SDR and AE operating model

Have SDRs and AEs work together, with a clear owner for each action. The SDR can create the opening, qualification, and meeting, while the AE takes reply management, calls, meetings, and closing.¹ In one operating model, the SDR stays on every call with the AE until the prospect becomes a customer.² AEs have less time than SDRs to prospect, yet prospecting remains a critical activity for them.³ Keep the handoff continuous, then decide exactly where ownership changes.

Choose the operating contract

Write the operating rules before assigning accounts or choosing tools. Both people should know who owns an account, what qualifies as a handoff, and how long support continues after the meeting.

Define the process before choosing tools or asking SDRs to work inside it.⁴ Include target-account rules in the contract.⁵ Route opportunities through direct pairing, a pod, or round robin distribution, depending on the team.⁶

Choose one pattern and record what happens when an account changes territory, an AE is unavailable, or an opportunity moves forward. The rule should be easy to apply during a live conversation without a manager interpreting it.

Split the work

Make each role visible in the account activity. A boundary that exists only in a manager's head will shift whenever a meeting gets booked.

Assign the SDR sourcing, segmentation, sequence building, and sending. Assign the AE reply management, calls, meetings, and closing.¹ The AE also owns the demo, follow-up demos, meetings with additional team members, and coordination of next steps.⁷

Keep prospecting visible on both sides. The SDR creates qualified conversations repeatedly, while the AE keeps enough account contact to understand the deal and move it forward. That gives each person a clear handoff point without cutting the AE out of account development.

Set the qualification threshold

A meeting is an output, while a qualified opportunity is a stronger one. Decide which output your team promises before judging performance or transferring ownership.

SDR responsibilities vary between setting introductory meetings and providing interested prospects that meet a qualified opportunity definition.⁸ Before delivering the lead to the prospective AE, the SDR gathers information and asks qualifying questions.⁹ Once the required information is found, move the lead into qualification so a sales representative can conduct in-depth discovery.¹⁰

Write the threshold in terms the caller can use. Ask what changed, who is affected, what happens if the situation continues, and what the prospect agreed to do next. Record the information that earned the handoff. Move the account when the answers meet the agreed threshold, not when the conversation only produces a reply.

Run the handoff and the call

Use the handoff as a working session between the two roles. Transfer context while the conversation is fresh so the prospect experiences a consistent team.

Keep the SDR on every call with the AE until the prospect becomes a customer when that is your chosen model.² The AE owns the demo, follow-up meetings, additional participants, and next steps.⁷ Attendance and primary contact are separate decisions, so state both in the handoff.

The handoff message should say whether the SDR or AE will be the prospect's main point of contact.¹¹ Include the account context, the information that met the qualification threshold, the prospect's stated next step, and any question the AE needs to answer. Before the meeting ends, confirm who follows up and what the prospect should expect next.

Coordinate the account work

Give both people a reason to act on the account the same day. Share activity early enough for the other person to build on it, especially when outreach is personalized.

The AE should tell the SDR when prospecting time is scheduled so the SDR can coordinate and build on that outreach.¹² SDRs should take the initiative to ask AEs for collaboration.¹³ Ask for feedback on prospecting emails and set regular meetings to improve the working pattern.¹⁴ Bring the AE a target account list when planning the next set of accounts.¹⁵

Use the shared account plan to decide who sends the next message, handles the reply, and joins the call. Leave each interaction with a named owner and a reason for the next action.

Inspect the handoff

Review the operating model where work can stall. A full calendar with weak qualification creates work for the AE, while strong qualification with slow follow-up wastes the SDR's effort.

Set the SDR output as introductory meetings or qualified opportunities, according to the model you selected.⁸ The goal for SDR teams should be to fill sales representatives' calendars.¹⁶ Check whether those meetings contain the information the AE needs for discovery and whether the AE follows through on the agreed next step.

When an SDR consistently provides qualified leads and an AE habitually fails to follow up, the sales manager needs to learn about the problem, identify its source, and act on it.¹⁷ Review the account record and handoff conversation before changing targets or moving accounts between people.

What not to do

These failures usually come from an unclear contract or a handoff that ends too early. Put the guardrails in the operating rules.

• Do not choose tools before defining how the SDR team should function.⁴
• Do not let the AE treat the SDR like a secretary.¹⁸
• Do not leave the meeting rule implicit. In some companies, the SDR's work ends after the meeting is scheduled.¹⁹
• Do not leave the prospect's main point of contact undecided.¹¹
• Do not let qualified leads sit without follow-up when the AE owns the next action.¹⁷