Sales Development Representative Visa Sponsorship Jobs in Illinois
Illinois is a strong market for sales development representative roles, with sponsorship opportunities concentrated in Chicago's tech corridor, where companies like Salesforce, HubSpot, and Morningstar have established sales teams. The city's density of SaaS, fintech, and enterprise software firms makes it one of the more active Midwest states for SDR hiring with visa support.
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Get Access To All JobsRequisition ID: 25110
Job Category: Sales & Customer Service
Career level: Professional
Contract type: Permanent
Location:
Waukegan, IL, US
Salary Range: $77,000.00 to $87,000.00
About SKF:
SKF, reducing friction since 1907, re-imagining rotation for a better tomorrow!
SKF is an industry-leading manufacturer that has been a cornerstone in industrial life. Wherever there are machines or products in motion, SKF bearings are there to reduce friction. SKF drives the industries that support our way of life, powers the machines that put food on the table, and even helps explore the cosmos.
Sustainability is at the heart of everything we do. SKF is on pace to decarbonize all its production facilities by 2030.
We’re guided by our SKF values. Collaboration is critical to the success of our colleagues, partners, and customers. Curiosity and Courage provide a foundation for innovation and advancement. And we do this work out of Care for our people, customers, communities, and the planet.
We’re a company committed to a culture of belonging, where all our people are encouraged to be themselves and grow their careers in an equitable environment.
Position Summary
The Sales Development Representative (SDR) plays a key role in driving pipeline growth and new customer acquisition by identifying, engaging, and qualifying current and potential customers. This role is designed to build a strong internal talent pipeline and develop future sales and business leaders.
Key Responsibilities
- Identify and prospect target customers aligned with SKF’s strategic segments
- Execute outbound outreach campaigns (phone, email, LinkedIn, events)
- Qualify inbound and outbound leads to generate sales-ready opportunities
- Conduct discovery conversations to understand customer needs and applications
- Schedule qualified meetings and hand off opportunities to Account Managers or Sales Engineers
- Collaborate with Sales, Marketing, and Application Engineering to support growth initiatives
- Maintain accurate activity, pipeline, and customer data in CRM systems
- Build knowledge of SKF products, applications, and industry markets
SDRs are responsible for generating and qualifying leads and creating new opportunities that support the sales pipeline.
Customer Engagement
Engage current and potential customers through phone, email, LinkedIn, events, and coordinated field activity to identify needs, qualify opportunities, and create a positive first impression of SKF.
Conduct structured discovery conversations to understand customer applications, business drivers, reliability challenges, and timing for potential opportunities.
Support account development by scheduling qualified meetings, preparing clear handoff notes, and ensuring the appropriate Account Manager, or Application Engineering resource is engaged at the right time.
Maintain disciplined follow-up with customers, including timely responses, meeting recaps, action items, and next steps documented in CRM.
Escalate customer needs, technical questions, pricing requests, service issues, or high-potential opportunities to the appropriate internal owner while maintaining visibility until resolution.
Cross-Functional Collaboration
Partner closely with OEM Sales, Sales Operations and Enablement, Marketing, Application Engineering, Customer Service, Product Line, and Distribution/Aftermarket teams to support pipeline growth and customer development.
Coordinate with Account Managers and Application Engineers to align outreach activity, account context, customer messaging, and opportunity handoff expectations.
Work with Marketing and Sales Enablement to execute targeted campaigns, support trade show follow-up, and convert market intelligence into actionable prospecting activity.
Collaborate with Application Engineering and Product Line teams to build technical understanding and connect customers with the right SKF expertise when application-specific support is needed.
Contribute to a consistent internal operating rhythm by sharing customer insights, lead status, activity updates, and CRM data that help improve forecasting, prioritization, and sales execution.
Operational Excellence
- Qualified opportunities generated (SQLs)
- Pipeline value created
- Lead-to-opportunity conversion rates
- Activity levels (calls, emails, meetings)
- CRM accuracy and data quality
SDRs are typically measured on pipeline creation, conversion rates, and activity performance.
Strategic Communication
Communicate clearly and professionally with customers, prospects, and internal stakeholders, tailoring messages to the audience and business context.
Prepare concise customer outreach, meeting agendas, follow-up notes, and opportunity summaries that support effective handoffs and next-step alignment.
Provide regular updates on prospecting activity, lead status, customer feedback, and pipeline progress through CRM, weekly updates, and manager check-ins.
Translate customer insights, objections, and market signals into actionable feedback for Sales, Marketing, Sales Enablement, and Product Line teams.
Support leadership visibility by maintaining accurate reporting on activity levels, qualified opportunities, conversion progress, and emerging customer or market trends.
Qualifications
Bachelor’s degree in Business, Engineering, or related field (preferred)
0–3 years of experience in sales, customer-facing, or technical roles
Strong communication and interpersonal skills
Ability to learn technical products and industrial applications
Self-motivated, goal-oriented, and highly coachable
Experience with CRM tools (Salesforce or similar) is a plus
We’re looking for curiosity and willingness to learn, resilience and persistence in a high-activity role, strong organizational and time management skills, and team-oriented mindset with ability to collaborate cross-functionally.
