UK

United Kingdom · Sales · Principal/Manager (12-16 years)

Manager, Global Sales Development

Here is the whole job, in plain words. What it is, what you decide, how you're judged, how people get here and where they go next. Then the part no course gives you: twelve AI tutors who learn your work.

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  • Experience bandPrincipal/Manager (12-16 years)
  • Reports toDirector, Global Sales Development
  • UK framework levelUsually a manager, or the deepest specialist in a team

Also advertised as Head of Sales Development · SDR Manager (Global) · Sales Development Leader

Built on 43,079 real UK job descriptions we analysed · grounded in what real qualifications cover

Two short quizzes about you

1From this job to a course

The future skills this job leans on

AI Fluency working with AI as a thinking partner
Data Fluency turning numbers into a decision
AI Governance Fluency using AI responsibly
Automation Fluency building AI into how work runs
Systems Fluency seeing the whole picture

2AI and this work

Will AI change your work as a Manager, Global Sales Development?

Nobody can say exactly how. Here is what this job is being asked for next, and where to start.

The new skills this role is being asked for

  • AI-Driven Sales Enablement & Strategy
  • Advanced Data Science for Sales Strategy
Why each one is rising

The future skills this job leans on

We'll only ever tell you what we can actually back up. No hype, no scare tactics.

What happens when you start

Next, a free account. We build your Manager, Global Sales Development plan as you set up, starting with the free Automation Fluency module. No card.

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Keep this read. One email with what AI is changing in this job, the new skills it asks for and where to start free. Nothing else follows unless you confirm your address.

3What this role really is

This job means managing the sales development function across a region or business unit, building the pipeline that turns into revenue.

4What you'd actually use

The tools this job runs on, and how well you'd need to know each one.

Salesforce (CRM) Strategic

Advising on field customisation, integration with other sales tools (e.g., Marketo), defining data governance policies for SDR activity, and building executive-level dashboards to track team performance and pipeline contribution.

Outreach / Salesloft (Sales Engagement) Strategic

Platform administration, setting governance rules for sequence creation, evaluating vendor contracts and ROI, and using platform analytics to inform overall SDR strategy and coaching priorities.

LinkedIn Sales Navigator (Prospecting) Strategic

Driving adoption and demonstrating ROI to justify enterprise-level subscription costs, using it to inform strategic account targeting, and training Team Leads on advanced prospecting techniques.

ZoomInfo / Lusha (Data Enrichment) Strategic

Managing data enrichment budget, ensuring GDPR/CCPA compliance for data acquisition, evaluating new data providers, and integrating data into CRM for enhanced targeting.

Gong / Chorus.ai (Conversation Intelligence) Strategic

Using market intelligence from calls to inform C-level strategy, product marketing, and competitive positioning. Building coaching libraries of best-practice calls for Team Leads, and identifying team-wide skill gaps through analytics.

Slack / MS Teams (Collaboration) Strategic

Architecting the communication flow between sales development, sales, and marketing leadership. Setting up automated alerts for key metrics, and fostering a collaborative team environment across different geographies.

5What you get to decide, and how that grows

Power in a job isn't your title. It's what you're allowed to decide. Here's how it grows as you move up.

The choiceComing in Where you are nowThe step above
SDR Team Structure & Headcount No input beyond expressing interest in growth. Provide feedback on team capacity and workload. Recommend changes to team structure and headcount based on pipeline needs and market expansion plans, with budget implications. Requires Director approval for significant changes.
SDR Tooling & Technology Use assigned tools as instructed. Suggest improvements or alternative features within existing tools. Evaluate new sales development technologies, manage vendor relationships, and make purchase recommendations up to £100K. Requires Director approval for major platform changes or spend over £100K.
SDR Compensation & Incentives Understand personal commission structure. Provide feedback on incentive effectiveness. Design and propose team-wide compensation plans and incentive programmes to drive desired behaviours and results. Requires Director and Finance approval.
Strategic Territory & ICP Definition Work within assigned territory and ICP guidelines. Provide feedback on territory effectiveness and ICP fit. Define and adjust territory assignments, Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) criteria, and account prioritisation strategies for your team in alignment with overall sales strategy. Consult with VP of Sales and Marketing.
Performance Management & Promotions Manage own performance and seek feedback. Provide informal guidance to peers. Full authority over performance reviews, disciplinary actions, and promotion recommendations for your direct reports (Team Leads) and, through them, the wider SDR team. Requires HR consultation for sensitive matters.

