Center for Professional Selling Supports Next Generation of Sales Scholars
Baylor University’s Center for Professional Selling takes an active role in preparing the next generation of sales professionals for successful careers in sales. This summer, the Center is taking an active role in supporting the next generation of sales scholars, as well.
Of the 113 who attended the 2013 American Marketing Association (AMA) Faculty Consortium from June 12-14 at Texas Christian University (TCU) in Fort Worth, TX, 19 were international scholars and 94 represented American universities. Among the 113 were 23 current PhD students who participated in the consortium, thanks to support from Baylor’s Center for Professional Selling.
“The goal of the Consortium was to stimulate future sales and sales management research through the formation of high-impact research teams, so all of the Consortium was interactive and focused on networking and information sharing,” said Bill Cron, co-chair of the 2013 AMA Faculty Consortium and Senior Associate Dean of Graduate Programs and Research at TCU’s Neeley School of Business.
With Baylor’s support of $300 for each participating PhD student, these rising scholars had the opportunity to participate in this intensive program focused on generating new research and inciting new research relationships.
“With the evolving sales environment, it is important to bring sales researchers together to discuss upcoming trends, build new research teams and prepare our discipline and practitioners for changes that are coming,” said Bill Moncrief, co-chair of the 2013 AMA Faculty Consortium and Chair of the Marketing Department at TCU’s Neeley School of Business.
Many of the PhD students will be on the job market in the coming year and will seek full-time positions at universities around the country. Engaging in AMA-sponsored events also allows the students to gain insight and exposure to prospective job opportunities as they approach graduation.
“Attending the AMA Sales Consortium was a great opportunity to meet leading scholars in the field, to learn about critical issues in sales research, and to forge relationships with global researchers,” said Stephanie Mangus, a PhD candidate at Louisiana State University. “The relationships I formed at the Consortium are ones that will last throughout my career.”
Baylor’s Center for Professional Selling stepped up as a PhD student sponsor to ensure strong participation from the next generation of sales scholars in this AMA Consortium.
“The AMA Faculty Consortium is unique in that it is the most forward-looking of academic conferences. Instead of presenting completed research, the conversation is truly around what should be next,” Jeff Tanner, professor of marketing at Baylor, stated. “That’s why it was so critical that we engage doctoral students and integrate them into that conversation.”
About the Center for Professional Selling
Dedicated to excellence in sales education and based in the university’s Hankamer School of Business, the Center for Professional Selling is recognized as one of the premier global information resources for the sales profession. For more information on the Center for Professional Selling, visit https://hankamer.baylor.edu/prosales.