Welcome back to Inside Drift, where we introduce you to all of the people that make Drift such a great place to work.
So far you’ve met Shannon Donovan, Mary Mitchell, Catherine LaMacchia, Nadine Shaalan, Britnee Laughlin, Carolina Caprile, Michelle Ai, Frank Schepps, Tate Knapp, Zareena Javed, Stacy Chen, Lillian Frost, Josh Perk, Fiona Heaney, Moe Lawson, Richard Wright, Andrew Jones, Sara Miller Blanc, Carter Stepanovsky, Luis Sanchez, and Chris Cardone.
Today we’re introducing you to Mike Iannuzzi. Mike leads a team of 30 sales development representatives (SDRs) and is responsible for pipeline generation at Drift. When he isn’t motivating his team or working with sales and marketing leaders on strategy, you can find him mixing up music as a DJ or working on his vintage 1976 Porsche.
Ready to meet Mike? Let’s go ⚡
Editor’s note: The following has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Kaitlyn Martins: Hi Mike, thanks for chatting with me! Can you tell me a bit about what you do at Drift?
Mike: I am the Director of Sales Development at Drift, which means I’m responsible for generating pipeline for Drift’s net new business. I’m in charge of a team of roughly 30 people who are spread out around the globe.
Kaitlyn: What does your day-to-day typically look like?
Mike: I spend most of my days working on business strategy for building pipeline, along with coaching and developing managers and individual contributors. I also spend a good amount of time with fellow sales and marketing leaders talking about how Drift is an integral part of pipeline creation.
Kaitlyn: Can you tell us a little bit about the structure of our SDR team?
Mike: We have multiple sales development pods that focus on specific business units — so you’ve got teams that are focused on enterprise, mid-market, EMEA, etc. We also have a team dedicated solely to Drift chat, which is responsible for sourcing around 30-40% of our pipeline annually.
Kaitlyn: Why is now an exciting time to join the SDR team at Drift?
Mike: Pipeline generation at Drift is going strong. We just had our largest pipeline-generating quarter of the year in Q3 📈
In addition, this quarter, a fifth of our team will likely be promoted to other roles within Drift, so we’d love to see some new faces around. Drift is a high-growth company, so if someone is willing to deliver on commitments and learn the business inside and out, they will definitely excel.
Kaitlyn: What is a fun fact that people might not know about you?
Mike: I spend a lot of my free time making and producing music. I have had the pleasure of traveling and playing music with some major acts over the last few years. It’s been a great way to let loose and flex my creative muscle, all while having fun.
Kaitlyn: When you aren’t working, what can we find you doing?
Mike: Outside of DJing and producing music, you can find me working on my cars, specifically this vintage Porsche from 1976. Otherwise, you’ll probably find me traveling or spending time with my two dogs and cat.
Kaitlyn: What different paths for growth does Drift offer SDRs?
Mike: At Drift, we encourage SDRs to go wherever they want to go.
I think it’s a bit dated to hold SDRs to the typical sales path. Whether the SDR wants to join marketing or customer success or the account executive team, it is totally up to them — and we’ll help them learn what it takes to join one of those teams. The people that really want it will put in effort outside of their daily commitments to make that happen.
Regardless of where they want to go, I encourage every single SDR to find their own path and execute on it.
Kaitlyn: Finally, what advice do you have for prospective Drift candidates?
Mike: Do your research on Drift, including the people you would work with and the people you would work for.
It’s also important to show that you know why you want to work at Drift. There are so many choices when it comes to working in tech, so it’s critical that your views align with the company’s values and mission. It needs to be a mutual fit — and if you can convey that in the interview process, you’re that much more likely to land the job.
Want to work with Mike? We’re hiring. Check out our open roles here.
