Autonomous SDR Agent SOP: Guardrails, Approvals, and Stop Rules You Can Copy

Autonomous SDR agents are only useful when they can act quickly without putting your brand, domains, or legal posture at risk. The difference between “agentic outbound” and “random automation” is an operational SOP with guardrails: what the agent is allowed to do, when a human must approve, and exactly what conditions force an immediate stop.

TL;DR: Copy this AI SDR agent SOP to deploy an autonomous SDR safely: define tiered autonomy (draft-only, send-with-approval, constrained autonomy), implement approval gates (new domain, new segment, first 25 sends, pricing and legal claims), enforce stop rules (spam complaints, bounces, negative replies, no-response caps), build escalation paths, do QA sampling, and require audit logs. This template includes copy-paste policies for allowed claims, disallowed personalization sources, follow-up limits, suppression, and exception handling.

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SOP overview (copy-paste)

SOP name: AI SDR agent SOP (Autonomous SDR Agent Guardrails, Approvals, and Stop Rules)
Owner: Head of RevOps (primary), Head of Sales (secondary), Security or Legal (as needed)
Applies to: All outbound email sent by humans, sequences, automations, or SDR agents using company domains
Goal: Increase qualified conversations while protecting sender reputation, brand trust, and compliance posture
Systems: CRM, enrichment tool, outbound sequencer, ticketing system, audit log storage, analytics dashboards

Non-negotiables (must pass before scaling autonomy):

• Authenticated sending and compliance hygiene (SPF, DKIM, DMARC, TLS, RFC formatting).
• One-click unsubscribe for marketing/promotional mail.
• Suppression and opt-out honored within required timelines.
• Daily spam complaint rate thresholds monitored and enforced.

Google’s sender guidelines explicitly call out spam rate thresholds (keep below 0.1%, never reach 0.3%+) and one-click unsubscribe requirements for marketing mail. (support.google.com) Yahoo also enforces sender requirements and one-click unsubscribe expectations for promotional mail. (senders.yahooinc.com)

If you need the deliverability prerequisites as a checklist, pair this with Chronic Digital’s deliverability setup guide: The 2026 Deliverability Stack: A Step-by-Step Setup Before You Send a Single Cold Email.

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Definitions (structured for policy and audit)

What is an “Autonomous SDR Agent”?

An AI system that can plan and execute SDR tasks (targeting, researching, writing, sequencing, and sending) with some level of independence, subject to defined constraints and monitoring.

What is an “AI SDR agent SOP”?

A standard operating procedure that defines:

• Autonomy tiers (what the agent can do without a human).
• Approval workflows (who must approve what, and when).
• Stop rules (what metrics or events force a pause).
• Escalation paths (how the agent routes edge cases to humans).
• QA, logging, and audit requirements.

What are “stop rules”?

Automated triggers that immediately pause sending and require human review, typically tied to:

• Complaint rate, bounces, negative replies, opt-outs.
• Segment-level underperformance.
• Claim or compliance risk flags.

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Tiered autonomy levels (draft-only, approval, autonomous-with-constraints)

Use these tiers as your rollout plan. Do not skip levels.

Level 0: Draft-only (human sends)

Agent can:

• Draft email copy, subject lines, and follow-ups.
• Suggest segments and lead lists.
• Recommend enrichment fields to collect.
• Propose a next-best action per lead.

Agent cannot:

• Send any email.
• Create or modify suppression rules.
• Launch campaigns.
• Change sending infrastructure.

Required controls:

• Human reviews 100% of emails before sending.
• Agent outputs stored with traceability (prompt, inputs, sources, timestamp, user).

When to use:

• Week 1 to 2 of deployment.
• New product messaging, new ICP, or any regulated category.

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Level 1: Send-with-approval (agent executes, human approves)

Agent can:

• Add leads to sequences.
• Generate final-ready emails and follow-ups.
• Propose personalization snippets and references.
• Queue sends at a controlled volume.

Agent cannot:

• Send without a human approval step.
• Modify claims library, pricing, or legal language.
• Create new segments without approval.

Approval requirement:

• A human approves each campaign or batch before the first send.
• A human approves any message that triggers a “claims risk” or “privacy risk” flag.