6How you'll be judged

The scoreboard, and what is not on it. The hard targets, how often each is actually looked at, and the quiet signals that never reach a dashboard.

SDR-Sourced Pipeline Contribution
The percentage of our total new business pipeline that originates directly from your SDR team's efforts.
Target · 30-40% of total new business pipeline

If the company's new business pipeline target is £10M this quarter, your team should be responsible for £3M-£4M of that, meaning you're hitting 30-40% of the target.

Team Quota Attainment
The overall percentage of your team's collective meeting and pipeline generation goals achieved.
Target · Consistently 100%+ each quarter

If your team's collective target is 100 qualified meetings and £1M in pipeline, you'll be tracking how many they actually hit. 105 meetings and £1.1M pipeline means 105% attainment.

SDR-to-AE Promotion Rate
The percentage of eligible SDRs who successfully transition into Account Executive roles within a defined timeframe.
Target · 40%+ of eligible SDRs promoted annually

Out of 10 SDRs ready for promotion this year, 4 or more should successfully move into AE roles, showing you're developing talent effectively.

New Hire Ramp Time (to quota)
The average time it takes for new SDR hires in your team to reach 80-100% of their individual quota.
Target · Reduce from 90 days to 60 days (or less)

If new hires typically take 3 months to hit quota, you'll be looking for ways to get them there in 2 months, through better onboarding and coaching.

Cost Per Opportunity (SDR-sourced)
The total cost (salaries, tools, overhead) associated with generating one qualified opportunity through the SDR team.
Target · Reduce by 10-15% year-over-year while maintaining quality

If it currently costs £500 to generate a qualified opportunity, you'll be looking to bring that down to £425-£450 through process optimisation and tool efficiency.

Team Morale & Retention
A happy, motivated team performs better and stays longer. This measures how well you foster a positive, high-performing culture.
  • High scores on internal engagement surveys, low voluntary attrition rates for your team, positive feedback from Team Leads and individual SDRs in skip-level meetings, active participation in team events, and a general buzz of enthusiasm.
Strategic Influence & Collaboration
Your ability to work effectively with other departments (Marketing, Sales Ops, AE Managers) to align strategies and improve the overall sales funnel.
  • Regular invitations to cross-functional planning meetings, your input being sought on go-to-market strategies, positive feedback from peers in other departments, successful joint initiatives (e.g., a new ABM campaign with Marketing), and clear alignment on lead qualification criteria with AE Managers.
Coaching & Development Effectiveness
How well you're developing your Team Leads and the individual SDRs beneath them, preparing them for future roles.
  • Consistent improvement in individual SDR performance metrics, Team Leads demonstrating stronger coaching skills, successful internal promotions from your team, positive feedback on development plans, and a clear talent pipeline for future growth.
Process Optimisation & Innovation
Your knack for spotting inefficiencies and implementing new processes or technologies to improve team productivity and output.
  • Successful rollout of new sales engagement sequences, adoption of new prospecting tools that show clear ROI, documented improvements in SDR workflow, positive feedback from the team on new initiatives, and a proactive approach to testing new ideas.

7Would you like it

Both sides. What people enjoy, and what grinds them down.

What people enjoy
Building a Winning Team

You'll spend time coaching Team Leads, helping them develop their own management skills, and strategising how to get the best out of each individual SDR. You'll get a real kick out of seeing your team members grow and succeed, both individually and collectively.

An SDR you hired and mentored gets promoted to an AE role and starts crushing their quota. That's a huge win for you.

Direct Impact on Revenue

Your decisions directly translate into pipeline generated and, ultimately, deals closed. You'll be constantly tracking your team's contribution to the overall sales numbers and feeling the tangible impact of your strategic choices.

Seeing the SDR-sourced pipeline percentage increase quarter-over-quarter due to a new strategy you implemented.

Solving Complex Organisational Puzzles

You'll be tackling challenges like optimising lead routing, aligning with Marketing on campaign strategies, or figuring out how to scale the team efficiently in new markets. These aren't simple problems, and you'll thrive on finding elegant solutions.

Successfully implementing a new qualification framework that significantly improves the SAL acceptance rate across the entire sales organisation.

