In at the Ground Level as an SDR in the EMEA office. - Sales Development Representative Glassdoor Employee Review

4.0
Mar 12, 2016
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

It's so exciting to be part of Glassdoor at this early-stage. We literally had to "build our own desks" when we arrived as the first 10 people in the Dublin office. This phrase is central to Glassdoor's culture, signifying the GRIT and self-motivation you need to succeed at this stage of our growth as a company. SDR's, AE's and AM's all work in the same room so there is loads of collaboration and craic in the office. I learn something new every day; ranging from different sales techniques, ways to organise my day and how best to maximise my hours in work. I also laugh every day which I think is really important. There's a lovely mix of personalities in the office and we work well together. As an SDR we learn everything about our sales process from the ground up and get a huge insight into the business - my previous experience was not in a tech environment so this is so valuable to me. We got stock options when joining the company which really makes me feel like I have a real investment in our success. It's great to know every deal that I help create contributes to the value of Glassdoor, which will benefit me and my colleagues in the future. We're looking to hire 100 people in the next 18 months so there is huge potential for growth here within the company. I'm already helping in the interview process with potential hires and I feel like my opinion is heard in the office. I'm really excited for things to come. There are no structure work hours and unlimited holidays which is fantastic. Even though this does generally fall into a 9-5 work day, it means that if you need to go to the bank or the dentist or take a day, there is no issue. It feels like we're being treated as adults - this is of course all dependent on performing well in relation to your targets - like any sales environment. Exciting times!

Cons

As SDR's we didn't get to go to San Fran for our yearly sales kick-off and training. This was disappointing because we feel like we missed out on a great opportunity to learn more about our company's culture and values. It's great motivation to get promoted to an AE or AM and go over for more training but it still felt like we weren't as valued as other employees who went over for training. We don't get all the perks of other tech companies in Dublin like free food, free gym or employer pension contributions. That's to be expected at our early stage and I'm sure that will all happen in the future. It's something to be aware of if you're coming from somewhere where everything is looked after for you. This office is scrappy and proud to be, it can be tough at times but that's what you're signing up for. We don't have employer contribution to pensions yet and have requested our phone expenses form (worth €40 a month) a few times but no word back from HR yet. I'm sure this is all part of the growing pains in such a fast-growing Company but it can still feel frustrating. Glassdoor's brand is still growing in the UK so a lot of our sales work is educating companies on the importance of getting engaged on their Glassdoor page. Again, this is expected to be the case in a growing company and it makes passing on good appointments to AE's even more satisfying.

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Glassdoor Response
10y
Great to hear that you're enjoying the role so far - agree that we are at the start of an exciting journey as our Dublin office grows and evolves. I love the quality of the team that we've assembled so far and I'm sure that we are going to enjoy great success in the months and years to come. You're right that we are very much at the start-up end of the spectrum in Dublin. That does have its pros and cons. On the positive side, you have an opportunity to make a real impact, help define and build our culture and have your voice heard clearly by everyone in the team, me included. On the cons side, you're right that we're still building our systems and processes - and indeed desks in your case! We won't always have the same perks and benefits that folks in other offices have - that's because we're trying to find the perks that make sense in each office. It doesn't make sense to provide lunches when we're in such a central location surrounded by good, healthy (or not) lunch options - but since everyone comes in by public transport, drinks after work to celebrate our successes are much more practical than in California. Having said that, with Aisling's arrival to lead HR we are going to be looking holistically at our benefits offer to see where there are opportunities to improve - so watch this space. In the meantime, enjoy the ride. As you point out, when we've grown to 100 people in Dublin these are the "good old days" you'll be reminiscing about. It's a special time and you're one of the few that will be able to say "I was there". Diarmuid

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