How to Build a Profitable Outbound SDR Team: P&L Math, Headcount Decisions, and the 9-Month Payback Reality

Episode Summary

Jay Glenn is the founder of Jay Glenn Consulting, where he helps B2B companies build financially sustainable SDR programs. After witnessing mass SDR layoffs in 2022, Jay developed a suite of P&L calculators that have become essential tools for SDR leaders proving ROI to executives.

This episode is the financial deep dive that every SDR leader needs. Jay walks through the exact spreadsheet he uses, explains the math behind sustainable SDR models, and provides benchmarks that separate profitable teams from money-losing ones.

What We Discuss

The 2022 Wake-Up Call

Mass SDR layoffs in 2022 forced a reckoning: most companies had no idea whether their SDR teams were actually profitable. Jay shifted to financial-first thinking and built the P&L calculators that now drive his consulting practice.

The SDR P&L Calculator

Jay walks through the core inputs and outputs of his P&L model:

• Fully loaded SDR cost (salary, benefits, tools, management overhead)
• Required bookings per month based on ACV
• Show rate targets (80% benchmark)
• Pipeline conversion rates (inbound vs. outbound separated)
• Deal close rates and average deal size
• Customer lifetime value
• Result: a clear profitability timeline and program return multiple

The benchmark: a well-run SDR program should target a 7.91x return.

The $50K ACV Threshold

This is the core insight: if your average contract value is under $50,000, it is very hard to make the SDR model work.

The math is clear:

• At $50K ACV: each SDR needs ~14 bookings per month
• At $20K ACV: that jumps to ~37 bookings per month
• 37 bookings per month is not realistic for most teams

The exception: companies with strong product-market fit, overflow inbound leads, and shortened sales cycles can make sub-$50K work. But that is a specific situation, not a general rule.

Customer Lifecycle as a Profit Lever

The most underrated variable in SDR economics: how long the customer stays. An SDR-sourced customer that renews for 3 years is dramatically more profitable than one that churns at 12 months. Yet most SDR leaders never look past the initial deal value.

When NOT to Hire SDRs

Jay provides the framework for when to invest in SDRs versus alternatives:

• Below $50K ACV: consider full-cycle AEs until you can move upmarket
• Without efficiency benchmarks (8%+ call connect rate, 2-5% email reply rate): fix the fundamentals first
• Without clean pipeline data: you cannot model what you cannot measure

The Headcount Gap Calculator

For teams ready to scale, Jay built a separate calculator that models when to add headcount based on pipeline coverage needs, current team capacity, and efficiency benchmarks. This prevents the common mistake of hiring based on gut feel rather than data.

Presenting to the Board

Whether the news is good or bad, SDR leaders need to own the financial narrative. Jay’s approach: bring the P&L to every executive conversation. Show the inputs, show the math, show the trajectory. The conversations about your team’s ROI are happening whether you drive them or not.

Tools and Resources Mentioned

• Jay Glenn Consulting — P&L calculators and SDR advisory
• RepVue — SDR compensation benchmarks
• Clay — Market research and personalization
• TitanX — Phone deliverability