Recommended workflow:

1. Agent drafts sequence and selects leads.
2. Agent runs compliance checks (claims, unsubscribe, suppression, prohibited sources).
3. Agent submits for approval (Slack, ticketing, or CRM workflow).
4. Approver signs off or rejects with reason.
5. Agent sends only the approved batch.

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Level 2: Autonomous within constraints (pre-approved playbooks)

This is “real autonomy” but only inside a fenced area.

Agent can (within constraints):

• Send sequences from pre-approved playbooks to pre-approved segments.
• Personalize using approved data fields only.
• Pause/stop automatically based on stop rules.
• Escalate exceptions to humans.

Agent cannot (hard blocks):

• Email a net-new segment or persona without a segment approval.
• Use a net-new sending domain without domain approval.
• Make pricing or legal claims beyond the allowed-claims library.
• Use personalization sources from prohibited lists.
• Increase volume above configured caps.
• Bypass suppression.

What makes Level 2 safe:

• The agent does not “decide what is true.” It selects from approved language blocks and approved data, and it stops quickly when metrics degrade.

If you want a governance framework for who approves what across RevOps, Sales, and Legal, pair this SOP with: AI Governance for RevOps in 2026: What to Automate, What Humans Must Approve, and How to Set Guardrails.

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Approval workflows you can copy (required gates)

Below are the approval gates buyers typically miss. Copy these exactly, then tighten thresholds over time.

Approval gate 1: New sending domain (or mailbox pool)

Trigger: Any new domain, subdomain, or mailbox group used for outbound.
Approver: RevOps + Deliverability owner (and Security if required).
Checklist:

• SPF, DKIM, DMARC present and valid.
• One-click unsubscribe enabled for marketing mail.
• Physical mailing address included where required.
• Test sends verified.
• Warmup and volume ramp plan defined.

Google’s bulk sender guidelines put authentication, DMARC, and one-click unsubscribe into “must have” territory for marketing/promotional mail. (support.google.com) Yahoo similarly emphasizes list-unsubscribe requirements and may reject or spam-folder mail that does not meet requirements. (senders.yahooinc.com)

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Approval gate 2: New segment (new ICP slice, industry, geography, title band)

Trigger: First time emailing a segment definition not previously approved.
Approver: Head of Sales (messaging fit) + RevOps (data and compliance).
Required artifacts:

• Segment definition (firmographics, role, region, exclusions).
• Why this segment fits ICP.
• Messaging angle and proof points.
• Disallowed personalization sources confirmed.
• Expected value proposition per persona.

Tip: Use a structured ICP workflow so the agent is not guessing. Chronic Digital’s ICP tooling approach is reflected across our platform positioning, and you can also lean on proof-led messaging guidance: How to Build a Proof-Led Sales Motion in 2026 (When Buyers Don’t Trust AI Claims).

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Approval gate 3: First 25 sends (per segment, per playbook)

Trigger: Any brand-new playbook or segment combination.
Approver: Sales manager or designated QA approver.
Rule: The first 25 sends are manually reviewed (message, personalization, compliance flags, list quality).
Pass criteria:

• Personalization is accurate and not creepy.
• Claims are within allowed list.
• No prohibited data sources referenced.
• Suppression honored.
• Unsubscribe present and functioning.

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Approval gate 4: Pricing claims, performance claims, legal or compliance claims

Trigger: Email includes pricing, discounting, SLA guarantees, compliance statements, legal interpretations, or performance promises.
Approver: Legal (or designated compliance owner) + Head of Sales.
Rule: These messages cannot be autonomously generated unless assembled from a pre-approved claims library.

Why: regulators care about misleading or unsubstantiated claims. The FTC emphasizes truthful, not misleading claims and substantiation expectations in its advertising guidance. (ftc.gov)

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Stop rules (copy-paste thresholds and auto-pause logic)

Stop rules should be enforced at three levels:

• Campaign-level (a specific sequence or playbook).
• Domain/mailbox-level (sender reputation protection).
• Company-level (global pause if severe risk).

Core stop rules (recommended defaults)

Stop rule A: Spam complaint rate

Trigger: Daily user-reported spam rate >= 0.3% for any sending domain.
Action: Immediate global pause for that domain, escalate to Deliverability owner.
Recovery: Resume only after spam rate stays below 0.3% for 7 consecutive days (or your stricter internal rule).

