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Between SDR, BDR, AE, KAM, (...), it's hard to find your way around in the jungle of the Sales lexicon! However, entering the world of Sales & Business Developers requires understanding its vocabulary and the various positions that compose it. Who knows, by browsing this page, maybe you will discover your future job!
Why a Sales lexicon?
Like any community, the Sales and Business Development community has its own language. However, many aspirants to Akimbo Bootcamp to become a Business Developer are lost in job titles and acronyms...
And it includes some Anglicisms because the sales organizations of American Tech companies are a great inspiration to the Sales & Business Development community.
The most famous American tech companies? Salesforce, Adobe, Paypal, Paypal, SAP, Atlassian... Models of efficiency and innovation.
This lexicon was built by us on the basis of several hundreds of exchanges With Business Developers, HRs and startup CEOs. It is updated every month.
It will allow you to understand all the nuances of the terms Sales and Business Development. Keep in mind that the vast majority of your interlocutors do not have in mind the level of detail that we share below.
Distinguishing Sales from Business Developer
No, Sales and Business Development are not synonymous. In any case, in the theory ! Car in practice, they almost are...
Business Development and Sales are the two main blocks — complementary — to develop a company's commercial activity. We can consider that Business Development intervenes front The Sales in a sale. So:
- Business Development = increase the Market Fit And the Reach (penetration) on one or more target markets: from strategy (value proposition, pricing, buyer personas) to the prospecting And the qualification prospects;
- Sales = convert the Reach in opportunities Then in patrons, mainly during customer meetings: advanced qualification (definition of technical needs, Company mapping, etc.) until negotiation and closing.
In other words, The Sales are normally turned to the customer appointment. But in practice, they also do prospecting... From then on, there is no real difference with Business Developers.
Very often for recruiters: Business Developer = Sales.
On the other hand, within The Business Development Team, Business Developers are responsible for generating business opportunities. Identify prospects. They will use all the tools at their disposal (emailing sequences, phoning, social-selling, trade shows...).
There is normally no strong strategic component, which is more a matter for management. It is possible, when there is a Sales/Business Development distinction, to be promoted later on The Sales team. Yes: having a daily full of customer appointments and no longer managing prospecting is the prerogative of profiles with minimum > 1 year of commercial experience.
In detail, here is what each covers:
This distinction is not intuitive for most of us:
- Prospecting and qualifying are more a matter of Business Development because they make it possible to improve market penetration by assessing whether the target target meets the value proposition;
- Partnerships — especially when it comes to distribution — are only one of the building blocks of Business Development ;
- The Business Development is not synonymous with Demand Generation : it includes part of the Lead Generation (Outbound), where the objective is to do targeted & qualitative content (typical example: the 10 accounts you would like to have on your web page to identify the right signals of visibility and credibility). The Demand Generation relates to marketing;
- One is not more noble than the other, nor more or less indispensable: in B2B, Business Development and Sales are intrinsically complementary.
The lexicon of acronyms
With this clarification made, it is time to get to the heart of the matter: the job titles and acronyms. The list is not intended to be exhaustive or academic.
In some cases, it will even be counterintuitive — based on the principle that there are often differences between two startups in terms of the definition it gives to the job of”Business Developer”. But you understood that.
Moreover, the prerequisites for each of these positions will vary enormously depending on each company. For an Account Executive role, some companies expect 1 year of commercial experience, others 6 - 7 years...
⚠️ What are the most important acronyms to remember? SDR, BDR, AM, AE. We have positioned them in descending order of priority to make your life easier. Nice no?
The Business Developer
Each startup or tech company has its own definition. To summarize, we can use 2 definitions: the academic definition and the empirical definition:
- Originally, The Business Developer is responsible for... Traditional Business Development missions, namely: customer targeting, distribution and pricing strategy and the generation of qualified outbound leads (=prospects).
- But in the majority of startups, The Business Developer is a generalist : from the prospecting of new prospects to their closing. A kind of “Swiss knife” that is in charge of either a segment (e.g.: Small and Medium Businesses), or from an industry (e.g.: Retail), or of a geography (e.g.: france). The position can be junior (0 to 2 years of experience) but also mid-level (up to 5/6 years of experience). It is an operational role where the objective is therefore to get new customers and develop sales.
