Charles Otto of Alliance has earned a certificate of sales excellence at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and was honored at a luncheon hosted by the Center for Sales Excellence on May 3. Otto is a senior majoring in marketing.
The certificate is designed to enhance communication and relationship-building skills. Skills built in the program attract students from a variety of majors.
“We take great pride in the fact that the center works with students of any major at the university – as we all sell something,” said Kathy Farrell, James Jr. and Susan Stuart Endowed Dean of the College of Business. “Whether it’s selling our skills to a future employer, selling in our jobs or simply selling our ideas to others, sales skills are valuable. These students have a competitive edge in the job market.”
State-of-the-art technology within role-play rooms in the Center for Sales Excellence allows students to practice pitching and receive real-time feedback on their techniques, honing their communication and selling capabilities. Students also participate in regional and national role-play competitions.
“Each of our classes provides hands-on learning experiences to students,” said Ravi Sohi, department chair and professor of marketing, Robert D. Hays Distinguished Chair of Sales Excellence and executive director of the Center for Sales Excellence. “Some of these experiences include role-plays, actual sales assignments with a target quota and networking. Additionally, through our employer partnerships, we can provide students with access to some of the sales platforms they will be using in their jobs, such as Salesforce, a cloud-based customer relationships management software, and xiQ, an AI software platform.”
Sohi said that more than 95% of sales excellence students have job offers upon graduation. Companies that have recently hired sales students include Dell, Deloitte, Gallup, Hubspot, Mutual of Omaha, NRC Health, Oracle, Sandhills Global, Union Pacific and the Walt Disney Company.
“Companies are pleased with the people they hire from our program and come back for more,” Sohi said. “It’s the highest compliment. They realized that students who graduate from our sales program have the necessary skills to succeed and are likely to stay longer in the sales role because they want to be in sales.”
The Center for Sales Excellence has awarded more than 350 certificates and 120 advanced certificates since its founding in 2013.
“Students receiving their certificates today are now our ambassadors to show others around campus and in the workforce what you can do with a certificate in sales excellence,” Sohi said. “I know these graduating students will do their best and utilize what they have learned. I encourage them to stay engaged with the program.”
The center has been named a “Top University for Professional Sales Education” by the Sales Education Foundation every year since 2014-15.