The traditional, entry-level SDR role is becoming obsolete. The new high-value SDR will be a skilled operator who manages a team of AI agents, not people. This leverage justifies a much higher salary, potentially reaching $250,000 per year, for those who can master this new skill set.
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As AI tools become operable via plain English, the key skill shifts from technical implementation to effective management. People managers excel at providing context, defining roles, giving feedback, and reporting on performance—all crucial for orchestrating a "team" of AI agents. Their skills will become more valuable than pure AI expertise.
AI is not coming for the jobs of high-performing salespeople. Instead, it's replacing the roles people don't want and displacing mediocre or mid-pack performers. The best sales professionals will gain superpowers from AI, while the rest will find their jobs at risk.
According to Sierra AI CEO Brett Taylor, companies are seeing a new role emerge from AI implementation. Traditional contact center managers are evolving into "AI Architects," responsible for designing, managing, and optimizing the entire system of human and AI agents, marking a shift from operational to strategic work.
OneMind's CEO believes Account Executives are safest from AI due to the need for relationship-building and navigating politics. However, roles focused on information transfer, like lead qualification (SDRs) and product demos (Solutions Engineers), will likely be outperformed by AI.
Traditional hourly billing for engineers is obsolete when AI creates 10x productivity. 10X compensates engineers based on output (story points), aligning incentives with speed and efficiency. This model allows top engineers to potentially earn over a million dollars in cash compensation annually.
As AI agents proliferate across departments, a new role is emerging to manage them holistically. This person must understand the entire organization to ensure agents communicate effectively and workflows are cohesive, preventing the creation of new digital silos.
Top-performing engineering teams are evolving from hands-on coding to a managerial role. Their primary job is to define tasks, kick off multiple AI agents in parallel, review plans, and approve the final output, rather than implementing the details themselves.
AI won't eliminate sales roles but will automate the tasks of lazy, transactional reps, making them obsolete. Conversely, top performers who merge AI-powered insights with human empathy will become unstoppable, creating a more pronounced divide in sales team performance.
The future of financial analysis isn't job replacement but radical augmentation. An analyst's role will shift to managing dozens of AI agents that perform research and modeling around the clock, dramatically increasing the scope and speed of idea generation and validation.
AI will handle most routine tasks, reducing the number of average 'doers'. Those remaining will be either the absolute best in their craft or individuals leveraging AI for superhuman productivity. Everyone else must shift to 'director' roles, focusing on strategy, orchestration, and interpreting AI output.