What frustrates people
  • Getting caught in the middle of a disagreement between Marketing and Sales on lead quality or messaging.
  • Having to justify budget requests for tools or headcount when the ROI isn't immediately obvious to Finance.
  • Team members struggling despite your best coaching efforts, and not being able to 'fix' every problem directly.
  • The constant need to adapt strategies due to market shifts, competitor moves, or internal product changes, meaning your 'perfect plan' needs to be re-evaluated.
  • Dealing with the administrative overhead of managing a larger team, rather than being purely strategic.
What this role does not give you
  • A quiet, predictable routine—expect constant change and new challenges.
  • The ability to avoid difficult conversations; you'll be having plenty of them, both up and down the chain.
  • A purely individual contributor role; your success is entirely tied to your team's success.
  • A role where you can just 'set it and forget it'; continuous optimisation is key.

8Who you work with

You're directly accountable for a significant portion of the company's new business pipeline. Your team's ability to consistently generate qualified opportunities directly impacts revenue targets, sales forecasting accuracy, and our overall market position. You're also responsible for developing the next generation of sales talent, as many SDRs progress into Account Executive roles. Get it right, and you're a hero. Get it wrong, and the entire sales organisation feels the pinch.

Inside the business
  • Director, Global Sales Development
  • VP of Sales (Regional/Global)
  • Marketing Leadership (Head of Demand Gen, CMO)
  • Sales Operations & Enablement Teams
  • Account Executive Managers
  • Product Marketing
Outside the business
  • Sales Engagement Platform Vendors (Outreach, Salesloft)
  • Data Enrichment Providers (ZoomInfo, Lusha)
  • Conversation Intelligence Vendors (Gong, Chorus.ai)
  • Industry Peers and Sales Development Leaders

9What you need before you start

Not a wish list. The things you would be expected to already have.

  • Proven track record of success as a Senior Sales Development Representative or SDR Team Lead, consistently exceeding individual and/or team targets for at least 3-5 years.
  • Demonstrable experience in managing, coaching, and developing a team of Sales Development Representatives, including performance management and career progression discussions.
  • Deep expertise in at least two major sales engagement platforms (e.g., Outreach, Salesloft) and CRM systems (e.g., Salesforce), with a strategic understanding of their administration and optimisation.
  • Strong analytical skills, capable of interpreting complex sales data, identifying trends, and making data-driven strategic decisions.
  • Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with a proven ability to present to and influence senior stakeholders.

10What to practise next

Where the job is going, and what to do about it starting this week.

CRM & Sales Engagement Platform Architecture

You won't just use Salesforce or Outreach; you'll understand how they integrate, how data flows between them, and how to optimise their configuration to support your strategic goals. This includes advising on custom objects, workflows, and reporting structures.

API Integrations & Data Sync · Custom Object & Field Design · Workflow Automation within Platforms

  • This month: Shadow our Sales Operations team to understand how our CRM and sales engagement platforms are configured and maintained.
  • Next quarter: Take an advanced admin course for Salesforce or your primary sales engagement platform.
  • Within 6 months: Lead a project to optimise a specific data flow or integration point between two key sales tools.
  • Within 12 months: Develop a comprehensive 'SDR Tech Stack Roadmap' outlining future investments and integration strategies.

Quick win: Familiarise yourself with the 'setup' or 'admin' sections of your core tools. Understand what's configurable and what's not.

11Staying current once you are in

What people here do to keep up
  • Regularly attend industry conferences (e.g., Sales Development Conference, SaaStr) to stay abreast of emerging trends and network with peers.
  • Participate in online sales leadership forums or communities to share best practices and learn from others' challenges.
  • Engage in continuous learning through books, podcasts, and online courses focused on sales strategy, leadership, and organisational development.
  • Seek out mentorship from senior sales leaders within or outside the organisation.
  • Actively contribute to internal knowledge sharing, perhaps by leading workshops or creating best practice guides for other managers.

12The rising capability

The rising capability

Zavmo analysis

What's rising in its place

This is where the work is heading, and the higher pay with it. Get fluent here and the shift stops being a threat and starts being your edge.

AI-Driven Sales Enablement & Strategy

AI is rapidly changing how SDRs prospect, personalise, and communicate. As a manager, you'll need to go beyond just using these tools; you'll be responsible for integrating them strategically, measuring their impact, and training your team on how to get the most out of them. Competitors are already using AI to gain an edge.

