Sales Development Representative
A Sales Development Representative (SDR) is a sales role focused on qualifying inbound leads and early-stage prospects, then booking qualified meetings for account executives. SDRs respond to marketing-generated interest, confirm fit and intent, and hand warm opportunities to closers. They are usually measured on qualified meetings booked.
The common split is that an SDR works inbound leads (people who downloaded content, requested a demo, or otherwise raised their hand) while a BDR drives cold outbound. In practice many companies use the titles interchangeably or merge the roles, so always confirm the local meaning.
SDRs are a key step in turning top-of-funnel interest into pipeline. A common pitfall is passing leads too quickly without proper qualification, which wastes account-executive time and inflates pipeline that never closes.
Last updated: 14 June 2026