5 BDR Manager Interview Questions and the Perfect Answers

Have you heard of these 5 BDR Manager interview questions? Not only are they very common, but they’re also indicative of your skill. There’s no better way to land your first management role than with confidence. Learn how you can handle the most important questions with ease.

Sure, you can count on hearing the basics: What can you tell me about yourself? Why do you want to work here? Why are you interested in this role? Questions like that are common in any interview.

But we aren’t here to help you give any old interview. We’re here to help you answer the BDR Manager interview questions that matter most. Stand out from the crowd with answers designed to make a stellar first impression at this critical moment on the journey toward Career Success!

What does it take to be a successful BDR Manager?

As a BDR Manager, it’s your job to oversee a team of Business Development Representatives (BDRs). You’ll be hiring, onboarding, coaching, and monitoring the progress of around 2-10 direct reports. You’re responsible for making sure your team hits its sales goals.

Many BDR Managers come from a sales background. Likely you were a BDR, an Account Executive, or another front-line rep. The selling skills you developed there are important to the BDR Manager role. But, you’ll need more when leading a team. Hiring managers want to see leadership skills.

• Communication. Sharing information efficiently is integral. You’ll need to know how to speak with clarity, hone your active-listening skills and empathize.
• Organization and time management. With a team reporting to you, you’ll have to stay on top of things amid competing priorities.
• Decision-making. You’re responsible for your team. You'll be making crucial calls around staffing, team goals, processes, and more.
• Data analysis. Metrics matter. Get comfortable crunching numbers to track individual and team progress.
• Adaptability. When things change, you’re flexible and creative enough to change with them and bring your team.

What makes a good answer?

Ahead of any interview, we recommend doing your homework. Without any background work, you are going into the interview unprepared. No matter how skilled you are at improvising, you will ALWAYS be better with prep.

1. Research the company.
2. Read the job posting.
3. Identify your most important strengths to highlight.
4. Prepare thoughtful responses to answers about job-specific skills.

Make sure you come prepared and confident. You can even start right here!

1. What skills or qualifications do you look for when hiring a new BDR?

Your interviewer wants to make sure your definition of dream team” lines up with theirs. Identify 3 to 5 must-have BDR attributes. Explain how each attribute can benefit the company. Use examples from your own experience where possible. Mention the importance of fostering a team with a range of skills.

Make sure to mention how diversity and inclusivity can foster a stronger workforce. For any of these questions, show off what YOUR angle is. What is it about team-building that gets you excited? What little quip or anecdote do you have about meeting your ideal teammate?

Do...

• Highlight your past experience. Make clear observations about who succeeded vs. who underperformed. This is a great opportunity to show self-awareness as well as awareness of those around you.
• Show alignment with the hiring company. Suss out what they value in your research What are their company values? Pinpoint the market they’re in, and the strengths and weaknesses of their current roster.
• Set your expectations. Some skills — like CRM proficiency — you can learn. Others — like empathy — need a lifetime of experience to gain. Look for passionate and empathetic reps to show your priorities are in the right place.

Don't...

• Be rigid. Stay flexible, and encourage a diverse team. This will help the company tackle any situation or problem with greater creativity. It also offers perspective.
• Focus on your own skills. You don’t want to appear inflexible or close-minded. Make sure you highlight strengths outside your own wheelhouse.
• Think of personal benefit. Remember, this is about creating an engine that makes the whole company tick. Frame skills on their terms and align with their goals. Even better: show how your team goals and personal goals align with theirs!

2. How would you onboard and train a new BDR on your team?

On average, sales reps don’t reach full productivity until 3-6 months into the job. Your hiring manager wants to know that you get new hires on their feet, fast.

Introduce a scenario about a trainee you’ve onboarded in the past. Outline what that trainee did in the first day, week, month, and 3 months and how you contributed to their growth. Talk about where they needed extra support and how you provided it. Wrap up with how your trainee succeeded.

Do...

• Plan goals. Talk about introductions you’d make and technology you’d use for new hires. Highlight approaches, metrics, and timelines you’d establish and track.
• Show how you would communicate. How would you show new concepts, tech, and processes to someone with no previous knowledge?
• Prove your training methods work. Even talk about related situations, like adding a new member to a sports team.

Don't...

• Come in without a detailed plan. Don’t give the impression that your training approach is too informal. You don't want to seem unprepared.
• Let the tech do the babysitting. Metrics and training modules alone won’t train a star employee. Show how you would fill the need for hands-on help.
• Forget the data. Explain the performance indicators you'll use to track progress. How do you determine where new employees need extra support?

3. How do you keep your BDRs motivated, particularly when under pressure?

Money is a great motivator, but it isn’t the only one. Your interviewer wants to gauge your understanding of leadership. They want to see how you’ll keep your team ticking, even in tough times. Of all the BDR Manager interview questions you could be asked, this is the one where you can show your creativity.

