K-State students participate in national Rocky Mountain Madness sales competition
Thursday, Nov. 16, 2023
Four Kansas State University students participated in the national Rocky Mountain Madness virtual sales competition. From left: Simon Lee, Halle Hartner, Adam Ramirez and Bryce Disberger. | Download this photo.
MANHATTAN — Four Kansas State University students from the K-State Sales Team competed in the national Rocky Mountain Madness virtual sales competition hosted by Metropolitan State University of Denver.
Rocky Mountain Madness was designed as a virtual competition at its inception and allows teams to sharpen their virtual communication and selling abilities. It is a unique intercollegiate event that follows a bracket-style competition like the NCAA's March Madness. Sixty-four students from 16 universities across the country competed in a variety of categories, including interviews and role-plays.
The K-State Sales Team had four participants: Halle Hartner, sophomore in professional strategic selling, Belleville; Simon Lee, sophomore in professional strategic selling, Clay Center; Adam Ramirez, junior in professional strategic selling and marketing, Shawnee; and Bryce Disberger, sophomore in accounting and professional strategic selling, Wamego.
For the competition, the students acted as consultants to the product sponsor, E.W. Scripps, to design an advertising strategy for both TV and digital advertising through several rounds of competition.
In the first round, students had to complete two interviews to be seeded into the bracket. Then, they advanced through a series of role-playing scenarios, starting with a cold call in the second round; from there, some advanced to client needs analysis meetings in the third and fourth rounds. The competition concluded with presentation meetings in the fifth and sixth rounds.
All students participated in the first two rounds of competition, then competitors advanced to further rounds based on performance.
Ramirez advanced to the fifth round of the competition, placing in the top eight. Lee advanced to the fourth round of the competition, placing in the top 16, and Hartner advanced to the third round of the competition, placing in the top 32.
"This was our first year competing in Rocky Mountain Madness," said Kellie Jackson, marketing instructor and K-State Sales Team coach. "It provided a great opportunity for our team to conduct the entire sales process — from cold calling to presenting a tailored solution based on the prospect's needs. I would like to extend thanks to E.W. Scripps for their ongoing partnership with this event and to Metropolitan State University of Denver for facilitating this unique, virtual event."
The K-State Sales Team is in the College of Business Administration's National Strategic Selling Institute, which has been named one of the top sales programs in the country for twelve straight years by the Sales Education Foundation. The team consists of students who are enrolled in the certificate or major in professional strategic selling.
In the fall of 2018, Kansas State became just the 19thuniversity in the U.S. to offer a major in professional strategic selling. Students can also earn a certificate in professional strategic selling, which is open to all majors at the university. The professional strategic selling program introduces students to the fundamentals of sales, and the innovative curriculum and sales labs allow students to develop the skills needed to be successful.
The K-State Sales Team will be competing in several competitions throughout the school year across the country. For more information on the National Strategic Selling Institute or the K-State Sales Team, please contact kstatesalesprogram@k-state.edu.
