Sales onboarding isn’t just a checklist, it’s the difference between a rep who ramps fast and one who burns out. When it fails, the cost isn’t just morale , it’s lost pipeline, wasted leads, and missed revenue.
How do some of the reps feel?
(Reddit,2025)
Here are 3 common reasons onboarding fails, what it’s costing you, and how to fix it.
1. Lack of Structured Onboarding and Training
The SDR burned through 3,000+ leads with little to no conversion due to lack of training, wasting valuable data, CRM capacity, and brand goodwill.
Tens of thousands lost in lead value, with fewer leads left for future reps.
Every MSP should build a 30/60/90-day plan that includes:
Product training
Persona and industry knowledge
- Live call shadowing and roleplay
2. Training, tools and lead access
- Warm leads given to AEs only ; missed fast wins and pipeline generation.
- SDR stuck with low-quality data ; no ROI on lead databases or prospecting platforms.
Every MSP should provide SDRs tiered access to different lead types: inbound, MQLs, and high-fit accounts.
3. No Clear Expectations or Success Metrics
The intern was told to “just do outbound” with no guidance on goals, KPIs, or what success looks like.
- Without metrics, managers can’t assess pipeline health or rep progression — leading to poor sales forecasting and missed quota targets. Every MSP should create a clear KPI dashboard during onboarding and walk reps through it.
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