Sales development is an organization that sits between the marketing and sales functions of a business and is in charge of the front-end of the sales cycle: identifying, connecting with, and qualifying leads. Simply put, this organization is tasked with setting up qualified meetings between a salesperson and a potential buyer with a high probability of purchasing a product or service. A lead that meets this criterion is called a Sales Qualified Lead (SQL). Once a lead is determined to be qualified, it is then passed to a salesperson, typically an Account Executive, who takes ownership of the lead and conducts the rest of the sales process.