Google documents spam rate thresholds, recommends staying below 0.1%, and treats 0.3%+ as a major issue. (support.google.com) Yahoo also evaluates complaints continuously and provides feedback loop mechanisms. (senders.yahooinc.com)

Stricter internal best practice: soft-pause at 0.1%, hard-pause at 0.2%, global-pause at 0.3%.

Stop rule B: Hard bounce rate

Trigger: Hard bounces >= 2% in a rolling 24-hour window for a domain or mailbox pool.
Action: Pause the campaign, run list hygiene and enrichment verification, escalate to RevOps.
Notes: While mailbox providers emphasize complaints, bounces still harm reputation. Treat bounces as an upstream data quality failure.

Stop rule C: Negative reply rate

Trigger: Negative replies >= 5% over first 100 delivered emails in a segment.
Action: Pause that segment-playbook combo, escalate to Sales manager for messaging review.
Negative reply definition: “not interested,” “stop,” “remove me,” “spam,” “reporting,” profanity, or explicit complaint.

Stop rule D: Opt-out/unsubscribe rate

Trigger: Unsubscribe rate >= 1% over first 250 delivered emails in a segment.
Action: Pause that campaign, review targeting and offer.

CAN-SPAM requires clear opt-out mechanisms and honoring opt-outs within 10 business days, and it also places responsibility on the company even if a vendor sends on its behalf. (ftc.gov)

Stop rule E: No-response cap (fatigue control)

Trigger: A lead receives X total outbound touches with no response.
Default: X = 6 total touches across 21 days, then stop for 90 days (see follow-up limits template below).
Action: Suppress lead, mark as “cooldown.”

Stop rule F: “Creepy personalization” flags

Trigger: Any personalization referencing sensitive attributes, personal life, or inferred traits.
Action: Immediate block, route to human for review, add source to disallowed list if needed.

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Escalation paths to humans (who gets paged, and when)

Escalation matrix (copy-paste)

Agent behavior during escalation

When escalated, the agent must:

• Stop contacting impacted leads.
• Preserve a snapshot of what was sent and why.
• Provide a “minimum evidence packet” (lead record, sources, prompt, claims used, sequence ID, timestamps).

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QA sampling (how to audit without reviewing everything)

QA goals

• Catch hallucinated facts and wrong personalization.
• Catch prohibited claims and compliance language drift.
• Catch “sounds like spam” phrasing.
• Catch data quality issues before they become deliverability issues.

QA plan by autonomy tier

Level 0 (draft-only):

• 10% random sample reviewed daily, plus any flagged messages.

Level 1 (send-with-approval):

• 20% sample of approved sends in week 1, then 10% ongoing.
• Mandatory review of first 25 sends for every new segment-playbook.

Level 2 (autonomous within constraints):

• 5% random sample daily per segment-playbook.
• 100% review for any message that:
  • References compliance, pricing, or competitors.
  • Uses newly added personalization fields.
  • Includes attachments or links not in the approved link list.

If you operate outreach for multiple clients or multiple brands, also add deliverability ops monitoring and auto-pause rules: Deliverability Ops SOP for Agencies: Monitoring, Thresholds, and Auto-Pause Rules.

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Audit logging requirements (what to store, for how long)

A workable standard: log enough to reconstruct intent, inputs, and outputs.

Audit log schema (copy-paste)

For every agent action, store:

• actor_type: agent | human | automation
• actor_id: agent name/version or user ID
• timestamp_utc
• lead_id / contact_id
• account_id
• segment_id and version
• playbook_id and version
• message_id (unique)
• prompt_template_id and version
• data_inputs: fields used (not full raw if sensitive), plus source tags
• personalization_fields_used (enumerated list)
• claims_blocks_used (IDs from allowed claims library)
• links_used (approved link IDs)
• risk_flags: claims_risk | privacy_risk | deliverability_risk | tone_risk
• approval_status: not_required | pending | approved | rejected
• approver_id (if approved)
• send_status: drafted | queued | sent | failed | paused
• stop_rule_triggered: yes/no + rule ID
• suppression_check: pass/fail + reason
• unsubscribe_present: yes/no (and method)
• delivery_outcomes: bounce type, complaint signal, reply category

Retention

• Minimum: 12 months.
• Recommended: 24 months if you operate in multiple jurisdictions or have enterprise compliance needs.