Often, with the development of the company, the role is segmented (divided) for the benefit of an SDR/Account Executive/Account Manager organization.
⚠️ Watch out for some websites that present the role of Business Developer as a conductor Or a project manager. It is very far from reality.
***Package: from 30K€ to 80K€ (💡go to our article on Business Developer Salaries to understand everything)
Do you want to become a Business Developer?
Akimbo is the 1st Digital Sales & Business Development School. We have trained more than 1,000 Business Developers and allowed them to be hired in the best startups in the Tech ecosystem.
The courses are delivered on the Bootcamps:
- The program resumes all stages of the sales cycle : go-to-market, cold calling, customer appointments, complex sales.
- The courses are provided by Sales Coaches With a ten years of startup experience.
- Their practice-oriented pedagogy assures you to develop concrete skills that you can use from the first days of your future permanent contract.
- We match you with our network of partner startups and let's trigger dozens of interviews with them to boost your employability.
The Sales Development Representative (SDR)
In theory, The Sales Development Representative Qualify the Leads (= prospects) sent by marketing (via the Demand Generation) and transmits these qualified leads (called “SQL” for Sales Qualified Leads) to the Sales team.
But be careful: in France, recruiters refer to this position as junior profiles turned to the creation and execution of prospecting sequences, which does not correspond exactly to the theoretical definition. In France, SDR = hunter. The SDR can then support a more experienced profile in customer appointments on the opportunities it has detected, but this is not always the case.
It is a junior position (0 to 2 years of experience), for profiles from 22 to 30 years old. It can be verticalized by size of target company (e.g.: Small & Medium Businesses - SMB or Mid-Market) or by industry (banking/insurance or logistics).
***Package: from 30K€ to 50K€.
The Business Development Representative (BDR)
The Business Development Representative is often used synonymously with SDR when it shouldn't be. Warning: BDR is not an acronym for Business Developer.
The BDR aims to focus on Outbound Leads (= prospecting) that he put together himself. Junior position (0 to 3 years of experience), which can again be verticalized. It is the hunter role par excellence.
Like the SDR, the BDR can support a more experienced Sales person in customer appointments on the opportunities they have detected.
***Package: from 35K€ to 70K€.
The Account Executive (or sometimes Sales Manager)
The Account Executive manages prospects from the moment he retrieves them from the SDR & BDR to the closing. It is therefore he who is responsible for customer appointments : he pitches and shows the solution, defines customer needs, identifies and defuses obstacles to purchase, negotiates the terms of the contract and closes the prospect.
It is the natural promotion for successful and experienced SDRs & BDRs. Mid-level position (from 2/3 years of experience) to experienced (5—7 years of experience).
Also be careful: in 50% of cases, the AE will also do prospecting. This brings him closer to the role of a generalist Business Developer.
***Package: 45K€ to 90K€.
The Account Manager (AM)
The Account Manager intervenes when the prospect has been closed and has become a customer, to “take charge” of the account. He can provide this (re) care immediately or after 1 to 3 months, depending on the company.
The Account Manager then defines with each customer the objectives targeted and how to generate the maximum ROI. It is evaluated on the turnover development, retention, customer satisfaction and recommendation. Depending on the company, he will also be in charge ofUp-selling And of Cross-selling (sell more and sell to others in the same business).
Position generally mid-level (from 2 years of experience), but not always...
***Package: 30K€ to 60K€.
The Key Account Manager (KAM)
The difference between Key Account Manager and Account Manager is not always very clear. The term was originally invented to categorize MAs in charge of strategic accounts (due to their size, visibility, or complexity). On average, he has the same entry level and salary as an AM.
***Package: 40K€ to 70K€
Inside Sales (IS)
The term includes acronyms such as SDR, BDR (and the much rarer PSR, MDR, LDR...). It refers to a new Business Development and Sales organizational model that emerged in the 1990s.
