Emily Brak

I've been on basically every side of this decision. I was an in-house SDR. I managed an in-house team. I've seen agency and SDR-as-a-service pitches from the buyer's side. Now I build the AI systems that replace all three. So let's actually break this down honestly. In-House SDR Team Pros: Deep product knowledge, full control over process, direct alignment with sales leadership. Cons: High fully loaded cost per rep (often $90K-$120K+ year one), 60-90 day ramp time, high turnover, constant...

Every SDR job posting talks about quota, tools, and career growth. Almost none of them talk about the thing that quietly costs companies the most money: ramp time. What Ramp Time Actually Looks Like I built training programs specifically designed to shrink this window, and even with tight onboarding, a new SDR realistically needs 60 to 90 days before they're producing at full capacity. That's two to three months of a full salary, full tool access, and management time going toward someone...

Every sales leader I've talked to has said some version of this: "our pipeline problem is a talent problem, we just need better reps." I used to think this too, right up until I had actual data on a team of SDRs telling me otherwise. What the Data Actually Showed When I took over managing the team, I pulled every KPI I could: activity volume, conversion rates by stage, time spent per task, quota attainment. I expected to find that the top performers were just more talented. What I actually...