Hard Work and the Right Mindset Key to Baylor ProSales Student Success at the National Collegiate Sales Competition
After months of preparation by a team of ProSales students, Baylor University’s Center for Professional Selling brought home 7th place honors out of 67 teams at the 2014 National Collegiate Sales Competition (NCSC) at Kennesaw State University in Kennesaw, GA during the weekend of March 28-31.
In addition to a strong team finish, ProSales students Anna See and Pres McKissack earned top 12 and top 24 finishes out of 135 competitors, respectively. NCSC is the largest collegiate sales competition in the United States in terms of the number of competing universities and participating employers.
“Sales competitions are extremely important because they put my skills to the test,” said Anna See, a ProSales Junior from Corinth, TX. “Selling is everything no matter what career you are in. You either sell yourself and your own credibility or you are selling a product or service. This competition is important because I have to sell both, my credibility and a product.”
“The NCSC is a great competition to challenge yourself and pushed me to become more career- ready,” said See. “It was worth every second of practice and hard work to get to make it in the top 12 and represent Baylor well. I couldn’t have made it as far as I did without the help of Coach Fifield and the support of my teammates.”
In addition to the student competitors, Hunter Hendrickson, ProSales senior from Arlington, TX, served as a student coach this year. “Coaching allows me to exercise my passion for sales and help our competitors improve everyday,” said Hendrickson. “By coaching, not only do I gain a valuable personal learning experience, but I also get to contribute to others.”
Hendrickson certainly doesn’t take the coaching commitment lightly. “By coaching, you fully understand what the competitor is up against and what they need to prepare for. Coaches also need to go beyond the call of duty and be ready to role-play with their competitor whenever needed or complete any necessary work,” said Hendrickson. “I would never be able to coach effectively if I did not obtain the knowledge I have from my ProSales classes. Our sales faculty, including Dr. Dixon, Dr. Tanner, Dr. Weeks & Professor Fifield have greatly contributed to my knowledge and love of sales.”
Professor Charles Fifield, MBA, senior marketing lecturer at Baylor University, served as the faculty coach for this year’s NCSC team. Coach Fifield seeks to not only coach sound sales execution techniques, but he also focuses on ensuring Baylor ProSales students have the right mindset. “Mindset is a lot about attitude and preparing to win. Most people don’t succeed because they are preparing not to lose,” said Fifield. “This competition is a great test of our students’ capabilities. The most effective way to prepare students to execute in the workplace is put them under pressure, which is exactly what sales competitions like NCSC do.”
“In the business world, you have to be continually improving. It has to be a way of life. And that’s what the ProSales program is about,” said Fifield. “We’re already looking to next year’s team and how we can position them to win.”
“I believe Pres and Anna made great strides in their selling skills, their understanding of sales and their emotional intelligence. They will be better students, professionals and individuals because of this experience. It has been a joy working with Anna and Pres since day one,” said Fifield. “Pres and Anna are not only capable but are great coaches and mentors. I was very blessed to coach them this year.”
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.