Frameworks like NIST’s AI Risk Management Framework emphasize governance practices including documentation and ongoing monitoring. (nist.gov) The EU’s AI Act materials also highlight logging and traceability expectations for certain AI systems and emphasize human oversight measures. (digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu)

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Copy-paste policy modules (operational templates)

Copy-paste: Allowed claims (Claims Library v1.0)

Purpose: The agent can only use claims from this list without special approval. Anything else requires legal approval.

Allowed claims (examples, edit to match your product):

1. Product category claim: “We’re an AI-powered sales CRM for B2B teams.”
2. Capability claim: “We can help prioritize leads using AI lead scoring.”
3. Workflow claim: “We can enrich lead and company data to reduce manual research.”
4. Personalization claim: “We can draft personalized outbound emails based on approved CRM fields.”
5. Process claim: “We support multi-step sequences with scheduling and automation.”
6. Safety claim (soft): “We support approvals, suppression, and audit logging to help teams operate safely.”

Claims requiring approval (auto-flag):

• “We guarantee” statements of any kind.
• Performance promises (reply rates, meetings booked, conversion lift).
• Deliverability promises (inbox placement).
• Compliance guarantees (“GDPR compliant,” “SOC 2 compliant”) unless verified and approved.
• Competitive comparisons (“better than HubSpot”) unless backed by approved substantiation.

Required evidence attachments for any performance claim:

• Internal study link, methodology, sample size, timeframe.
• Approved disclaimer language if results vary.

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Copy-paste: Disallowed personalization sources (Personalization Policy v1.0)

The agent must not use or reference the following sources in copy, even if data is available:

Disallowed sources:

• Personal social profiles (Facebook, Instagram, personal TikTok).
• Personal life details (family, health, finances).
• Sensitive traits or inferred attributes (politics, religion, sexual orientation).
• Scraped data that violates a site’s terms (if you cannot verify permission).
• Private community posts (Slack groups, Discord communities, gated forums).
• Any “guess” about why a person changed jobs, got promoted, or raised funding, unless sourced from an approved, verifiable business announcement.

Allowed personalization sources (examples):

• Company website pages.
• Public press releases or newsroom posts.
• Public product docs and changelogs.
• Public job postings relevant to the offer.
• Approved technographic or firmographic enrichment fields.
• First-party CRM notes created by your team.

Agent rule: If the personalization source is not explicitly labeled as “approved,” the agent must either omit personalization or escalate for approval.

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Copy-paste: Follow-up limits (Sequence Safety Policy v1.0)

Global limits per lead (across all sequences):

• Max touches without reply: 6
• Max days in active outreach window: 21 days
• Cooldown after max touches: 90 days suppression
• If “not now” response: suppress for 180 days unless they opt in earlier

Per-channel limits:

• Email: max 5 touches per 21 days
• LinkedIn (if used): max 2 touches per 21 days
• Calls (if used): max 2 attempts per 14 days

No-response cap stop rule:

• If no reply after touch 6, stop sequence, tag as “No Response Cap Hit,” and suppress.

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Copy-paste: Suppression policy (Suppression and Opt-Out v1.0)

Suppression lists must include:

• Unsubscribes (global, across all domains).
• Spam complainers (from feedback loops where available).
• “Do not contact” flags from CRM.
• Negative replies requesting removal.
• Role-based addresses if your policy excludes them (optional).
• Competitors and sensitive accounts (optional, but common).
• Existing customers if they should not get outbound prospecting sequences.

Suppression rules:

• If a lead is suppressed, the agent must not contact them, even if added to a sequence by mistake.
• Suppression checks must run:
  • At lead import,
  • Before queueing,
  • Immediately before send.

Opt-out handling:

• Provide opt-out method in every marketing email.
• Honor opt-outs within required timelines.

CAN-SPAM explicitly requires opt-out processing and honoring requests within 10 business days, and prohibits certain practices like forcing extra steps beyond a simple mechanism. (ftc.gov)

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Copy-paste: Exception handling (Agent Exception Workflow v1.0)

When the agent hits an exception, it must:

1. Stop the affected action (do not “try something else” automatically).
2. Create a ticket with severity and category.
3. Attach an evidence packet (see below).
4. Notify the correct human owner.
5. Wait for resolution before resuming.

