At a glance:
- Pre-onboarding hustle is crucial: Set up all tech, schedule training, and assign mentors before day one to ensure a smooth start.
- Structure the first week meticulously: Balance software demos, team intros, and hands-on training with daily Q&A sessions to keep new SDRs engaged and informed.
- Implement continuous learning: Schedule recurring “SDR Academy” sessions for the first six weeks to cover advanced topics and maintain momentum beyond the initial onboarding.
- Create a 30-60-90 day plan: Gradually increase quotas and responsibilities while maintaining regular check-ins to support long-term success and retention.
- Download our FREE timeline checklist for onboarding SDRs
Look, I get it. You’re reading this because you’re either:
a) Drowning in a sea of SDR resumes and wondering how the hell you’re going to onboard them all without losing your sanity, or
b) Realising your current onboarding process is about as effective as a chocolate teapot.
Either way, you’re in the right place. Grab a coffee (or something stronger, I won’t judge), and let’s dive into the nitty-gritty of scaling your SDR team like a boss.
Why Your Current Onboarding Process Probably Sucks
Let’s be real. Most onboarding processes aren’t exciting or particularly well thought out. You throw a bunch of information at your new hires, cross your fingers, and hope they don’t run screaming for the hills by day three.
(Spoiler alert: They’re probably updating their LinkedIn profiles during your “fun” company history presentation.)
But here’s the thing – a solid onboarding process isn’t just nice to have. It’s the difference between an SDR team that crushes quotas and one that… well, crushes your dreams of early retirement.
Pre-Onboarding: Setting the Stage
Before your shiny new SDR even steps foot in the office, you’ve got work to do.
- Book Those Training Sessions: Don’t wing it. Schedule every damn training session in advance. Your future self will thank you.
- Assign Training on Your Sales Training Platform: (We use Allego, but whatever floats your boat). Pro tip: Make it engaging. If your training content is putting you to sleep, imagine what it’s doing to your new hires.
- Allocate a Line Manager and Buddy: Because everyone needs a work bestie and someone to impress.
- Block Out Their First Two Weeks: Trust me, an empty calendar is the devil’s playground. Fill it up!
- Invite Them to Recurring Team Meetings: Nothing says “welcome to the family” like being voluntold to attend weekly status updates.
- Set Up All the Tech: Email, sales enablement platform, internal chat, server access – get it all sorted before day one. There’s nothing worse than a new hire twiddling their thumbs because IT “forgot” to set up their access.
Day One: The Make-or-Break Day
Ah, day one. The day when your new SDR is equal parts excited and terrified. Your job? Make sure excitement wins.
- Morning Team Call: Introduce your newbie to the team.
- Software & Server Demo: Show them where all the good stuff is hidden. And by good stuff, I mean the tools they’ll need to crush their quotas.
- Onboarding Presentation: Keep it snappy. If you find yourself diving into the company’s 50-year history, stop. Just stop.
- Line Manager Intro: Time for the “I’m not here to be your friend, but also please like me” chat.
- Client Manager Intro: Because they need to know who to impress (besides you, obviously).
- Knowledge Hub Readthrough: Give them time to actually read the stuff you’re throwing at them. Novel concept, I know.
- Buddy Intro: Introduce them to their new work BFF. Choose wisely – this person will shape their entire experience.
- Q&A Session: Let them ask the burning questions. Like “Where’s the bathroom?” and “Is it true that the last SDR who missed quota was never seen again?”
The Rest of Week One
The rest of the week is all about immersion. Call listening, live shadowing, training, and more training. But here’s the kicker – end each day with a Q&A session. Why? Because if you don’t, they’ll be asking these questions on Slack at 11 PM, and nobody wants that.
The Secret Sauce: Continuous Learning
Here’s where most companies drop the ball. They front-load all the training in the first week and then throw their SDRs to the wolves. Not us. We’re smarter than that.
Set up a recurring “SDR Academy” session every Monday morning for the first six weeks. Cover a new module each week, from cold calling techniques to handling objections like a pro.
(Pro tip: Schedule these sessions for 9:15 AM. It’s early enough to show you mean business, but late enough that your SDRs won’t hate you… much.)
The 30-60-90 Day Plan
Don’t just wing it after the first week. Have a solid plan for the first 30, 60, and 90 days. Include check-ins, advanced training, and gradually increasing quotas.
And for the love of all that is holy, schedule those 1:1 meetings. Weekly for the first month, then monthly after that. Your SDRs need face time with you more than they need another sales script.
The Bottom Line
Scaling your SDR team isn’t just about hiring more people. It’s about creating a well-oiled machine that can onboard, train, and retain top talent faster than your competitors can say “pipeline.”
Remember, your onboarding process is the first real taste your new SDRs get of your company culture. Make it count. Make it engaging. And for Pete’s sake, make it better than a two-hour PowerPoint presentation on your company’s mission statement.
Now go forth and scale that team. Your future self (and your bottom line) will thank you.
P.S. If all of this sounds like too much work, well… that’s why companies like Punch! exist. Just saying. 😉 And if you want to run the numbers, try our True Cost of Hiring and SDR calculator.
