Sales Development Representative
At a glance
Junior Sales Development role at Rundoo. Chicago · full-time · $60,000 base.
growthroles summary, based on the employer's posting.
What you'll do
- Reach paint, hardware, and farm-and-feed retailers by phone and email to create qualified sales opportunities
- Find decision-makers in home improvement retail, learn what they need, and assess whether they may convert
- Book product demos, follow up with prospects, and keep conversations moving toward a next step
- Represent the team professionally and deliver good service throughout each prospect interaction
What you bring
- A bachelor’s degree from an accredited university
- Up to two years in a BDR or comparable sales position, ideally selling to businesses
- Clear written and verbal communication, plus comfort with frequent cold calls and email outreach
- Experience tracking prospects in Salesforce or a comparable CRM
Who this fits
This junior role suits someone who wants a phone-heavy start in sales and a path toward closing, with a stated training track of about nine months. The job is based onsite in Chicago. You’ll be assessed on cold-call delivery, objection handling, and booking a demo.
From the employer
About Rundoo ℹ️
Our mission is to empower independent supply stores with best-in-class technology. Think of your local hardware store or mom-and-pop nursery—these are our clients. From paint to lumber to flooring, over 200,000 such stores across the country sell over $1T of building materials annually using outdated, on-premises systems. We’re aiming to help them modernize so that they can continue to thrive.
Backed by leading investors including Battery, Bessemer and CRV, we've raised $48M across four rounds and are growing quickly: We're live in over 500 stores across the USA, Canada, and the Caribbean, and integrated with over 20 industry partners. Our team is made up of builders, sellers, and industry veterans with a shared goal: to bring modern technology to an overlooked industry.
About the role 💼
As an SDR at Rundoo, you'll own the top of our funnel, running outbound calls and emails to independent paint, hardware, and farm & feed stores across the country, booking qualified demos, and creating the pipeline that powers our growth. We're looking for doers: people who pick up the phone and want to build a real career in sales. We care deeply about promoting from within, so we've built a structured track that gets you from SDR to closing AE in about 9 months through Rundoo U, our 26-week training program built specifically to turn SDRs into top-performing AEs.
What you’ll do as an SDR at Rundoo 🗒️
Lead Generation & Qualification:
Generate new opportunities per month through outbound calling and email outreach.
Identify and engage with key decision-makers in the home improvement retail space, qualifying leads based on their needs and potential to convert.
Sales Development:
Conduct daily outreach to engage potential clients, with a focus on securing strong interest and participation.
Regularly schedule meetings each month to introduce Rundoo’s solutions and drive product demo bookings.
Nurture relationships with prospects through timely follow-up emails and calls.
Customer Conversion:
Maintain professionalism and provide excellent customer service throughout the entire sales journey.
Requirements ☑️
Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited university.
0-2 years of experience as a Business Development Representative (BDR) or in a similar sales role, preferably in a B2B environment.
Strong communication skills, both written and verbal, with the ability to engage and qualify prospects effectively.
Comfort with high-volume outbound calling and email outreach.
Self-motivated with a strong desire to meet and exceed performance targets.
Experience using CRM software (Salesforce or similar) to track and manage opportunities.
Ability to handle rejection and remain focused on achieving goals.
Bonus points 🌟
Previous experience in the software or tech industry, particularly in SaaS or POS solutions.
Familiarity with the paint retail industry or similar verticals.
Interview Process 🎤
Intro Call (30 min) - Remote:
A casual chat with Shannon to get acquainted and evaluate qualities like grit, determination, and resilience.
Round 1 (1 hour) - Remote:
A session with Derek, our SDR manager, focused on core SDR activities:
You will get a one pager before this call with how to succeed in this interview, "How to make cold calls at Rundoo"
Assessing: cold calling ability (voice, tone, comfort levels calling), stay calm, make friends, and book a next step (demo)Assess tone, objection handling, call openers, and how you build interest quickly.
Meal (1 hour) - In Person:
A meal with Derek and the team in our office.
Founder Chat (15 min) - Remote
Reference Check
Offer
About the team 👥
Derek - I was born and raised in Columbus Ohio, and graduated from Ohio University down in Athens with an emphasis in Business Administration and a sales certificate from the Ralph and Lucy Schey Sales Centre. I’ve been in sales in Chicago for the past four years and couldn’t be more excited to join the new team here at Rundoo!
Matt - Studied history at Northwestern; taught middle school in Chicago, led sales for a consumer goods start-up, joined Rundoo as an AE and now leads the sales team; former competitive angler (bass fishing 🎣) and current husband and father (👶)
Alicia - Born and raised in Madrid, Spain, I moved to the United States to pursue the American dream and expand my opportunities. I graduated from Loyola University Chicago with a degree in Marketing and Sport Management, where I developed a strong passion for connecting with people and understanding what drives them.
Griffin - Born in Michigan, so excited to be apart of the Rundoo team! I studied Supply Chain Management at Michigan State University, but have a strong passion for sales. I love Detroit sports, specifically love watching and playing the sport of hockey. I also love meeting new people, and not afraid to chat with anyone.
Ike - Born and raised in Perth Australia, studied Marketing and Philosophy. Spent some time in advertising, and moved to Chicago in February 2024 because I was tired of having so much sunshine.
Compensation 💵
Salary: $60,000 annually
Commission: $32,400 annually (based on performance and targets met)
OTE Potential: $92,400 annually, with no cap
Equity: $11,500 vesting over 4 years with a 1 year cliff
Benefits 🏋️
Full medical, dental, and vision coverage (100% of premiums for you, 50% for dependents)
Life and AD&D Insurance
401k with Betterment
Unlimited PTO with 10 company paid holidays
Gym stipend up to $100/month
Daily team lunches
Learning materials and audiobook subscriptions
Our Redwood City, CA office is dog friendly: Meet the Rundogs 🐶
About our founders 🌲
Andrew (CTO): studied computer science & humanities at Stanford, worked as a software engineer at Apple and head of engineering at Anova; danced with the SF ballet (where he met his wife)! 🩰
Nick (CEO): studied math & computer science at Stanford; worked as a trader at Bridgewater & Citadel and as a PM at Google & Enigma; distantly related to the founder of the Hershey company 🍫
How we've fundraised 💰
We've raised $48m across four rounds:
A $2m pre-seed led by Kent Bennett at Bessemer with participation from Plug & Play, Quiet Capital, and Sequoia.
A $5m seed led by Caitlin Bolnick Rellas at CRV.
An $11m series A led again by Bessemer and CRV.
A $30m series B led by Michael Brown at Battery.
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