Outbound SDR to Inbound SDR--am I the sales equivalent of a super senior or is this a good thing?

Question

Hi all,

I'm an SDR at a SaaS startup in the IT space--as of December I'll have made it a full year there, and it's been one hell of a rocky year.

I've had performance that's just OK (haven't blown anything out of the water, have mostly been totally alone on SDR team, and I did keep up with some AEs for meetings booked) and my boss basically just gave me a pretty strong recommendation to take an inbound SDR role that's opening up as the company (finally) scales as I just set a ton of meetings from out first conference.

Is the pathway to the golden position of AE still open from this sort of role? Is this a 'those who can, get outbound, those who cannot handle outbound do inbound' kind of deal?

I'm curious to know your thoughts and if this is a compliment or a participation trophy--and if it means my earning potential will go way down.

Best,

highlyinadvisable

PS: this is structured like an email but was so unintentionally out of reflex 🥴

Accepted Answer

It’s a demotion. Inbound SDR is usually the entry point because all you’re doing is qualifying leads that come your way. Outbound is a step up from that, and then AE. I’m sorry to tell you, your journey just got at least 2 years longer, unless you leave the company to be AE somewhere else and don’t mention inbound SDR on your resume.

Answer

Of critical importance: *why* did your boss strongly recommend you move from outbound to inbound?

Answer

I'm with @braintank here in asking why it happened. Exactly. Was it because they know they need a killer who can convert the inbound leads at a massively high rate...or does he think you are shit on the bottom of his shoe?

Answer

Context matters, agree with the others saying you need to know why this is happening. More than likely its a step back and they cant afford to fire someone else right now and need you to produce.

Answer

Hey @highlyinadvisable congrats!

Answer

While I'm inclined to say it's a bit of a step back, I've known companies that treat their inbound leads like gold and want their best guys on them. It's possible he thinks you'll just get more out of them.

Answer

Inbound is a very different beast and I've seen roles where inbound/outbound were combined for SDRs, In this case if the volume is there for Inbound and you can hit solid numbers and the manager is up front and says this will help you get to AE because right now you don't have a chance then I'd probably take it, usually going outbound to in though is a demotion instead of a promotion.

highlyinadvisable

Outbound SDR to Inbound SDR--am I the sales equivalent of a super senior or is this a good thing?

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