  • Prompt Engineering for Sales
  • AI-Powered Coaching & Feedback Loops
  • Ethical AI Use in Sales
  • AI Tool Integration & ROI

Advanced Data Science for Sales Strategy

While you're already data-driven, the ability to interpret more complex statistical models and predictive analytics will become crucial. This isn't about becoming a data scientist, but understanding how to ask the right questions and interpret the answers to drive strategic decisions for your SDR team.

  • Predictive Lead Scoring Models
  • Pipeline Health & Velocity Analytics
  • A/B Testing & Experimentation Design
  • Data Visualisation for Executive Reporting

13What you’ll use

What you’ll use

Skills this role draws on

Technical

  • Advanced Qualification Frameworks (e.g., MEDDPICC, BANT)
  • Global Territory & Account Planning
  • Sales Forecasting & Pipeline Management
  • Sales Enablement & Training Design
  • Sales Development Methodologies (e.g., Account-Based Engagement, Challenger Sale)

14The pathway

The pathway

How you actually get there, here

How you become one varies far more by country than what one does. This is the UK route. Most people take one of these ways in; the right one depends on where you're starting from.

  1. 1

    SDR Team Lead to SDR Manager

    2-4 years as a Team Lead

    Skills to master

    • Mastering individual SDR coaching, managing team performance against quota, running effective 1:1s, basic forecasting, and conflict resolution within a small team.

    You're ready to move on when

    • Consistently leading a team to exceed quota.
    • Demonstrating strong coaching skills, with measurable improvements in individual SDR performance.
    • Proactively identifying and solving team-level challenges.
    • Taking initiative on projects beyond day-to-day team management (e.g., developing new training materials).
  2. 2

    Principal SDR to SDR Manager (Individual Contributor to Leader)

    3-5 years as a Principal SDR

    Skills to master

    • Deep expertise in sales development strategy, designing new outreach plays, advanced prospecting techniques, mentoring junior SDRs, and influencing without direct authority.

    You're ready to move on when

    • Recognised as a subject matter expert in sales development.
    • Successfully architecting and implementing new, high-impact SDR strategies.
    • Actively mentoring and developing multiple junior SDRs, with clear positive impact.
    • Demonstrating strong leadership qualities and a desire to take on management responsibilities.
  3. 3

    Sales Operations/Enablement to SDR Manager

    3-6 years in Sales Ops/Enablement with SDR focus

    Skills to master

    • Deep understanding of sales processes, CRM administration, data analytics, sales tool optimisation, and training programme design, with a specific focus on the SDR function.

    You're ready to move on when

    • Leading projects that directly improved SDR efficiency or performance.
    • Expertise in sales tech stack administration and data analysis relevant to sales development.
    • Strong collaboration with SDR teams and a clear understanding of their day-to-day challenges.
    • Demonstrated ability to translate data insights into actionable sales strategies.

15Where this role leads

The long view: This role can lead to senior leadership in sales or revenue functions, building on the strategic and leadership experience gained here.

The ten Future Fluencies

Zavmo analysis

The credential is what you can do today. These are what keep you valuable.

A qualification proves you can do the job as it's defined today. These ten are what decide whether you're still the obvious person for it in five years. They're the capabilities employers are now writing into senior roles faster than people are learning them. Zavmo weaves them through whatever you study, so you come out with both: the credential and the fluency.

The highlighted ones are the Fluencies your role leans on hardest, from how Manager, Global Sales Development is actually changing.

Where it leads

Roles this leads to

The record names a next step, but the catalogue has no page for it yet:

  • Director, Global Sales Development
  • Head of Sales Operations & Enablement

How you would learn this

One to one, on the work you already do

A tutor sets the task against your own job and marks the reasoning, at your pace. There is no cohort to fall behind.

It is £70 a month, billed monthly. Your free first module is Future Fluency, and you can cancel any time.

See Your Progress Grow Illustration
Manager, Global Sales Development
  • Advanced Qualification Frameworks (e.g., MEDDPICC, BANT)
  • Global Territory & Account Planning
  • Sales Forecasting & Pipeline Management
  • Sales Enablement & Training Design
  • Sales Development Methodologies (e.g., Account-Based Engagement, Challenger Sale)
This is your Mind Palace on learn.zavmo.ai. Every skill above comes from this role's own record, not an example borrowed from another job. A node lights up when you evidence it, and what you build stays yours between jobs. That is the part a course cannot do.

16The detail, folded away

Everything else the record holds

The career branches in full, how AI is already showing up in the day-to-day, and the questions people ask about this job. Here when you want them, out of the way while you decide.