Acknowledge that motivation is personal to each BDR. Give examples of different motivations you’ve encountered in the past. Mention how you uncovered them, appealed to each and what happened as a result. Share an experience. When was tapping into an employee’s or coworker’s motivations valuable? Did you meet a particularly difficult goal or tight timeline as a result? Then, round out your answer. Mention a handful of other motivators you’d expect to encounter on this team. Give one way you might appeal to each.

Do...

• Show your knowledge. Prove that you're aware of several different key motivators for sales employees. This might include personal goals, competition, on-the-job agency, public recognition, etc.
• Focus on active listening. Active listening is key to learning what motivates a team. Motivators are personal. Employees need to feel comfortable sharing with you what they need to feel engaged. And when they need an extra boost.
• Show you can multitask. Evidence that you can navigate many individual motivators at once is essential. Show how you'll put them to productive use within the company you’re interviewing.

Don't...

• Play it safe. Be creative! Take new approaches in how you appeal to varying motivators within your team. Outline new programs or incentives that have helped in the past.
• Approach motivation as a one-size-fits-all deal. Experience, age, territory, personality, and home life all play a role. You don't know what makes a hypothetical employee tick. There is no formula to motivation.
• Leave it up to employees. Harnessing motivation is a team effort, not a one-person show. You need to be willing and ready to get involved.

4. One of your BDRs has missed their quota for the past couple of months. What do you do?

Management isn’t all sunshine and roses. Sometimes you have to navigate difficult conversations. Every hiring manager will understand that things do go awry at times. Your interviewer wants to see how you turn failures into opportunities for improvement. BDR Manager interview questions of this kind aren’t meant to trick you. They’re meant to show an interviewer that you have grace and empathy even in the face of adversity.

Talk about a goal that one of your employees missed in the past. Walk through a conversation you had with them to identify what was going on under the surface. Outline a plan you created — or might create today — to help that employee meet next month’s goal. Finish by pointing out the methods you use to stay on top of problems like these so you can address it early.

Do...

• Be empathetic. Empathy in your approach to communicating bad news and negative feedback. Listen and understand before you judge.
• Highlight problem-solving skills. Show the tactics you’d use to identify the root of the performance issue. Outline how you collaborated. Any potential solution should include the employee. Address the root cause together.
• Be proactive. Hiring managers want to see how you track employee performance and identify problems. They want intervention before issues become emergent.

Don't...

• Be vague. Specificity is key here. Show plans you would use to help an employee get back on track. Mention goals, timelines, training, and resources that might help out.
• Be too harsh or too soft. Managing underperforming employees means striking a balance. Light a fire, but keep them motivated and empowered too.
• Acting too fast. Before you discipline, reprimand, or even let go of an employee, make sure you know the whole story.

5. What made you a successful BDR – and how will those skills help you in a leadership position?

A great salesperson doesn’t guarantee a great sales leader. Your interviewer wants to know if you understand where the two roles align. But also where they diverge.

Reinforce that you understand the role of a BDR Manager and how it’s different from front-line sales. Outline 3 or 4 common competencies and skills where you excel that apply to both roles. Explain how each will benefit you in a leadership role. Highlight a few more skills that are leadership-dependent. How will your future team benefit as well?

Do...

• Get familiar with the industry. This is the time to prove your competency. Relay the kinds of sales processes, frameworks, and best practices that you will be using. The same goes for those reporting to you.
• Transfer your skills. Highlight skills that suit both roles. Communication, active listening, data analysis, problem-solving, collaboration, and emotional intelligence, are key.
• Set realistic expectations. How will you be spending your time as a sales leader? How do you plan to handle the shift in responsibilities?

Don't...

• Be stagnant. Your growth is half of your story. Your own experiences on the sales floor will influence your leadership style. Talk about the lessons you've learned — both positive and negative.
• Avoid obvious gaps in skill or experience. Address your shortcomings head-on. Show that you’re willing to learn by addressing these. Share your plan for professional development within the hiring company.
• Equate success with quota. Leadership success will hinge on other metrics. Retention, engagement, productivity, and broader goals may be as important to a company.

Answer BDR Manager Interview Questions from Experience

Want to walk into your interview with more confidence? Ready to accelerate your career into a management position? Itching to show off your true leadership potential?

Nailing the answers to these BDR Manager interview questions is one thing... Back them up with the knowledge and experience hiring managers are hungry for. You'll add fuel to your career growth fire!

That’s why we created our Sales Leadership Foundations course!

In 6 weeks, you’ll learn the best leadership practices. You'll learn how to coach and mentor your team and use top tech tools to inspire them. Harness data to create your own sales strategies using real-life, industry-relevant scenarios. You'll build vital skills like recruitment, retention, performance evaluation, and team optimization! Get started today!