Corporate sales executive vs sales development representative

The differences between corporate sales executives and sales development representatives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-8 years to become a corporate sales executive, becoming a sales development representative takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a corporate sales executive has an average salary of $117,447, which is higher than the $51,504 average annual salary of a sales development representative.

The top three skills for a corporate sales executive include healthcare, sales process and CRM. The most important skills for a sales development representative are SDR, lead generation, and customer service.

Corporate sales executive vs sales development representative overview

	Corporate Sales Executive	Sales Development Representative
Yearly salary	$117,447	$51,504
Hourly rate	$56.46	$24.76
Growth rate	5%	4%
Number of jobs	199,322	199,588
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 78%	Bachelor's Degree, 83%
Average age	46	47
Years of experience	8	4

What does a corporate sales executive do?

A Corporate Sales Executive reaches out to clients to offer products and services, building positive relationships in the process. Their responsibilities typically include performing market research and analysis to find client or business opportunities, identifying and utilizing trends, generating leads, handling calls and correspondence, arranging appointments, and negotiating contracts. Aside from securing sales, a corporate sales executive may also perform various administrative support tasks such as preparing and processing documentation, developing sales strategies, and leading staff to reach goals while implementing company standards and regulations.

What does a sales development representative do?

A sales development representative qualifies leads at the sales funnel's initial stages. Sales development representatives need to conduct research for prospective clients and qualify the leads before handing them to the sales team. They develop sales strategies to attract buyers or solicit potential customers. They need to build relationships with their customers to determine their needs and qualify the viability of interests to drive sales. Also, they collaborate with the sales executives making certain that corporate targets and goals are met.

Corporate sales executive vs sales development representative salary

Corporate sales executives and sales development representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Corporate Sales Executive	Sales Development Representative
Average salary	$117,447	$51,504
Salary range	Between $87,000 And $157,000	Between $34,000 And $77,000
Highest paying City	-	Boston, MA
Highest paying state	-	Alaska
Best paying company	-	PitchBook Data
Best paying industry	-	Start-up

Differences between corporate sales executive and sales development representative education

There are a few differences between a corporate sales executive and a sales development representative in terms of educational background:

	Corporate Sales Executive	Sales Development Representative
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 78%	Bachelor's Degree, 83%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Southern California	University of Pennsylvania

Corporate sales executive vs sales development representative demographics

Here are the differences between corporate sales executives' and sales development representatives' demographics:

	Corporate Sales Executive	Sales Development Representative
Average age	46	47
Gender ratio	Male, 62.0% Female, 38.0%	Male, 63.1% Female, 36.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.2% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 4.1% White, 78.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 3.9% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	7%	6%

Differences between corporate sales executive and sales development representative duties and responsibilities

Corporate sales executive example responsibilities.

Generate leads through internet research, marketing, trade show participation, internal department cross-selling, and referrals.
Create the vision to expand traditional training models and introduce new educational methodologies for sales force automation and web-base training.
Demonstrate software to decision makers over GoToMeeting and Join.me.

Sales development representative example responsibilities.

Manage organization website and Facebook page; writing articles for websites and newsletters.
Develop social media strategies for Facebook, LinkedIn, and emerging social networks, generating leads.
Manage individual sales activities by developing highly effective, communications focuse relationship with multiple sales channels.
supply chain management and procurement software (SaaS).
Handle customer service inquiries, returns, and RMA exchanges.
Develop a strong knowledge of SaaS sales techniques and lead management/generation.

Corporate sales executive vs sales development representative skills

Common corporate sales executive skills

Healthcare, 18%
Sales Process, 11%
CRM, 11%
Account Management, 11%
Business Relationships, 9%
Saas, 7%

Common sales development representative skills

SDR, 11%
Lead Generation, 6%
Customer Service, 6%
Account Executives, 5%
Linkedin, 5%
Outbound Calls, 4%

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Executive Management Industry
Corporate Sales Executive
Corporate Sales Executive vs Sales Development Representative

Updated January 8, 2025

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