Jonathan Blake of Goose Creek takes home award at Russ Berrie Institute's 9th Annual National Sales Challenge at William Paterson University

2015 Dec 4

Jonathan Blake , a senior management major at Widener University in Chester, Pa, from Goose Creek, S.C., recently won the Perfect Participant Award for the Table Talks portion of the 9th Annual National Sales Challenge held Nov. 18. The challenge was presented by the Russ Berrie Institute for Professional Sales (RBI) at William Paterson University's Cotsakos College of Business in Wayne, N.J.

More than 100 college students representing 36 universities from across the country, as well as from Edinburgh Napier University in Scotland, participated in the competition.

The competition is designed by the University's Russ Berrie Institute for Professional Sales to strengthen students' sales skills and offer them an opportunity to network with business executives from companies around the country who will judge the events and serve as sponsors.

Competitions included the sales role-play event, which used a selling situation from sponsor ADP, and a speed-selling competition, which requires students to rotate through tables seated with company executives to pitch themselves for two minutes for a generic job.