Challenges faced by SDRs
One of the most common challenges SDRs face is a sense of redundancy or monotony in their daily tasks. The repetitive nature of cold calling, email outreach, and lead qualification can lead to a feeling of burnout and a lack of job satisfaction. Lack of recognition or appreciation for the value they bring to the sales process only exacerbates the feeling of uselessness.
The constant rejection and pressure to meet quotas can be mentally exhausting, while sales KPIs and plans are often unrealistic and force SDRs to work significant overtime.
You might think being an SDR is a dead-end job. In this article, we're going to dive into the specific skills and certifications you need to level up your career and become a more valuable asset to your company.
Is revenue operations a good career path?
The transition from SDR to Revops is not just a trend, it’s a critical evolution in the business landscape that you won’t want to miss.
Companies are looking for people who can help them improve their sales and marketing efforts. This has created a demand for RevOps experts who can bring everything together.
Now is the perfect time to capitalize on this opportunity and position yourself at the forefront of this transformation!
Take a look at this graph showcasing the popularity of "revops" as a search term on Google Trends.
Additionally, according to Salesforce, 40% of companies have expanded their sales operations teams since 2019. The title of "VP of Revenue Operations" has even seen a dramatic rise of 300% in just the past 18 months (Clari). This exciting trend highlights the growing importance of Revops in helping businesses achieve success.
Revops is still evolving, and its exact definition can vary depending on the company. The Openprise 2024 State of Revops survey revealed that while 89% of individuals with Revops titles report supporting all go-to-market teams, this is not always reflected in how most respondents define Revops itself. Here are some of the variations:
- SalesOps 2.0: Focuses entirely on sales
- Marketing + Sales Support: Combines marketing and sales operations
- Systems Support: Reports under the CTO or CIO (Chief Technology Officer/Chief Information Officer)
- Analytics Support: Reports under the CFO or COO (Chief Financial Officer/Chief Operating Officer)
Other Revops titles you might find in job descriptions:
- Sales Operations Analyst/Specialist
- Marketing Operations Specialist/Manager
- Revenue Operations Specialist/Manager
- Business Systems Analyst
- Customer Success Operations Analyst
Revops average salaries
The financial potential of a Revops career path is certainly attractive. Based on Glassdoor statistics, the estimated total compensation for a Revenue Operations professional in the US is US$104,572 per year, with an average salary of US$72,337.
However, the Revenue Operations Alliance reports even higher figures, placing Revops salaries firmly in the six-figure range.
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Skills Required for Revops Roles
Besides knowing sales processes (not how to sell or negotiate, but understanding how the sales funnel works in the company, customer acquisition channels, and the sales cycle), a future Revops candidate will need to improve their knowledge in business (or preferably data) analytics. Additionally, a general understanding of product management will be helpful.
Where to start?
1. Your existing skills.
Write down what you know, perhaps you have some knowledge from previous jobs. List all the tools you work with like a pro. Make sure you have a very deep understanding of CRM (to start, you can focus on one, like HubSpot or Salesforce).Next, try to get your first certifications in the tools you work with. A CRM certification is mandatory, and then some sales professional certificates.
2. Technical skills.
If you're not very good with Excel, you'll have to learn complex functions like PivotTables, vLookup, SUMIFS. And get certified! (Certifications are part of the Revops reality, an integral part of a successful career).In addition to Excel, strongly recommended to learn modern tools for automating sales and marketing pipelines - you'll have to work a lot with automation, and companies that have implemented such a role as Revops often provide them with tools for streamlined operations.At Tabula, we help Revops and Sales Ops teams build a scalable sales engine streamlined with their business goals and financial milestones. With Tabula, you can:
- consolidate and enrich fragmented customer data from HubSpot, Salesforce, marketing automation platforms, and other systems
- track leads from initial contact to closed deals.
- generate custom reports to analyze sales performance, customer behavior, and campaign effectiveness.
3. Networking and learning.
Since Revops is a relatively new topic, there are many approaches to establishing Revops processes within a startup, scale-up, or larger organization. Join online communities like "Wizard of Ops" or "Revops Co-op" to connect with experienced Revops professionals. Seek mentorship, ask questions, and learn from their experiences.Enroll in at least one online Revops course or read articles to familiarize yourself with the field. While Revops encompasses a broad range of responsibilities, identify specific areas that align with your BDR experience. I would recommend taking a look at these courses with certification: https://www.revenueoperationsalliance.com/.
4. Pilot project
As strange as it may sound, there is only one proven and reliable way to get a case in your portfolio right on the spot. This is to pretend to be a Revops in the company where you work. Regardless of your management's readiness to give you a wider range of responsibilities, you can optionally perform a project to streamline marketing and sales or sales and customer success operations and present your achievements and results to your leadership.
Bonus: Essential Revops resources
Revops Certifications
- [FREE] Hubspot Revenue Operations Certification. Enroll here >>
- [FREE] Salesforce sales operations on Coursera. Enroll here >>
- [PAID] Salesforce certifications. Enroll here if you plan to work with SF
- [PAID] The fundamental pillars of revenue operations. Enroll here >>
- [PAID] Introduction to data analysis using Excel. Enroll here >>
- [FREE/PAID] Basics of sales operations. Enroll here >>
Further Reading
- What Is Revenue Operations (RevOps)? A Complete Guide
- 10 Excel Functions for Data Analysis
- What Is RevOps? A Guide to Revenue Operations for Modern Business