We asked two sales leaders for their takes on shifting SDR headcount to AI

Some sales leaders are shifting budget from SDR headcount toward AI-driven outbound. Others say that's a mistake.

Where do you come down — and what's the risk if you get it wrong?

Leslie Venetz

Founder - The Sales-led GTM Agency

Smart sales leaders have outbound strategies led by humans but enabled by AI. Not-so-smart ones use purely AI-driven outbound.

Outbound is about earning prospects' attention.

I can't fathom how sales leaders think they deserve that attention — along with prospects' time and consideration — if they think the outbound they send isn't worth creating with human energy.

Getting it wrong means teaching prospects to ignore you, burning your TAM, and burning out your reps who will realize that volume doesn't translate to results. 

Collin Cadmus

Founder - Collin Cadmus, LLC.

A 100% AI outbound program isn't viable for many sales and revenue orgs — at least not for B2B, which requires human involvement. ​

AI can free up time for SDRs' key responsibilities. It should take activities like research, tool-tinkering, and admin off their plates.​

The outbound SDR model has always worked because educating prospects on new tech requires specific judgment.

Every prospect is unique and warrants a distinct approach.​ That's the art of sales, and AI hasn't mastered it.​

It has changed the economics of the SDR model (at least when properly implemented), enabling SDRs to do more of what matters in less time. ​

It's less about “shifting budget toward AI-outbound” so much as "allocating budget toward making SDRs hyper-efficient."