Sales Development Representative interview questions.

What a good answer looks like: Instant fluency: real numbers with texture ("60-80 dials, ~8% connect, 12-15 meetings a month against a target of 12, best month 19"). They should know which number was their bottleneck and what they tried against it. Hesitation or round-number vagueness usually means the metrics belonged to the team, not the candidate.

Red flags: Doesn't know their own conversion rates; quotes only "percent to quota" with no activity numbers behind it.

What a good answer looks like: A motivated, honest arc: most good answers name the AE path, a few name ops or management, all connect the grind of the SDR seat to that goal. What you're screening for is whether they understand the job IS the grind — answers romanticizing "talking to people all day" suggest they haven't done it yet.

What a good answer looks like: Structure under time pressure: a hook tied to a problem, one or two proof points, and a question back to the buyer rather than a monologue. Grade the instinct to make it a conversation — the best SDRs end a pitch with discovery, not a feature list. Delivery polish matters less than shape.

Follow-up to ask: Now do it again in two sentences for a voicemail.

What a good answer looks like: Evidence of real preparation: they've read the site, can name the buyer persona, and take an honest shot at the value prop in their own words — including saying "I'm not sure about X, tell me more," which is exactly what a good SDR does on a discovery call. Research discipline in the interview predicts research discipline per account.

Red flags: Hasn't looked at the website; pitch could describe any company.

What a good answer looks like: An honest account with mechanics: how long the streak ran, what it did to their head, and the concrete reset (reviewing call recordings, changing the list, asking a top rep to listen live). "I just kept dialing" is only half an answer — persistence plus diagnosis is the pattern you want.

Follow-up to ask: What did your manager see in your numbers that week, and what did you tell them?

What a good answer looks like: A specific piece of feedback quoted almost verbatim ("your emails bury the ask"), the emotional beat of hearing it, and the visible change afterward — ideally with a before/after result. Candidates who can't recall any hard feedback have either never been coached or never listened; both are disqualifying for a coachability-first seat.

What a good answer looks like: Ownership with a funnel diagnosis: where the miss actually happened (activity? connects? show rate?), what they changed specifically, and what the next month looked like. Blaming territory or lead quality exclusively — even when partly true — without any self-directed adjustment is the red flag.

What a good answer looks like: Constructive channel: they tested their alternative on a small slice, brought data to the manager, or asked why the rule existed before pushing. You're screening for reps who improve the machine without going rogue on it — quiet compliance and loud rebellion are both worse than the experiment-then-escalate pattern.

What a good answer looks like: Revenue math first: the inbound demo request is the highest-intent moment of the day and gets handled now; the dials get finished or honestly renegotiated with the manager afterward. Grade the transparency instinct — great answers include telling the manager about the trade-off, not silently juggling.

What a good answer looks like: Integrity without drama: most strong answers talk to the teammate first, then escalate if it continues — some go straight to the manager, which is also defensible. What you cannot accept is "not my business": fake pipeline poisons forecasts and team trust, and the candidate should show they understand why it matters.

What a good answer looks like: A debugging mindset applied to outbound: check deliverability first (spam placement, domain health), then list quality, then seasonality, then message fatigue — changing one variable at a time instead of panic-rewriting everything. This question cleanly separates process thinkers from vibes operators.

What a good answer looks like: A bounded, repeatable ritual: 3-5 minutes per account, checking specific signals (hiring pages, tech stack, recent funding or leadership changes, LinkedIn activity) and turning ONE of them into the opening line. Watch for the volume/personalization trade-off being handled deliberately rather than piously ("I deeply research every account" at 80 accounts a day is not true).

What a good answer looks like: Willingness to draft live plus sound instincts: short subject, an opener about the PROSPECT (their trigger, their problem) rather than "I'm reaching out from...", and a low-friction ask. Grade the revision loop too — offer one piece of feedback and see if the second draft improves. That loop is the job.

Follow-up to ask: That subject line — make it five words or fewer without losing the hook.

What a good answer looks like: Composure and brevity in the live roleplay: permission-based framing, one sharp problem statement, and a clear micro-ask (15 minutes Thursday?). Score recovery over perfection — if they stumble and regroup with humor, that's a better cold-call signal than a memorized script delivered flat.

What a good answer looks like: No argument, no fold: acknowledge, then a curiosity move — "what would have to break for you to look again?" or a question about gaps competitors in the space commonly leave. Great answers book the future ("worth 15 minutes at renewal time?") instead of trying to win the point today.

Red flags: Argues with the objection, trashes the competitor, or gives up instantly.

What a good answer looks like: An actual system said out loud: task queues worked in blocks, same-day logging, a no-lead-left-untouched cadence rule, and respect for CRM hygiene as the AE handoff surface. The specifics matter less than whether a system exists and survives busy weeks — ask what breaks first when the week goes sideways.