Case Study: TEKsystems Ramps New Sellers 6x Faster
Key results
The challenge
TEKsystems hires approximately 350 new sales development representatives every year, and new sellers historically took 36 to 40 months to reach their first services meeting. Ramp depended on time-intensive 1:1 coaching from leaders managing many direct reports across more than 100 locations, limiting pipeline velocity.
The solution
TEKsystems embedded four targeted Degreed Maestro AI roleplay experiences — elevator pitch, handling objections, discovery questions, and a full prospect-call simulation — into its 20-week sales onboarding, starting with a first pilot cohort of 22 new sales development reps. Sellers practiced independently before human coaching so leaders could focus on refinement.
“What we know as a company is, if we can move that business deal velocity at a particular rate and get to qualifying, we are 60% more likely to win the business and fill the business as required.”
CHChris HarryChief Talent & Learning Officer, TEKsystems
The results, in context
In the first pilot cohort, 25% of sellers landed a services meeting within six months of joining the company, versus none previously — a shift from a 36-to-40-month process to under six months for a quarter of the cohort, described by TEKsystems as ramping new sellers 6x faster. TEKsystems notes that reaching that first qualifying meeting fast means a 60% chance of winning the deal.