An SDR work sample test built from your own cases
A prospect replies to a cold email with a vague question, the research notes are thin and the next step has to be defensible. This is a fictional illustration of the exercise Calavion would build with you.
Try CalavionWhat is an SDR work sample test?
An SDR work sample test is a short exercise in which an applicant handles a real case from your own work, and you read a record of what they did. Calavion builds the case with you from work your team has handled, such as a one-line reply to a cold email and a qualification guide. It does not score, rank or recommend applicants.
An SDR assessment usually asks what an applicant would do and scores the answers against a key. This asks them to do it: they open the records, read the research notes and the qualification guide, then write the reply and the handover note, then decide. You read a Replay of what they did, and you decide.
People also search for this as an SDR skills test, an SDR job simulation or a work sample for SDRs. The terms overlap, but they measure different things: some check knowledge, some check what applicants say they would do, and some let applicants do practical work.
What this SDR work sample test is, and is not
- Best suited to
- Sales development done in writing: researching prospects, replying to inbound messages, qualifying and choosing a defensible next step.
- What the applicant does
- Read prospect notes, a reply and a qualification guide, decide whether the lead is worth a meeting, and write the reply and the handover to an account executive.
- What you see
- A Replay of what was available, what the applicant did and wrote, what changed and what stayed open.
- What Calavion does not do
- Connect to real CRM or email tools, assess cold calling by voice, test sales-tool skills, score or rank applicants, or claim to predict job performance.
- What exists today
- Not built. No SDR exercise has been built or run. One customer service exercise runs today, and Calavion would build a SDR case with you from work your team has handled.
What does a real-work SDR work sample test look like?
Example: a vague reply and a defensible next step
It is Monday. A prospect at a 200-person company has answered a cold email with one line, ‘Interesting, how does it work?’, the research notes show a new head of operations and no budget information, and the qualification guide says a meeting is booked only when there is a named problem and an owner. The applicant decides how to reply, whether to qualify further and what to hand over.
The steps the applicant would take in this illustrative example. Every record in it is invented.
The applicant would
Read the research notes, the reply and the qualification guide
Identify what is known and what is missing against the guide
Write a short reply that answers the question and asks one specific question about their problem
Decide not to book a meeting yet, and say why in the notes
Leave a note for the account executive with what is known, what is missing and the next step
Each choice leaves the lead in a different state: a meeting booked with no problem identified, a reply that is all pitch and no question, a handover note that says only ‘interested’. The employer would read the decisions, messages and action sequence in Replay.
This is an illustrative example. The company, the prospect and every record are invented.
How does it differ from other ways to test SDR candidates?
Employers combine several methods. This table shows what each one checks and where it stops.
| Type | What it checks | Strength | Limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Knowledge test | Sales terms, qualification frameworks and common tools | Quick to give and compare | Shows knowledge, not behaviour |
| Situational judgment test | Chosen answers to sales development scenarios | Standard scenarios are easy to compare | Shows what applicants say they would do |
| Work sample | A task taken from the job | Job relevance depends on how well the task represents the role | Takes time to design |
| Structured interview | The same questions for every applicant | Consistent and easy to run | Asks about past or hypothetical situations; does not show work being done |
| Calavion real-work exercise | Your own handled prospecting situation in a controlled environment | Observable actions, messages and consequences | Not built for sales development; written cases only; no scores or rankings |
For the full method comparison, read work samples, job simulations, take-homes and real-work hiring.
SDR work sample test: common questions
Short answers to what companies ask most often about assessing sales development representatives.
Is this an SDR assessment test?
Not in the usual sense. An SDR assessment test checks knowledge or stated judgment and scores the answers. An SDR work sample test has the applicant handle a real case from your own work, and you read a Replay of what they did. Calavion produces no score, ranking or hiring decision.
What is an SDR job simulation?
An SDR job simulation is an exercise in which an applicant handles a realistic prospecting situation instead of answering questions about one. Calavion’s version would be built from a case your own team handled, so the notes, replies and qualification guide are yours.
Does Calavion score sales development representative applicants?
No. Calavion does not produce scores, rankings or hiring decisions. Employers inspect the work and make the decision.
Do sales development work sample tests predict job performance?
No assessment guarantees performance, and Calavion does not claim to predict it. Calavion shows observable work so that you can judge it yourself and then discuss it in the interview.
Can Calavion test cold calling?
No. Calavion’s environment is built around written cases with records and message threads. It does not record voice or video, so cold calling needs a role-play with a rater.
What has Calavion run so far?
Calavion has run one exercise end to end: a customer service cancellation case, tested on the live system using fictional company data. A sales development exercise would be built with you, from a prospecting situation your team has handled.
See the sales representative work sample test, the account manager work sample test, the marketing coordinator work sample test, the customer success manager work sample test, the recruiter work sample test, how Replay works, what real-work hiring is and all roles.
Further reading: Work sample vs skills test, Work sample vs structured interview and How to debrief a practical hiring task. Role family: Sales and marketing roles.
Build this exercise with us.
Bring one prospecting situation your team has handled. Launch access is free for our first three companies. Calavion prepares the exercise with you, by hand, and you approve it before any applicant sees it.