Manager of Sales Development, Alation
$135-220k
OTE
$93.5-126.2k
BASE
Enterprise data intelligence solutions
Be an early applicant
Enterprise data intelligence solutions
501-1000 employees
Be an early applicant
$135-220k
OTE
$93.5-126.2k
BASE
501-1000 employees
Company mission
To help businesses and institutions to get better value from their data, improving outreach and profit by combining human potential with modern data intelligence.
Role
Who you are
- 4–8 years of experience in sales development, inside sales, or a related GTM function in B2B SaaS, with at least 2 years managing an SDR or BDR team — ideally in a startup or high-growth environment where you built the function, not just inherited it
- Startup builder DNA — you've operated in environments with limited resources, undefined processes, and high ambiguity — and you thrived. You know how to stand up a pipeline engine before the playbook exists
- Player-coach through and through — you don't just inspect dashboards. You prospect, you cold call, you run sequences. Your team respects you because you do the work alongside them
- Deeply AI-tool savvy — you don't just "use" AI; you live in it. You've built prospecting workflows with Claude, ChatGPT, Clay, or similar tools. You can articulate exactly how AI makes your team 3x more effective and you're always experimenting with what's next
- Proven pipeline builder — you have a track record of building and scaling SDR teams that consistently hit or exceed qualified pipeline targets in fast-moving, competitive markets
- Strong coaching instincts — you know how to diagnose why a rep is struggling and how to fix it, whether it's messaging, process, mindset, or skill
- Data-driven operator — you manage through metrics and can translate SDR activity data into clear insights and action plans for leadership
- Hands-on with modern prospecting tools — experience with Outreach (or Salesloft), Salesforce, 6sense, ZoomInfo, LinkedIn Sales Navigator, and intent-based prospecting workflows
- Excellent communicator — you can rally a team, present pipeline reviews to leadership, and partner effectively across Marketing, Sales, and Ops
What the job involves
- We are looking for a Manager of Sales Development to build, coach, and lead a high-performing SDR team that fuels Alation’s pipeline engine
- This is a player-coach role — you’ll set the strategy, build the playbook, and get in the trenches with your reps to show them what great looks like
- You won’t just manage a team; you’ll carry a book alongside them when it matters
- Reporting to the VP of Customer and GTM Operations, you'll partner closely with Sales, Marketing, Operations, and Account Executives to ensure your team is targeting the right accounts, delivering compelling outreach, and converting interest into qualified pipeline
- You'll fundamentally rethink the SDR motion through an AI-first lens — replacing volume-based activity with signal-driven, intelligent prospecting powered by the latest AI tools and automation
- We're looking for someone with a startup builder's mentality — someone who has stood up an SDR function from scratch, figured out what works by testing relentlessly, and scaled it before the playbook existed
- The best SDR managers don't just hit pipeline targets — they build teams that reps never want to leave and that AEs love to work with
- If you've done it before in a scrappy, fast-moving environment, we want to talk
- Be the player-coach — lead from the front. Pick up the phone, run outbound sequences, and work deals alongside your reps. You set the standard by doing the work, not just managing it
- Build and scale the SDR team — recruit, onboard, coach, and develop a team of SDRs who consistently exceed pipeline targets and grow into strong sales professionals. If you've built this from zero before, even better
- Own pipeline generation strategy — design and execute outbound and inbound prospecting motions across segments, working in lockstep with Marketing and AEs to align on ICP, messaging, and account prioritization
- Think AI-first in everything — don't bolt AI onto existing workflows; redesign the SDR motion around it. Use AI tools for account research, personalized outreach at scale, call coaching, lead scoring, and pipeline intelligence. You should be the most AI-savvy person on the sales floor
- Coach with rigor and intention — run regular 1:1s, call reviews, and pipeline coaching sessions. Build a culture of feedback, accountability, and continuous improvement
- Manage the metrics that matter — own SDR performance reporting across activity, conversion, pipeline contribution, and quality metrics. Use data to diagnose issues, iterate on plays, and allocate resources
- Collaborate across GTM — partner with Revenue Operations on lead routing, scoring, and territory alignment; work with Marketing on campaign follow-up and ABM execution; align with Enablement on training and competitive readiness
- Shape the SDR playbook — build and maintain prospecting sequences, talk tracks, objection-handling frameworks, and competitive messaging tailored to Alation's buyer personas and the data intelligence category. Expect to write v1 yourself, not inherit one
- What Sets You Apart:
- You've built an SDR function from the ground up at a Series B–D stage company — and can walk us through exactly how you did it
- Experience leading SDR teams selling data, AI, or analytics products to enterprise buyers
- You've personally designed and deployed AI-powered prospecting workflows that measurably improved conversion or efficiency
- Familiarity with ABM-driven SDR motions and marketing-sales orchestration
- Track record of promoting SDRs into successful AE roles
- Exposure to consumption-based or usage-based go-to-market models
Our take
While companies continue to gather huge volumes of data on customer behavior, efforts in leveraging said data are often hindered by data access and interpretation, which ultimately leads to incomplete datasets.
Alation is a machine learning powered data catalog. It pulls together all a company’s key data from popular sources like Oracle, Spark and Tableau, and presents it on its platform. This means that users can search for multiple strands of data on just one API. Its services include data governance, digital transformation, and data discovery.
With both the data catalog and data analytics market growing rapidly at a 25% annual growth rate, Alation finds itself in a very strong position having shown triple digit growth for four years running. The platform is used for diverse purposes by Pfizer, FinnAir, Pepsico, Salesforce, American Express and BMW.
It’s this range of applicability, from weather-induced flight delay prediction to rare disease identification, that has led to investments resulting in a valuation of $1.7B. Though it's not the only company of its ilk on the market, with the likes of Informatica, Aginity and Alteryx all competing, Alation’s rapid year-on-year growth, solid investment from the likes of Japanese data communications leader NTT DOCOMO and an elite customer base bodes well for the company's future.
Freddie
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
4% employee growth in 12 months
Company
Funding (last 2 of 5 rounds)
Nov 2022
$123m
SERIES E
Jun 2021
$110m
SERIES D
Total funding: $315m
Company benefits
- Health insurance
- Dental insurance
- Vision insurance
- Life insurance
- Short-term disability
- Paid time off
- Paid holidays
- Personal sick days
- Parental leave
- Competitive Pay
- Company equity
- Performance bonus
- Flexible work hours
- Remote work opportunities
- Commuter benefits program
- 401(k)
Company HQ
Redwood Shores, Redwood City, CA
Leadership
Satyen Sangani
(Co-Founder & CEO)Having studied at Columbia, they worked at Morgan Stanley, Texas Pacific Group, and Andale, before an MSc at Oxford. They then worked as a VP at Oracle for over 9 years prior to co-founding Alation in July 2012.
Share this job
View 6 more jobs at Alation