34 Huskers participate in Spring Team Role-Play Competition

Two young men hold an oversized check for $2,000, flanked by two middle-aged men.

Isabelle Bradley | Business

Brandt Munson (second from left), a junior management major, and Colin Herdzina (third from left), a junior finance major, both from Omaha, won first place and a $2,000 scholarship in the Center for Sales Excellence’s Spring Team Role-Play Competition. They are pictured with Blake Runnalls (left), the assistant professor of marketing who planned the competition, and Ravi Sohi (right), professor of marketing, Robert D. Hays Distinguished Chair of Sales Excellence and executive director of the center.

Thirty-four University of Nebraska–Lincoln students recently vied for a share of $5,000 in scholarships in the Center for Sales Excellence’s Spring Team Role-Play Competition.

As part of the Undergraduate Certificate in Sales Excellence Program, students teamed up to pitch the value of the center to alumni serving as prospective industry partners and judges. The competition tested the students’ communication, persuasion and problem-solving skills.

“It’s important for students to own their personal brand, and that extends into the broader Nebraska Business community,” said Blake Runnalls, assistant professor of marketing, who planned the event. “Through this competition, they are prepared to talk specifically about what the Center for Sales Excellence can do for businesses in Lincoln, or anywhere nationally or internationally, and how it’s helped them achieve their short-term and long-term career goals.”

Colin Herdzina, a junior finance major, and Brandt Munson, a junior management major, both from Omaha, earned first place and a $2,000 scholarship. The two met years ago when Herdzina played baseball with Munson’s brother and reconnected in college while interning at Sandhills Global.

“Colin’s ability to build rapport and take in what the buyer’s saying and then summarize it quickly was definitely an advantage for us,” Munson said. “He followed up with questions specifically tailored to what the center offers and the benefits of being an industry partner. No matter what students do in the future, they will be selling a product or service, a business or their ideas."

Though neither had previously competed, they participated in role plays in classes. Herdzina credited Munson’s power of persuasion with helping them win.

“Brandt is one of the most persuasive people I have ever met, and it’s so natural," he said. “The center’s seven-part process helped narrow down and focus the pitch, and Brandt customized it to the buyer’s needs.”

Two young women hold an oversized check for $1,500, flanked by two middle-aged men. — Ella Bowman (second from left), a junior marketing major from Peoria, Arizona, and Cadence McCollister (third from left), a senior advertising and public relations major from Valley, took second place and $1,500 in the competition.

Cadence McCollister, a senior advertising and public relations major from Valley, Nebraska, and Ella Bowman, a junior marketing major from Peoria, Arizona, took second place and a $1,500 scholarship. They first met at 3:30 p.m. the day before the competition, after McCollister’s original partner had to back out.

“We decided to emphasize that the center provides real-world experience for students in selling, and if the buyer invests as a partner now, they get to work directly with students who, in turn, will want to work for their company,” Bowman said. “We decided to be happy with the outcome, no matter what it was, and when we started competing, it just flowed. The judges were very helpful and gave us awesome advice during each of the three rounds.”

Third place and a $1,000 scholarship went to Nicolas Deaver, a junior finance major from Lincoln, and Andrew Jiron, a senior business administration and music major from Omaha. The duo, who also intern at Sandhills Global, were randomly paired for last year’s competition.

“Dr. Runnalls walked us through the sales process from day one,” Jiron said. “We worked hard on making our transitions feel natural. There is nothing like having money on the line to provide greater incentive.”

Two young men hold an oversized check for $1,000, flanked by two middle-aged men. — Andrew Jiron (second from left), a senior business administration and music major from Omaha, and Nicolas Deaver (third from left), a junior finance major from Lincoln, won third place and $1,000.

Westby Dunn, a junior advertising and public relations major from Omaha, and Joe Zabawa, a junior management major from Lincoln, earned fourth place and a $500 scholarship. Friends since their first year on campus, they credited their chemistry for making the pitch feel authentic.

“Knowing each other helped us avoid sounding scripted,” Dunn said. “Joe was great at overcoming objections, and I kept us organized and on track.”

Runnalls said the center boasts a 95% job placement rate, with graduates of the program receiving offers at Dell, Deloitte, Gallup, Hubspot, Mutual of Omaha, Oracle, Union Pacific and The Walt Disney Company.

“Since the center’s founding in 2014, Nebraska has been named a top university for professional sales education every year,” he said. “This competition allows students to further hone the top skills employers want.”

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Marlie Voss, director of campus selection at Northwestern Mutual in Lincoln and a 1993 Husker alumna, served as a judge and final-round buyer.

“I wanted to give back, as Northwestern Mutual partners with the Center for Sales Excellence and hires many students for internships,” she said. “This competition is a great way to connect with future sales professionals and help set them up for success."