Optimizing your SDR:AE Ratio

I’m often asked, “What is the best SDR-to-AE ratio?” The short answer is that it depends on two things. The first is the economics of your business. The second is what measure, revenue, net profit, or cost of sales, you are optimizing on.

Many organizations consider the following SDR:SE ratios:

• 0:1 = no SDRs
• 0.5:1 = 1 SDR for every 2 AEs
• 1:1
• 2:1 = 2 SDRs for every AE

As shown in the table below which uses the default values in the calculator, revenue is maximized with a 2:1 SDR:AE ratio, net profit is maximized with a 1:1 ratio, and cost of sales is minimized with a 0:1 ratio.

Importantly, these ‘answers’ apply for the default values in the calculator. You may find very different results for your business.