Sales Development Representative

Ascend Open · verified Sep 14, 2026

San Francisco Junior Sales Development

Entry-level Sales Development role at Ascend. San Francisco · $70,000–$115,000 base.

On-target earningsStated by Ascend

$70,000 – $115,000

On-target earnings for this role, in USD per year, as published in the posting. Base plus commission; the split is in the posting.

Role brief

Growth Roles summary, based on the employer's posting.

What you'll do

Learn Ascend’s product, customer problems, market, and team processes
Prospect through calls and email, then book demos with potential customers
Build repeatable outreach workflows and test messaging, channels, and cadences
Use reporting to improve sales development performance and collaborate with marketing
Share feedback with teammates and help onboard new SDRs

What you bring

Prior SDR experience in SaaS is preferred, though ambitious career changers may be considered
Clear phone and writing skills, with the judgment to adjust your message
Self-directed curiosity and a willingness to learn new sales approaches and tools
Creative, adaptable problem-solving in a fast-moving startup setting
A collaborative approach that prioritizes team results

Who this fits

You’ll suit this role if you want to build an outbound sales career and enjoy cold outreach, experimentation, coaching, and shared team goals. The position is fully in person at Ascend’s San Francisco office. Experience with Salesforce, Outreach, LinkedIn Sales Navigator, Apollo, or Clay, plus startup exposure, is helpful but not required.

From the employer

What We Do

Insurance is a $10T industry still running on PDFs, email threads, and manual reconciliation. Ascend is changing that. We built the first and only complete financial operations platform purpose-built for insurance — combining AI-powered accounting automation, payments, and premium financing in a single vertically integrated solution. In five years, we've become the market leader: over 4,000 businesses, including more than half of the 50 largest brokers in the country, trust Ascend to bring clarity to complex accounting operations — from collection to close.

How We Do It

Ascend automates the financial operations that insurers, MGAs, and agencies run every day — and embeds directly into the transactions where money actually moves.

AI is driving the cost of software toward zero. The companies that win won't just sell tools — they'll capture value at the point of the transaction itself. Ascend is built for exactly that moment. Our customers don't just adopt software; they unlock measurable efficiency with a proven 5–7x return on investment.

Our ~100 person team is based in San Francisco and Columbus, brings together deep expertise in insurance, fintech, and AI to build infrastructure the industry has never had.

Why We Do It

The insurance industry intermediates trillions of dollars — and almost none of that infrastructure was built for the modern era. Legacy systems aren't just inefficient; they're a ceiling on what the industry can become.

Ascend's mission is to become the leading financial automation platform for insurance by 2030 — powering the financial operations of the entire industry and transforming the way trillions of dollars move. We're not building another point solution. We're building the financial backbone of insurance.

Your Role

As a Sales Development Representative, you’ll be a driving force behind Ascend’s growth and at the forefront of our go-to-market efforts. You’ll play a key role in helping us expand our footprint across the Mid-Market and SMB segments, further solidifying our leadership in the space.

We’re looking for someone with a proven history of effective cold calling, a strong drive for constant improvement, and a creative approach to outreach. You’ll be part of a growing team, helping us build a consistent and high-quality outbound motion.

Please note, this role is in-person at our San Francisco office.

Responsibilities Will Include

Objective #1: In your first 30 days, you will onboard and get up to speed on Ascend, our processes, and our market (and begin generating pipeline):

Develop a deep understanding of the problems our customers face, how Ascend solves them, and how to communicate that value to prospective customers
Learn and ask questions about how we operate as an SDR team, as a GTM function, and as a business more broadly
Jump into prospecting, cold calling, cold emailing, and booking demos with guidance and coaching from other team members

Objective #2: In your first 60 days, you will establish the key habits and processes needed to drive predictable and repeatable results:

Work with your manager on a strategic initiative that you will own, build, and implement across the team (for example: defining new outreach strategies or figuring out ways to implement AI into the team’s workflows)
Identify and establish a repeatable process to meet weekly, monthly, and quarterly goals, and build structure around your workflows to ensure consistency
Experiment with different outreach strategies, messaging, cadences, and channels, and attend industry events

Objective #3: In your first 90 days, you will have in-depth conversations with prospective customers and perform alongside the other members of our SDR team:

Collaborate with marketing and the broader GTM function to identify new opportunities and push the team forward
Leverage data and reporting to find areas for improvement and optimization, both individually and across the sales development function
Give feedback to, and receive feedback from, other team members to ensure consistent learnings, and mentor new SDRs as they join

You Might Be a Good Fit If You Are/Have

Some proven experience: SDR experience in SaaS is preferred (but open to ambitious people who break that mold and are eager to grow in their sales career)
Strong communication skills: comfortable speaking on the phone, clear in writing, and able to adapt messaging to the moment
A learner’s mindset: self-motivated, resourceful, and excited to learn new strategies, messaging, and tools
A creative thinker: eager to experiment with new outreach ideas and constantly looking for ways to improve efficiency and impact
Flexible and agile: excited by the pace of a startup environment and able to adapt quickly to shifting priorities
The ultimate team player: you thrive in collaboration and are energized by team wins above all else

Nice to Haves

Experience with Salesforce, Outreach, LinkedIn Sales Navigator, Apollo, or Clay
Exposure to startup environments and comfort with navigating ambiguity

Compensation: $70,000–$115,000 OTE

Equal Opportunity

We are committed to equal opportunity employment and embrace diversity within our organization. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.

We encourage candidates to apply even if their experience doesn't precisely match this opportunity. We value diversity and are dedicated to equal opportunity employment.