Travel Requirements
Up to 50% of domestic travel
What You’ll Love About SKF:
Rest and Relaxation. Enjoy a generous PTO policy and 13 paid holidays.
Work/Life Integration. SKF supports work/life integration, home, family, community, personal well-being and health.
Diversity in the Workplace. At SKF, we strive to embed Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in everything we do. By developing a culture of belonging, our people can flourish; leading to an inclusive, equitable environment that promotes leadership, engagement and innovation.
Best in Class Benefits. SKF cares about the wellbeing of our employees. Comprehensive healthcare options to fit your needs and opt out payment. Added benefits include company paid life insurance, STD, LTD. Supplemental benefits include critical illness coverage, tuition reimbursement, employee discount programs, and much more!
Bonus. SKF offers STVS (Short Term Variable Salary) or Sales Incentive based on company performance and at the discretion of management.
Invest in your Future. Participate in our 401K program that boasts a 10% employer contribution: 100% match up to 5% of your elected contribution (100% Vested) plus an additional 5% company contribution.
Requisition ID: 25110
Job Category: Sales & Customer Service
Career level: Professional
Contract type: Permanent
Location:
Waukegan, IL, US
Salary Range: $77,000.00 to $87,000.00
About SKF:
SKF, reducing friction since 1907, re-imagining rotation for a better tomorrow!
SKF is an industry-leading manufacturer that has been a cornerstone in industrial life. Wherever there are machines or products in motion, SKF bearings are there to reduce friction. SKF drives the industries that support our way of life, powers the machines that put food on the table, and even helps explore the cosmos.
Sustainability is at the heart of everything we do. SKF is on pace to decarbonize all its production facilities by 2030.
We’re guided by our SKF values. Collaboration is critical to the success of our colleagues, partners, and customers. Curiosity and Courage provide a foundation for innovation and advancement. And we do this work out of Care for our people, customers, communities, and the planet.
We’re a company committed to a culture of belonging, where all our people are encouraged to be themselves and grow their careers in an equitable environment.
Position Summary
The Sales Development Representative (SDR) plays a key role in driving pipeline growth and new customer acquisition by identifying, engaging, and qualifying current and potential customers. This role is designed to build a strong internal talent pipeline and develop future sales and business leaders.
Key Responsibilities
- Identify and prospect target customers aligned with SKF’s strategic segments
- Execute outbound outreach campaigns (phone, email, LinkedIn, events)
- Qualify inbound and outbound leads to generate sales-ready opportunities
- Conduct discovery conversations to understand customer needs and applications
- Schedule qualified meetings and hand off opportunities to Account Managers or Sales Engineers
- Collaborate with Sales, Marketing, and Application Engineering to support growth initiatives
- Maintain accurate activity, pipeline, and customer data in CRM systems
- Build knowledge of SKF products, applications, and industry markets
SDRs are responsible for generating and qualifying leads and creating new opportunities that support the sales pipeline.
Customer Engagement
Engage current and potential customers through phone, email, LinkedIn, events, and coordinated field activity to identify needs, qualify opportunities, and create a positive first impression of SKF.
Conduct structured discovery conversations to understand customer applications, business drivers, reliability challenges, and timing for potential opportunities.
Support account development by scheduling qualified meetings, preparing clear handoff notes, and ensuring the appropriate Account Manager, or Application Engineering resource is engaged at the right time.
Maintain disciplined follow-up with customers, including timely responses, meeting recaps, action items, and next steps documented in CRM.
Escalate customer needs, technical questions, pricing requests, service issues, or high-potential opportunities to the appropriate internal owner while maintaining visibility until resolution.
Cross-Functional Collaboration
Partner closely with OEM Sales, Sales Operations and Enablement, Marketing, Application Engineering, Customer Service, Product Line, and Distribution/Aftermarket teams to support pipeline growth and customer development.
Coordinate with Account Managers and Application Engineers to align outreach activity, account context, customer messaging, and opportunity handoff expectations.
Work with Marketing and Sales Enablement to execute targeted campaigns, support trade show follow-up, and convert market intelligence into actionable prospecting activity.
Collaborate with Application Engineering and Product Line teams to build technical understanding and connect customers with the right SKF expertise when application-specific support is needed.
Contribute to a consistent internal operating rhythm by sharing customer insights, lead status, activity updates, and CRM data that help improve forecasting, prioritization, and sales execution.
Operational Excellence
- Qualified opportunities generated (SQLs)
- Pipeline value created
- Lead-to-opportunity conversion rates
- Activity levels (calls, emails, meetings)
- CRM accuracy and data quality
SDRs are typically measured on pipeline creation, conversion rates, and activity performance.
Strategic Communication
Communicate clearly and professionally with customers, prospects, and internal stakeholders, tailoring messages to the audience and business context.
