AE vs SDR: what each role is and which one to hire first

AE and SDR are two acronyms used all the time in SaaS sales, and they're often confused or treated as if they were the same thing. They're not. They're different roles, with different goals and different profiles. Confusing them leads to hiring the wrong person for the wrong task.

Here we explain what each one does, how they differ and —the question we get asked most— which one to hire first.

What an SDR is (Sales Development Representative)

The SDR is at the start of the commercial process. Their job is to generate and qualify opportunities: find prospects, make first contact, spark interest and book meetings for the team that closes. They're the one who opens doors.

A good SDR has consistency, resilience in the face of “no,” good handling of the first conversation and the discipline to sustain the volume of outreach. It's usually an entry-level position in the commercial career, but that doesn't make it any less strategic: without a good flow of opportunities, there's nothing to close.

What an AE is (Account Executive)

The AE takes those opportunities and carries them to close. They lead the sales meetings, understand the customer's need, present the solution, handle objections, negotiate and sign. They're directly responsible for the revenue.

A good AE combines consultative ability, the management of decision processes (sometimes with several stakeholders) and a focus on results. When we evaluate AEs we look at target attainment, the size of the deals they handled and experience in the type of sale your product involves.

The key differences

In one sentence: the SDR opens, the AE closes. The SDR is measured by opportunities generated and meetings booked; the AE, by deals closed and revenue. The SDR works the top of the funnel; the AE, the bottom. They're two different muscles, and few people do both equally well.

Which one to hire first?

It depends on your stage and your sales motion. As a general rule:

• If you're still validating your sale and need someone to run the whole cycle (prospect and close), the first profile is often an AE with an autonomous profile, able to generate their own opportunities at first.
• Once you have a sale that works and the bottleneck is generating enough opportunities, it's time to add SDRs to feed your AEs.
• If your model is high-velocity and outbound-intensive, you'll probably need SDRs earlier and in greater number.

The most common mistake is adding SDRs when it's still not clear what works in the sale, or overloading an AE with so much prospecting that they have no time left to close. The right sequence depends on where your company is today.

To define each profile well according to your context, see: How to hire the right salesperson for your SaaS. And for the roles that sustain revenue after the close: Customer Success and RevOps

Hire the right role at the right time

AE, SDR, or both: the right decision depends on your stage, your motion and your current bottleneck. If you want to define it with rigor and hire the right profile, let's talk. This article is part of our GTM Recruiting guide

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