Sales Development Representative

Handshake; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 60,000 - 95,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Ownership: Equity

Family support: Parental leave, fertl

Wellbeing: Medical, dental, and vision

Remote & Office: SF office amenities

Time Off: Flexible PTO, holidays + 2 (

Job summary

Handshake is seeking a Sales Development Representative to join our Employer SDR team in the Bay Area. You’ll be the first point of contact for prospective employer partners, building qualified pipeline with consistency and accountability.

This fast-paced, metrics-driven role rewards steady performance, clear communication, and a commitment to continuous improvement; you’ll learn and have opportunities for internal promotion based on success and fit.

Qualifications

• 6–12 months of SDR experience or related quota ownership.
• Proven attainment in any quota-driven role.
• Advanced written communication skills with clear, succinct context.
• Able to analyze a bad month, adjust, and improve.
• Own results with concrete examples of process improvements.
• Coachable, consistent, and able to manage high activity with quality.
• Curious and composed in conversations with senior leaders.
• Motivated by measurable impact, not hype.

Responsibilities

• Generate and qualify a high volume of outbound opportunities.
• Manage and convert inbound leads quickly with context and professionalism.
• Partner with Account Executives on territory plans, messaging, and deal strategy.
• Track activity and insights in Salesforce, Gong, and Outreach.
• Reflect on performance weekly and identify improvements.
• Hit or exceed monthly targets after ramping.

Skills

SDR experience

Written communication

Quota attainment

Ownership mindset

Coachable

Tools

Salesforce

Outreach

LinkedIn Sales Navigator

ZoomInfo

Gong

Job description

For cash compensation, we set standard ranges for all U.S.-based roles based on function, level, and geographic location, benchmarked against similar stage growth companies. In order to be compliant with local legislation, as well as to provide greater transparency to candidates, we share salary ranges on all job postings regardless of desired hiring location. Final offer amounts are determined by multiple factors, including geographic location as well as candidate experience and expertise, and may vary from the amounts listed above.

About Handshake

Handshake was founded on a simple belief that everyone deserves a path to a great career, regardless of where they went to school or who they know. Today, we power 25 million job seekers, 1 million+ employers, and 1,600 educational institutions.

In 2025, we started Handshake AI and built the fastest-growing AI data business in history. We work directly with frontier AI lab researchers to create evaluations, publish benchmarks, and push the boundary of data. We’ve grown from $0 to ~$1B run rate and pay ~$60M to over 30K individuals every month.

Why join Handshake now:

Shape how every career evolves in the AI economy, at global scale, with impact your friends, family and peers can see and feel

Partner hand-in-hand with world-class AI labs, Fortune 500 partners and the world’s top educational institutions

Work together with engineers, scientists, operators, and more from Palantir, Meta, Scale AI, and former YC founders

Build a massive, fast-growing business with billions in revenue

The Role

Handshake is hiring a Sales Development Representative to join our Employer SDR team. This role is best suited for someone who works with focus, consistency, and accountability. You’ll be the first point of contact for prospective employer partners; responsible for building qualified pipeline and maintaining a high standard in every interaction.

This is a fast-paced, metrics-driven environment where results matter. The people who succeed here balance volume with quality, learn quickly from feedback, and hold themselves to a high bar. When challenges come up, they pause, reassess, and find a better way forward. Success in this role requires steadiness under pressure, clear communication, and a genuine commitment to continuous improvement.

You will have an opportunity to learn and grow in this role. We support our SDRs and seek to promote them internally based on their demonstrated success in the role, alignment with our values, and a passion for helping students.

Consistently hit or exceed monthly targets; starting at Month 2, new hires are expected to exceed their ramping quota

Generate and qualify a high volume of outbound opportunities through thoughtful, personalized outreach

Manage and convert inbound leads quickly and efficiently, maintaining a high level of context and professionalism

Partner closely with Account Executives on territory plans, messaging, and deal strategy

Track activity and insights accurately in Salesforce, Gong, and Outreach

Reflect on performance weekly; what worked, what didn’t, and how to improve

You Have

Have 6–12 months of SDR experience or have worked in a consulting, closing, or operations role with clear quota ownership

Can demonstrate proven attainment in any quota-driven role

Have advanced written communication skills and can convey context clearly and succinctly

Don’t get derailed by a bad month; you analyze it, adjust, and come back stronger

Take complete ownership of results and can point to concrete examples of how you improved a process or outcome

Are coachable, consistent, and can manage a high volume of activity without losing quality

Bring curiosity and composure to conversations with senior leaders

Are motivated by measurable impact, not hypothetical success

Bonus Points

Experience in consulting or operations

Internship experience in a performance-based or client-facing environment

Hired for a job or internship from Handshake

Familiarity with Salesforce, Outreach, LinkedIn Sales Navigator, ZoomInfo, or Gong

Please note that this role is not eligible for relocation; candidates must be currently based in the Bay Area.

We Offer

Handshake delivers benefits that help you feel supported and thrive at work and in life.

The below benefits are for full-time US employees.

Ownership: Equity in a fast-growing company

Family Support: Paid parental leave, fertility benefits, parental coaching

Wellbeing: Medical, dental, and vision, mental health support, $500 wellness stipend

Remote & Office: Internet, commuting, and free lunch/gym in our SF office

Time Off: Flexible PTO, 15 holidays + 2 flex days