Prepare concise customer outreach, meeting agendas, follow-up notes, and opportunity summaries that support effective handoffs and next-step alignment.
Provide regular updates on prospecting activity, lead status, customer feedback, and pipeline progress through CRM, weekly updates, and manager check-ins.
Translate customer insights, objections, and market signals into actionable feedback for Sales, Marketing, Sales Enablement, and Product Line teams.
Support leadership visibility by maintaining accurate reporting on activity levels, qualified opportunities, conversion progress, and emerging customer or market trends.
Qualifications
Bachelor’s degree in Business, Engineering, or related field (preferred)
0–3 years of experience in sales, customer-facing, or technical roles
Strong communication and interpersonal skills
Ability to learn technical products and industrial applications
Self-motivated, goal-oriented, and highly coachable
Experience with CRM tools (Salesforce or similar) is a plus
We’re looking for curiosity and willingness to learn, resilience and persistence in a high-activity role, strong organizational and time management skills, and team-oriented mindset with ability to collaborate cross-functionally.
Travel Requirements
Up to 50% of domestic travel
What You’ll Love About SKF:
Rest and Relaxation. Enjoy a generous PTO policy and 13 paid holidays.
Work/Life Integration. SKF supports work/life integration, home, family, community, personal well-being and health.
Diversity in the Workplace. At SKF, we strive to embed Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in everything we do. By developing a culture of belonging, our people can flourish; leading to an inclusive, equitable environment that promotes leadership, engagement and innovation.
Best in Class Benefits. SKF cares about the wellbeing of our employees. Comprehensive healthcare options to fit your needs and opt out payment. Added benefits include company paid life insurance, STD, LTD. Supplemental benefits include critical illness coverage, tuition reimbursement, employee discount programs, and much more!
Bonus. SKF offers STVS (Short Term Variable Salary) or Sales Incentive based on company performance and at the discretion of management.
Invest in your Future. Participate in our 401K program that boasts a 10% employer contribution: 100% match up to 5% of your elected contribution (100% Vested) plus an additional 5% company contribution.
Sales Development Representative Job Roles in Illinois
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Search Sales Development Representative Jobs in IllinoisSales Development Representative Jobs in Illinois: Frequently Asked Questions
Which companies sponsor visas for sales development representatives in Illinois?
Technology and enterprise software companies are the most active sponsors for sales development representative roles in Illinois. Chicago-based firms like Salesforce, Sprout Social, Morningstar, and Grubhub have sponsored work visas for sales and business development roles. SaaS companies with large Chicago offices tend to have established HR infrastructure for sponsorship, making them more likely to support H-1B visa or other work visa petitions for qualified SDR candidates.
Which visa types are most common for sales development representative roles in Illinois?
The H-1B is the most common visa category pursued for sales development representative roles in Illinois, though approval depends on whether the specific role qualifies as a specialty occupation requiring a bachelor's degree in a relevant field. Candidates already holding an OPT-EAD through an Illinois university, such as University of Illinois or Northwestern, can work as SDRs before an employer files an H-1B petition. The TN visa is available for Canadian and Mexican nationals in qualifying business roles.
Which cities in Illinois have the most sales development representative sponsorship jobs?
Chicago accounts for the overwhelming majority of sales development representative sponsorship opportunities in Illinois. The River North, West Loop, and Fulton Market neighborhoods host a dense cluster of tech and SaaS company offices that regularly hire SDRs. Outside Chicago, Naperville and Schaumburg have suburban corporate campuses where enterprise software and financial services companies occasionally sponsor SDR positions, though at significantly lower volume than Chicago.
How to find sales development representative visa sponsorship jobs in Illinois?
Migrate Mate filters job listings specifically by visa sponsorship availability, making it straightforward to search for sales development representative roles in Illinois without sorting through positions that don't offer sponsorship. Because SDR sponsorship depends heavily on company size and HR capability, filtering by employer type is useful. Migrate Mate surfaces Illinois-based SDR openings at companies with a documented history of sponsoring work visas, saving significant research time.
Are there any Illinois-specific considerations for SDRs seeking visa sponsorship?
Illinois employers sponsoring H-1B workers for sales development representative roles must meet Department of Labor prevailing wage requirements, which are benchmarked to the Chicago metropolitan statistical area. The Chicago tech pipeline is also fed by strong international student populations at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Northwestern, and DePaul University, which means SDR sponsorship candidates often transition from OPT. Illinois has no state-level visa sponsorship program, so all sponsorship flows through federal categories.
What is the prevailing wage for sponsored sales development representative jobs in Illinois?
U.S. employers sponsoring a visa must pay at least the prevailing wage, which is what workers in the same role, area, and experience level typically earn. The Department of Labor sets this rate to make sure companies aren't hiring foreign workers simply because they'd accept lower pay than a U.S. worker. It varies by job title, location, and experience. You can look up current prevailing wage rates for any occupation and location using the OFLC Wage Search page.