The Role
Frontline SDR role contacting schools via phone, email and LinkedIn to qualify needs, book meetings for account teams, manage outreach and pipeline in the Zen platform, create educator profiles, collaborate with new business team, experiment with approaches, and support school and educator engagement.
Summary Generated by Built In
Sales Development Representative
Location: London, UK (Oval)
Type: Full Time (5 days in office - remote working options during school holidays)
Salary: up to £30,000 per annum + Uncapped Commission
👋 Hi, I’m Nick, the Head of Sales Development at Zen Educate.
I’m hiring Sales Development Representatives to be the first point of contact for new schools and help to continue to engage new schools with our amazing offering.
As an SDR, you’ll be right at the frontline of what we do, introducing headteachers and school leaders to a smarter, fairer, more affordable way to hire great educators. If you love talking to people, want to break into tech, and care about making an impact, keep reading.
Why this matters 💪
Zen is transforming education staffing. UK schools spend over £2bn a year on supply staff, £600m of that goes straight to recruiters. We built a better way: a tech-driven platform that connects schools with teachers directly, saving time, money, and stress.
Since launching in 2017, we’ve saved schools over £30 million, and we’re just getting started. In 2024, we closed the largest EdTech funding round in Europe and are expanding fast across the UK and US.
We are looking for someone to join our high-performing SDR team, who are focused, driven, and friendly. This is a fantastic launchpad into Tech and SaaS sales, with great support, clear progression, and lots of opportunity.
What you’ll actually do 🎬
Let’s get specific. Here’s what you’ll be doing day-to-day:
- Reaching out to new schools by phone, email, and LinkedIn, being their first impression of Zen Educate.
- Learn how to tell a compelling story and speak confidently about our platform and mission.
- You will be asking smart questions to understand the school's needs, and identify where we can add value
- You will book meetings for our Account Manager and Account Executives to attend so that we can showcase our platform and offering.
- Use our Zen Platform to track your outreach and pipeline
- You will work with our educators to help find them exciting opportunities within new schools, creating profiles and helping them find work!
- You’ll collaborate daily with the new business team to ensure we keep progressing.
- You will experiment with new approaches to continue to drive success
- Celebrating wins and learning from every conversation
Why this role is unique ⭐️
- You’ll be the face of Zen for new schools, setting the tone for long-lasting partnerships.
- You’ll work directly with our top-performing SDRs and the wider New Business team.
- You’ll be part of a fast-growing team that’s serious about your growth and development, with consistent development and career reviews.
- You’ll help build a product that supports teachers and improves education outcomes whilst saving schools money.
What makes you a great fit 👍
You’ll thrive here if:
- You love talking to people and don’t shy away from picking up the phone
- You’re curious and coachable
- You’re motivated by targets and always looking to improve
- You want your work to matter and are excited by Zen’s mission
- You’re comfortable working in a fast-paced environment with ambitious goals
- You prefer and enjoy working in an office based, collaborative environment rather than remotely.
- You want your work to matter and are excited by Zen’s mission
- You’re organised and know how to manage your time effectively
What won’t work here 👎
Let’s be honest — this isn’t for everyone:
- You avoid the phone or dislike speaking with new people
- You expect results without putting in consistent effort
- You’re not open to feedback or learning from mistakes
- You prefer rigid, slow-moving environments
🤝 Our hiring process
We move fast and respect your time.
- Intro call with a member of our people team – A quick chat to get to know each other and cover the basics
- In person assessment centre in our offices in Oval – This is a group-style interview where we'll get to know you, do some role plays to assess your cold calling abilities, and an opportunity for you to meet the team and find out more about Zen!
Perks & benefits
- Competitive base salary + uncapped commission
- Equity in the company
- 25+ days holiday (and we actually encourage you to take them!)
- 5 Days in the office during term time (reduced hours and WFH options during summer holidays)
- Electric car and cycle-to-work schemes
- Life coaching, health insurance, and life insurance
- A team that celebrates wins, lifts each other up, and cares about making a difference
If this sounds like your kind of role, don’t overthink it — apply now.
We’re excited to meet you.
Diversity and Inclusion 🌍
At Zen, we strive to build a culture of equity and inclusion where everyone is respected, valued and appreciated. We welcome applicants with diverse backgrounds, experiences and perspectives — just like the staff who teach through Zen and the children at the schools we work with.
We’re committed to building a team that reflects the diversity of our community and creating a workplace where everyone can thrive.
Skills Required
- Strong verbal communication and phone prospecting skills
- Experience conducting outreach via phone, email, and LinkedIn
- Ability to book meetings and qualify leads for Account Managers/Executives
- Familiarity using a CRM/platform to track outreach and pipeline (Zen Platform)
- Coachable and open to feedback
- Motivated by targets and KPI-driven
- Comfortable working in a fast-paced, office-based environment
- Organised with effective time management
Am I A Good Fit?
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The Company
What We Do
At Zen our mission is to change the world of education recruitment. Schools spend over £2bn a year on agency staff, with over £600m per year of that spent on fees that go straight to recruitment agencies. So far, we've saved UK schools over £14m in supply teaching recruitment costs, and that number grows every day, allowing schools to invest further into children’s wellbeing and attainment. We're not just redefining recruitment; we’re upskilling our supply staff to provide the highest quality teachers and TAs to schools. Each supply staff member is Level 2 Safeguarding trained, guaranteeing the safety and wellbeing of children in your school. Using our online platform, schools can access hundreds of fully vetted high-quality teacher & TA profiles, who they can book instantly at the click of a button. We don't stop at just providing a platform – we have a dedicated school success team here to support you every step of the way. When you succeed, we succeed!