Where it leads next, rung by rung

Where it leads

The career path, and where it branches

Manager, Global Sales Development is a start, not a ceiling. Each step below asks for new skills and hands back more autonomy.

  1. Director, Global Sales Development

    3-5 years in Manager role

    From L5 to L6

    • Organisational Design for Scale Structuring the global SDR organisation for optimal efficiency and growth.
    • Global Compensation Plan Design Creating and optimising compensation plans that motivate and retain top talent across different markets.
    • Strategic Vendor Management Managing relationships with key sales tech vendors at an enterprise level.
    • M&A Integration (Sales Development) Leading the integration of SDR teams and processes during mergers and acquisitions.

  2. Head of Sales Operations & Enablement

    3-6 years in Manager role

    From L5 to L6

    • Data Governance & Analytics Establishing robust data governance policies and leading advanced sales analytics initiatives.
    • Sales Enablement Programme Design Designing and implementing comprehensive training, content, and coaching programmes for the entire sales team.
    • Compensation Plan Modelling Designing and administering complex sales compensation plans.
    • Revenue Operations Strategy Developing a holistic strategy for revenue growth, integrating sales, marketing, and customer success operations.
Working with AI on the job

Working with AI

Where AI is starting to help

Let's be real, as a Sales Development Manager, your plate is always full. You're coaching, strategising, analysing data, and still trying to find time for your own development. The good news? AI isn't just for frontline SDRs anymore. It's a game-changer for leaders like you, helping you scale your impact and free up precious time.

Imagine having an intelligent assistant that helps you spot coaching opportunities, validate strategic hypotheses, and even streamline your talent acquisition. That's what AI can do for you. We're talking about moving from reactive management to proactive leadership, all thanks to smart tools.

AI-Powered Performance Analytics

Stop sifting through endless spreadsheets. AI tools can quickly identify performance trends across your team, highlight underperforming sequences, or pinpoint coaching gaps based on aggregated data. You'll get actionable insights in minutes, not hours, helping you make data-driven decisions faster.

Intelligent Coaching Insights

Conversation intelligence platforms (like Gong) use AI to analyse thousands of calls, not just for individual SDRs, but for team-wide trends. It can tell you which objections are most common, which talk tracks lead to higher conversion, or where your Team Leads need more support in their coaching. Imagine identifying a team-wide skill gap before it impacts your numbers.

Strategic Market Validation

Use AI to quickly research new market segments, validate Ideal Customer Profiles (ICPs), or analyse competitor messaging. Instead of days of manual research, AI can synthesise vast amounts of public data to give you a strategic overview, helping you make more informed decisions on territory planning and messaging strategy.

AI-Assisted Talent Sourcing

Finding top SDR talent is tough. AI can help you screen resumes faster, identify key skills in candidate profiles, and even generate personalised outreach messages to potential hires. This means you spend less time on administrative tasks and more time interviewing the best candidates.

Common questions

Common questions

How do you become a Manager, Global Sales Development?

Common routes in include SDR Team Lead to SDR Manager (2-4 years as a Team Lead), Principal SDR to SDR Manager (Individual Contributor to Leader) (3-5 years as a Principal SDR) and Sales Operations/Enablement to SDR Manager (3-6 years in Sales Ops/Enablement with SDR focus). Times vary with prior experience.

Where can a Manager, Global Sales Development progress to?

This role can lead on to Director, Global Sales Development (3-5 years in Manager role) and Head of Sales Operations & Enablement (3-6 years in Manager role), depending on the skills you build.

What new skills matter most for a Manager, Global Sales Development?

Increasingly, AI-Driven Sales Enablement & Strategy and Advanced Data Science for Sales Strategy. These are the skills our record of this role lists as growing.

Free tools

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Three free tools, no account needed. Each one ends with a role, a level and a way in.

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17Where to go from here

Other roles at Level 5

Same depth of qualification, different job. Useful if the work appeals but this particular role does not.

 More jobs in sales

Stay in the field you know and move sideways rather than up.
If you leave this industry

The strategic leadership, team development, pipeline generation and data driven decision making built in this role are transferable. It can lead to senior sales leadership roles in other SaaS companies. It can also lead into consulting, venture capital with a focus on go to market strategy, or running a sales focused venture. Understanding how to build and scale a sales engine carries across many settings.

This role profile is © 2026 Growth Engineering Technologies Ltd. Built from UK occupational standards and regulated qualification data, and written for Zavmo.

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