UCF College of Business Administration students emerged as champions at the 2014 International Collegiate Sales Competition (ICSC) hosted in Orlando at the Rosen Centre Hotel, making this the first-ever ICSC championship for our Professional Selling Program.
The ICSC puts students’ selling skills to the test in a challenge to create a sales solution to improve a given company’s financial situation. The competition is owned and operated by the Florida State University Sales Institute. This year’s company of choice was Tom James custom suits.
32 teams with 2 students each competed – meaning a total of 64 competitors. In addition to the team championship, student Dan Berreth emerged as the winner in the individual competition. Teammate Stephanie Pitts was also a finalist. Cyndi Gundy and Bill Steiger, instructors in the Professional Selling Program, served as team coaches for UCF.
“From day one we had the mindset that we were competing as a team, not as two alternates and two competitors, and that’s why we were able win the entire competition as well as 1st and 4th individually,” said Catherine Bruno, team captain.
In the past, UCF teams have participated and received top placement in national sales competitions such as the National Collegiate Sales Competition.
“They continued the legacy of outstanding UCF team performance at national sales competitions. It’s extremely rare for a school to get two students in the final four, but we did it,” said Bill Steiger.
The Professional Selling Track is a prestigious, specialized program offered by the Department of Marketing in the UCF College of Business Administration. The program accepts no more than 35 outstanding students each year that show potential and promise in sales. The program boasts a 95% after-graduation job placement rate; the remainder go on to graduate school.