, and let them rise to the occasion.

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“Now if someone is victorious in battle and succeeds in attack but does not exploit the achievement, it is disastrous, and his fate should be termed ‘wasteful and tarrying.’ Thus it is said the wise general ponders is, the good general cultivates it.”—Sun Tzu

Persistent follow-up is perhaps the single most important defining characteristic of great inside teams. This

includes:

• Follow-up with prospects who ask for emails after phone calls and the follow-up to the rep from those emails

• The outside rep’s follow-up on the inside team’s discovery call and the inside rep’s verification of that follow-up

in the CRM

• Follow-up with the prospect that was engaged in a full sales cycle but ultimately lost, and the effort to get that

sales cycle back in play

All known prospects within the addressable market that are not customers or have not given defined reasons for a

recent “no” should be followed up with.

BOTTOM LINE: Don’t let details fall through the cracks.


Strategic

“In general, as for the armies you want to strike, the cities you want to attack, and the men you want to assassinate, you must first know the names of the defensive commander, his assistants, staff, door guards, and attendants. You must have our spies search out and learn them all.”—Sun Tzu

One of the most fun and interesting exercises that an inside team—or a sales organization in general—can undertake

is identifying their competitors’ staffs. They can often find their exact opposite number, based on what territory

they cover. A simple search on LinkedIn will reveal most of them. This allows the team to see the quality—or lack

thereof—of their competitors’ sales people. If competitors are well staffed with talented, experienced people, it

instills a sense of respect and competition. If the competitor has a second-rate staff, the team should ask themselves

why they are not defeating them. In any case, it makes the opposing ISV seem human and helps penetrate any

mystique they may have created.

BOTTOM LINE: Focus on direct competitors as sources of inspiration and motivation.

Documents

The Sales Development Bible GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF SALES … · 2019-03-07 · THE SALES DEVELOPMENT BIBLE 2 About Mike Grossman Mike has spent over 20 years in sales, primarily in