Business Development Associate / Intern

Who We Are

akirolabs is the AI‑powered operating system for strategic procurement. Our mission is to elevate procurement from a tactical, cost‑focused function into a true strategic value creator. By combining world‑class methodology, advanced AI, and intuitive collaboration into our category management platform, akirolabs empowers procurement teams to deliver 4–5× higher business value beyond savings — driving innovation, sustainability, resilience, and growth.

Company Overview

Headquartered in Berlin, akirolabs was founded in 2021 by a team of procurement and consulting veterans from Siemens, Vodafone, KPMG, and Roland Berger, and is backed by top‑tier investors and European innovation grants. Recognized by leading analysts such as Kearney, Spend Matters, and the appliedAI Institute, akirolabs is shaping the next generation of strategic procurement technology.

Today, akirolabs serves leading enterprises across industries — from energy and life sciences to financial services and manufacturing — helping them transform procurement into a data‑driven, collaborative, and future‑ready strategic function.

Job Description

Join akirolabs at a defining stage of growth, where your work will directly influence how we expand our market reach and connect with the world’s leading procurement and category management teams. As a Sales Development Representative (Intern), you’ll be on the frontlines of our go‑to‑market engine — turning insights, conversations, and data into real opportunities that power akirolabs’ growth.

You’ll take ownership of building our sales pipeline — researching target accounts, crafting personalized outreach, and engaging decision‑makers to open doors for our sales team. Your curiosity, discipline, and drive will help shape how we identify and qualify opportunities, setting the foundation for predictable revenue growth.

In this role you will

Theme 1: Prospecting & Lead Generation

• Research accounts to identify the right personas at target prospects & own the execution of outbound prospecting.
• Analyze competitive activity and market trends while leveraging LinkedIn social listening to uncover opportunities, generate leads, and drive pipeline growth.
• Design, operate, and monitor automated multi‑channel outbound systems that push leads in our pipeline and create new opportunities.
• Initiate highly personalized conversations with the help of AI to build relationships with highly engaged prospects through a mix of phone calls, emails, and LinkedIn messages (150–250 contacts/week).
• Support outreach efforts by drafting cold emails, LinkedIn messages, and other go‑to‑market materials.

Theme 2: Lead Qualification & Pipeline Management

• Qualify and follow up on inbound leads and collaborate with marketing in nurturing them through the early stages of the sales cycle.
• Clearly articulate the value of our SaaS product and how it addresses customer pain points in discovery calls.
• Summarize and manage lead handovers (detailed call reports and qualification summaries) to ensure a smooth transition to later stages of the sales cycle.

Theme 3: Sales Operations

• Collaborate with GTM to create and execute strategies for driving pipeline & personalized outreach.
• Maintain and enrich CRM data while producing weekly sales insights and performance reports.
• Collaborate with marketing to develop sales assets, including one‑pagers, presentations, and outreach sequences.

Your 6‑month Journey

• Month 1: Master the Fundamentals Deep dive to get to know our product, customers, and sales methodology. Shadow sales discovery calls, start practicing prospecting and outreach calls/emails with structured coaching; understand how multi‑channel outbound systems work and how to run outbound sequences using our sales automation and intelligence tech stack.
• Months 2‑4: Own your pipeline Own a quota. Master outreach strategies, convert buying signals into opportunities and build consistent pipeline with weekly coaching.
• Months 5‑6: Win your first deals Get exposure to full‑cycle AE work. Prospect, lead discoveries, assist and deliver demos, navigate stakeholders, and close deals with dedicated mentorship.
• Month 7: Outcome Proceed towards the promotion — you can now step into a Jr. Account Executive role and own a quota. Alternatively, depending on internal needs and your interests, you may choose to move into a GTM Engineering and Growth position.

Qualifications

Your Values

• Self‑motivated, resilient, comfortable handling rejection and maintaining consistent activity
• Excellent time management and organizational skills
• Results‑driven approach with competitive spirit
• Adapt at multitasking and prioritizing effectively.
• The ability to thrive in ambiguity and work autonomously as a high level contributor
• Team‑first mentality: flexibility to lead, or support, as no job is too small or too big
• Comfort with AI tools and willingness to experiment

Your Profile

• Drive to sell with discipline and initiative – you communicate clearly with senior stakeholders, think analytically, stay coachable, and bounce back quickly.
• Strong communication, presentation and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build rapport and engage prospects in meaningful conversations.
• Currently pursuing or have already obtained a bachelor’s or master’s degree in business administration, or a comparable subject at a university or business school.
• Preferably, you have initial client exposure in your previous internship/roles (e.g. any client facing discipline such as consulting, partnerships at startup).
• Familiarity with CRM software tools (such as Salesforce, Hubspot).
• Familiarity with sales automation and intelligence tools such as Clay, Apollo, Lemlist, HeyReach, Gong is a big plus.
• Possess understanding of B2B SaaS sales and a strong sense for customer needs.
• A constant user and explorer of AI tools — you should already be using Claude/ChatGPT/Gemini/Perplexity tools daily.
• Native or C2‑level German and strong English skills.

You don’t need to meet every single requirement — if you’re motivated to learn and grow into this role, we want to hear from you!

Benefits

• Enjoy a highly competitive salary/stipend with above‑average remuneration.
• Flexible and hybrid office culture (2‑3 days/week in office).
• Duration: 6–12 months, with the possibility of extension or transition to a full‑time role.
• Access to sales training (consultative techniques, objection handling).
• An environment where we enable you to have an impact and where we focus on outcomes, not time‑tracking.
• Gain training and deep insight into B2B SaaS sales best practices and industry trends.
• Regular team and social activities.
• 26 + 4 vacation days per year (4 fixed “company rest days”).

Recruitment Process

• Application screening > Interview > Take Home Case Study > Final interview > Offer > 30‑minutes with our CEO.