Marketing major Talia Lucken is interning with Hormel, the top-rated sales company in the nation. Lucken is a senior from Bemidji, Minnesota.
Hormel has been rated as the premier company in the nation by Selling Power magazine, which annually ranks the best companies to sell for.
Lucken is pursuing a Certificate in Professional Selling and has participated in two national sales competitions. She relocated to Atlanta for the internship.
“The opportunity to be able to work with a Fortune 500 company is a dream come true,” said Lucken. “Before accepting, I was preparing to compete in a national sales competition, putting in hours of work and completing dozens of revisions to my sales presentation. I ended up finishing 12th out of 66 competitors and this is where I found Hormel, a main sponsor of the competition. After accepting, I knew all of my hard work inside and outside the classroom had paid off.”
“Talia is a fantastic student with an admirable amount of initiative,” said Mike Krush, associate professor and director of the Center for Professional Selling and Sales Technology. “When you combine those characteristics with NDSU’s sales curriculum, some great national opportunities open up for our students.”
“The sales center at NDSU has not only helped me build skills inside the classroom but skills that are 100 percent applicable in the professional workplace,” Lucken said. “Dr. Krush wants his students to be successful, and I have found that truly impactful. I have found my passion and I am thankful for the sales center and the faculty’s efforts because without both I would not have this opportunity."
NDSU’s Center for Professional Selling and Sales Technology is the only academic center dedicated to developing the sales skills of North Dakota students within the 11 campuses of the North Dakota University System. The center offers a Certificate in Professional Selling that is available to all NDSU undergraduates. For the past four years, the center has been recognized by the Sales Education Foundation as one of the top university sales programs in the nation.
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