Exception categories:

• Claims exception (pricing, legal, compliance, guarantees).
• Data exception (missing fields, conflicting enrichment, questionable source).
• Deliverability exception (complaints spike, bounces spike, authentication failures).
• Brand exception (tone, harassment risk, sensitive event).
• Security exception (suspected credential issue, unusual send pattern).

Evidence packet (required):

• Lead and account IDs.
• Email content and subject.
• Personalization fields used and their sources.
• Claims blocks used.
• Sequence and segment version.
• Metrics context (complaints, bounces, negative replies).
• Screenshot or raw log snippet from sending platform if available.

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Operational checklists (what to do weekly)

Weekly governance checklist (Level 1 to Level 2)

• Review spam complaint rate trends and domain health.
• Review negative reply categories and root causes.
• Audit 30 random emails for personalization accuracy.
• Confirm suppression sync is functioning.
• Update claims library based on new product releases.
• Review exception tickets and close the loop with updated guardrails.

For a more metric-driven view of agent productivity and cost, align QA effort with a measurable unit of work: Agentic Work Units (AWUs): The ROI Metric Sales Teams Will Be Forced to Adopt in 2026 (and How to Implement It).

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Implementation notes for Chronic Digital (how this maps to your stack)

If you are implementing this SOP inside an AI CRM like Chronic Digital, map each policy component to a control:

• AI Lead Scoring + ICP Builder: enforce segment allowlists.
• Lead Enrichment: enforce approved enrichment sources and field-level permissions.
• AI Email Writer: enforce claims library and personalization source restrictions.
• Campaign Automation: enforce follow-up limits and global no-response caps.
• AI Sales Agent: enforce stop rules and escalation workflows.
• Pipeline + predictions: ensure the agent does not “invent” deal stage changes without evidence.

If you are evaluating tools, use a governance-oriented buying checklist so you can verify approvals, logs, and stop rules exist before rollout: The 2026 AI Sales Tool Buying Checklist: ROI Proof, Risk, Security, and Governance (With Pilot Scorecard Template).

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FAQ

What is the fastest safe way to roll out an AI SDR agent SOP?

Start with Level 0 (draft-only) for 1 to 2 weeks, then move to Level 1 (send-with-approval) with strict gating on new segments and the first 25 sends. Only after stable metrics and clean QA sampling should you allow Level 2 constrained autonomy.

What stop rule should I implement first if I only pick one?

Implement a spam complaint rate hard stop. Google’s guidelines make it clear that spam rates at or above 0.3% create serious deliverability consequences, and they recommend staying below 0.1%. (support.google.com)

Do I need one-click unsubscribe in cold outbound?

If the message is “marketing/promotional,” Google requires one-click unsubscribe for bulk senders, and Yahoo also enforces List-Unsubscribe expectations for promotional mail. (support.google.com) Regardless, CAN-SPAM requires a clear opt-out mechanism for commercial emails and prompt honoring of opt-outs. (ftc.gov)

How do I prevent the agent from making risky claims?

Use a claims library that the agent can select from, and auto-flag anything else for approval. This aligns with FTC expectations around truthful, non-misleading advertising and substantiation. (ftc.gov)

What audit logs are essential for enterprise buyers?

At minimum: prompt template version, input fields used (and sources), claims blocks used, approvals, suppression checks, send outcomes, and stop-rule events. Framework guidance like NIST AI RMF emphasizes governance, documentation, and monitoring as part of risk management. (nist.gov)

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Deploy the SOP this week (90-minute rollout plan)

1. Pick your autonomy tier for week 1: Level 0 or Level 1 only.
2. Copy in the five templates: Allowed claims, disallowed personalization sources, follow-up limits, suppression policy, exception handling.
3. Implement the four approval gates: new domain, new segment, first 25 sends, pricing or legal claims.
4. Turn on the stop rules: spam complaint, bounces, negative replies, opt-outs, no-response cap.
5. Create the escalation matrix: one Slack channel, one ticket queue, one on-call owner.
6. Start QA sampling: minimum 10% until metrics stabilize.
7. Require audit logs before scale: if you cannot reconstruct why an email was sent, you are not ready for autonomy.

If you want, I can also provide a “one page SOP” version formatted for Notion or Google Docs, plus a separate annex for enterprise security review (controls, evidence, and audit questions).