The term” Inside Sales ” refers to the fact that these Sales & BizDev profiles (SDR, BDR, etc.) do not physically meet prospects, but contact them online and by telephone while staying in the company (Inside). Again, the role is often similar to that of a Business Developer or Sales, responsible for the entire sales cycle.
***Package: from 30K€ to 50K€.
Sales Ops or Sales Operations
Sales Operations is in charge of the Sales performance measurement and its continuous improvement through various channels (processes, tools, training). He must set up the processes and tools to retrieve Sales funnel data from the CRM (e.g. time-to-closing), then interpret and Benchmarker this data. He is then responsible for making proposals to improve overall Sales performance.
Mastering Excel, pivot tables and knowing how to coach colleagues are often essential qualities.
In many companies, Sales Ops also intervenes in Lead Generation: it is responsible for creating the most qualitative prospect files possible for the Sales & Business Development team.
Mid-level to senior position (from 2—3 years of experience).
***Package: 35K€ to 70K€.
The Sales EnABLEMENT Manager (SCM)
The Sales Enablment Manager has a role similar to that of Sales Ops, but more focused on support (coaching) andempowering by the knowledge of the Sales team. It ensures that everyone has the resources (tools, training, support, etc.) to achieve their goals. For example, he is responsible for creating onboarding programs effective or to train sales teams on the launch of new products. Mid-level to senior position (from 2—3 years of experience). Discover the Sales Enablment !
***Package: 45K€ to 80K€.
The Partner Sales Representative (PSR)
More rarely, the PSR is in charge of developing the network of partners (indirect sale) of the business and to help them reach their revenue goals. Its purpose? Find prescribers. For example, consulting firms or other distributors. Junior position (1 to 4 years of experience), which is almost always vertical (depending on the type of partner).
***Package: 30K€ to 45K€.
The Sales Engineer (SE)
Also called “Customer Engineer”, “Solution Engineer”, “Pre-Sales Consultant”, “Pre-Sales Consultant”, “Technical Sales” or “Technical Account Manager”: these are profiles who have a dual competence — sales and technical — and who intervene before or during the sales cycle. These are characteristic profiles of complex solutions for sale (ex: cloud).
They must determine the characteristics and technical needs of their prospects or customers, interface with the product and its functionalities, and assist Sales and Business Developers in demonstrations and commercial proposals. Junior position (0 to 2 years of experience) as well as senior (beyond 5—7 years of experience).
***Package: 40K€ to 90K€.
The Director/Head of Sales (DOS/HOS)
The Head of Sales is in charge of Sales goals and performance. He works with Business Developers and/or Sales Managers to recruit, monitor and support teams. On a daily basis, he recruits a lot... He is specifically in charge of defining Sales objectives, team/member quotas and monitoring (weekly/monthly/quarterly). Most of the time, he continues to sell to the highest priority accounts as well.
It reports directly to the VP Sales of the company, if there is one, otherwise to the CEO. Senior position (minimum 5 years of experience).
***Package: 70K€ to 150K€.
The VP Sales
The VP Sales is in charge of the Sales strategy and the growth of the company. He works with the Director (s) /Head (s) of Sales to define, disseminate and monitor the development strategy. He is also responsible for recruiting mid-level and senior Sales positions. It reports directly to C-levels (CEO, COO, etc.) on all growth topics. Senior or very senior position (minimum 7 years of experience).
***Package: 80K€ to 200K€.
The Chief Revenue Officer (CRO)
The Chief Revenue Officer occupies a transversal position because it acts on the entire customer experience to maximize revenue generation. It uses the data collected throughout the Marketing & Sales funnel to determine areas of improvement that generate additional revenue over time. Senior or even very senior position (minimum 7 years of experience).
***Package: 100K€ to 220K€.
The Chief Business Officer (CBO)
This acronym does not normally exist, but we dream of inventing it at Akimbo 😄 It would probably be quite close to Chief Sales Officer.
Is it clearer for you? So much the better. For information, at Akimbo, our students join all the types of positions mentioned above, in a fairly well-distributed manner and on packages of €38,000 to €100,000. Do not hesitate to call us to discuss it!
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