0:00
/
0:00
Transcript

OK13: How to bring top-tier SDR talent and build future leaders

With Dave Wilkins, ​Founder of Saleswise, & of the SDR Leaders of EMEA community

Listen now on Spotify, YouTube, and Apple.

Chef's specials:

  • ​How to attract the best SDRs (and what traits to look for)

  • ​Spotting Future Leaders early

  • ​Developing those leaders to drive your team forward

In this live session, Dave talks about going beyond traditional qualifications and focusing on traits like resilience, adaptability, and communication skills. We also discuss spotting leadership potential early and giving SDRs mentorship to grow. Dave shares why SDRs should get closing experience before stepping into leadership, it helps build credibility with sales teams.

Perfect for founders and GTM leaders who want to make outbound their top growth engine with the right team!


Who is Dave Wilkins?

  • ​Founder of Saleswise

  • ​Creator of the SDR Leaders of EMEA community.

Connect with Dave:


Some takeaways

Hiring and Talent Acquisition

  1. Focus on soft skills like resilience, adaptability, and communication over traditional qualifications.

  2. Use a data-driven scorecard to evaluate candidates fairly.

  3. Don’t limit yourself, consider candidates from diverse backgrounds like retail, customer service, or entrepreneurship.

Spotting Future Leaders

  1. Look for people who naturally coach and support their peers.

  2. Top-performing SDRs aren’t always the best leaders, being great at the job doesn’t mean they can manage a team.

  3. Check their motivation: Do they want to lead because they care about developing others, or just for the title or pay?

  4. SDR leaders with closing experience are more credible with sales teams, but this could limit talented SDRs who haven’t closed deals before.

Developing SDR Leaders

  1. Encourage SDRs to get closing experience before stepping into leadership, it helps them earn respect.

  2. Offer mentorship and training from outside their team for a fresh perspective.

  3. Let future leaders take on extra projects to prepare for the role.

  4. Advise new leaders to set boundaries with former peers, though this might feel extreme and hurt morale.

  5. Be transparent about earnings: SDR leaders might make less than top SDRs or AEs, which could discourage some.

  6. Don’t promote leaders without proper training or support, it’s a common mistake, especially in startups.


In this live, we cover:

00:00 Dave Wilkins and Leadership Insights

00:43 Unconventional Traits for SDR Success

03:44 Hiring Process and Scorecard System

06:56 Adapting to Change and Resilience

17:03 Future Traits and Business Acumen

23:06 Spotting and Developing Future Leaders

28:40 Understanding the Impact of Leadership

30:47 Challenges of Being an SDR Leader

33:54 Spotting and Developing Future Leaders

37:07 Training Programs for Leadership Development

40:32 Mistakes in Promoting SDR Leaders

46:43 AI's Role in Leadership and Sales

52:23 Advice for Aspiring Leaders