1. Morale- What you are reading in previous reviews about poor morale on the sales floor is echoed by the SDR team. No one wants to be in the office due to the depressing atmosphere and it is shown by empty desks.
2. Management- Managers are hardly ever in the office and offer very little support. They take long vacations and spend very little time with their teams. When they do spend time with their teams there is very little coaching.
3. Compensation- Comp is low compared to other SDR roles in the Bay Area. When this was pointed out in a previous review management defended the low pay as being close to the national average. Unfortunately rent and living expenses in San Francisco are nowhere near the national average and the sad truth is that most of the SDRs can barely afford to live on the pay even when they are hitting full quota. When I took this job it seemed like an okay income for a year but raises and promotions are hard to come in this role, you can make more doing the same thing elsewhere.
4. Quota- Quota is high and it keeps going up. The team members who are hitting these quotas are working outside of work hours making it seem like this is obtainable and forcing others to do the same. Often there are factors outside of the SDR's control that affect ability to hit quota and SQLs are loosely defined and up to the individual rep discretion. Once you have a bad month it is very hard to make up for it and get back on track for promotion.
5. Processes- It seems like every month new processes and regulations are rolled out and that upper management is trying to make their mark on the program by making unnecessary changes. The majority of these processes have been poorly executed, time consuming, and unnecessary. It just keeps getting harder to earn our measly income to (barely) pay the rent.
6. Career Advancement- Unrealistic expectations were set for career advancement. My advice to people interested in joining the team- ONLY take this position if you are interested in joining the new business AE sales team. Any other position (including CSM, AM, marketing, PR, HR, etc) is basically unobtainable unless you are really lucky and stick around much longer.