The University of Utah’s Spring Semester 2016 will feature a first-ever 10-session intensive sales class. Shari Levitin, local entrepreneur and top sales expert, will teach “Pitch Perfect” to a select group of students. Students will observe and work alongside major companies such as Oracle, MarketStar and England Logistics to gain valuable hands-on experience not confined to the classroom. This highly interactive course consists of live and online training, individual and group assignments as well as an impressive roster of guest speakers.
“Personal selling is a key piece of success as a professional and as a student,” says Dean Taylor Randall, Dean of the David Eccles School of Business. “Shari brings a remarkable amount of experience and caring to her work and this course will kick off an entire sales curriculum that the University intends to build and offer in the years to come.”
Amongst the 12 guest speakers this semester is Will Spendlove, Vice President/Director of Marketing SteelBrick, InsideView, Salesforce.com. Joining Spendlove, is Jill Konrath bestselling sales author and keynote speaker. Neill Brownstein will also be featured; he is the founding partner of Bessemer Venture Partners whose clients include LinkedIn, Pinterest, Yelp, Periscope and many more. Students will also hear from Maria Margenot, Sr. Vice President of Sales Development, Recruiting & Training at Wyndham Vacation Ownership.
A recent article in Harvard Business Review showed that 46% of all college graduates, regardless of their major, will end up in sales of some kind. “The problem is, most millennials have a negative view of salespeople,” explains Levitin. “Our goal is to bridge the gap and teach an ethical and powerful method of selling and building relationships. The great news for Utah companies like England Logistics, Oracle and Marketstar is that they all need salespeople. These students will be well prepared to enter the workforce and assist companies, big and small, with their staffing needs.” she adds.
Students will work in groups on their final project to create, price and pitch a product of their choosing to a panel and receive real-time feedback from Venture Capitalists and other experts in the field. The format of the curriculum is highly interactive to emulate real-life work scenarios.
This first-ever course is also available to business people and entrepreneurs throughout Utah through Executive Education.
About Shari Levitin and Levitin Group:
Shari Levitin moved to Utah in 1992 when she became Director of Sales and Marketing for Marriott’s Summit Watch Resort in Park City. Under her leadership, Summit Watch became the #1 Marriott Resort and was named the “Most Successful Ownership Resort in the World.” In 1997, Shari built her passion for training and development into a new company, Levitin Group. Named one of Inc. Magazine’s Fastest Growing Companies, Levitin Group rapidly became a global organization. Levitin Group has been responsible for over a billion dollars in increased profit for companies and salespeople worldwide, and has trained in 7 languages in 40 countries and on 5 continents. Thousands of sales professionals worldwide have attributed their success to The Levitin Group Academy, while notable corporate clients include Hilton, Jaguar, Hyatt, State Farm, and Sprint Communications.
Contact: Kent Kozimor 435-649-0003 ext. 302 kentkoz@getlevitin.com
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