SDR Needs Re-imagining in the World of Remote Working

Returning to work as we know it seems unlikely. The temptation to save on expensive rent, combined with employee’s preference to forgo the commute means we are likely to see smaller office spaces, and staggered team shifts. This will affect traditional SDR teams needing to work close together in a lively space to generate morale and share best practice. Never has there been a better time to re-evaluate how your team is set up, especially if you are planning on new hires anytime soon.

Your company is an individual, understand its unique position.

No two businesses are the same. As tempting as it might be to make comparisons to your peers and formulate strategy, it’s not wise when it comes to your sales approach. Two companies can offer a similar solution to the same customer base and have completely different success rates.  Why? Because it’s what’s on the inside that counts. You need an SDR hiring process, management style and pitch that’s right for now, to give your company a chance of getting ahead.

Readiness to Hire

All good things come from a well organised onboarding process. Who likes to see a new starter sitting at their desk, idle, because they haven’t been shown what to do? Now imagine that scenario with a home-based worker. The fact they don’t know what to do isn’t visible. Sitting around at home is different to sitting around at the office. Nobody will stop by their desk to check they’re ok. The window for the new starter to think of their company as well organised and efficient begins to close. As does the opportunity for them to feel a part of a firm that is going somewhere. When onboarding SDR remotely make sure their schedules are packed, account for each hour, and appraise them against daily goals.

Strong Commercial Lead

When managing SDR you’ve always needed a strong commercial lead to bring energy and focus.

This is still true, however the skills needed to be a remote manager are very different to the skills needed to be an office based one. Office managers can walk past a desk and leave expectation to hit target hanging in the air. Home based managers need to remotely enter their employee’s homes, from their homes, and work on a far more equal footing than ever before. This requires tact and trust, the ability to manage as a human, rather than a reliance on hierarchical structure.

Ease of Concept

The success of an SDR team partly depends upon the ease of which their solution can be articulated. Never has this been truer! Prospects working from home, with all the added stresses of Corona, kids in the background, don’t have time for a waffled sales pitch. They need to hear something that makes sense to them and offers an immediate contribution to their situation. SDRs need the tools to approach the market with razor sharp precision to stand a fair chance of having their pitches listened to.

Hire the right SDR persona for what your business needs now.

Many companies are used to hiring shiny graduates for their SDR roles. Let’s call them Sponges, absorbing culture and product from bottom up and evangelically taking to social media to extoll company values. These types bring energy, life & soul to the office, but present challenges when it comes to remote management.  Sponges need on the spot recognition, daily learn and grow sessions, and a constant, friendly eye. None of which translates well to online, remote management.  If you’re hiring SDRs now, the Mature Independent (experienced, looking for flexible hours) is a far better choice. Motivated by money, not career progression, they can be relied upon to get the job done with much less Management involvement. Perfect for home working!

Hire on quality of work, rather than a personality that fits.

With less time spent in the office, finding new SDRs no longer needs to be a search for the right personality to fit a team environment. Instead the interview process should rigorously test the candidate’s ability to do the job. This means lots of role plays, test emails and product comprehension tests to find the candidates most able to deliver high quality results, regardless of whether they would work well with the person sitting next to them. Companies that prioritise skills over cultural fit, will find their SDR new hires truly diverse, and their company a healthier, more talented place for it.

In conclusion.

Each challenge we are presented with, is a gift of an opportunity when we look at it in the right way. It’s rare to be given the chance to truly re-assess what’s working, and what’s not. Companies that embrace the chance to reflect, and make changes, even if it means not achieving the business goals set out at the start of 2020, will find the strength to become market leaders, outlasting their competitors doggedly sticking to what worked before.