The International Collegiate Sales Competition (ICSC) is the world’s largest sales competition for university students, with over 80 participating higher education institutions from the United States. This year, Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences is participating for the first time. The competition takes place 5–8 November in Orlando, hosted by Florida State University.
Haaga-Helia has a strong background in sales competitions. The annual national Best Seller Competition is organised in cooperation with Turku University of Applied Sciences. In addition, Haaga-Helia has participated in the European Sales Competition, which brings together sales students and companies from across Europe.
At ICSC, Haaga-Helia is the only representative from Finland, and only one other higher education institution from Europe is participating. The team was selected from the Haaga-Helia's Solution Sales course, which prepared students for international competition.
The team travelling to Florida consists of four members: Jonas Larsen, Taika Tiihonen and Olivia Pyhältö, who study sales at Haaga-Helia, and Rinske Zuiddam, an exchange student from the Netherlands.
The competitors say their main goal is to perform well so that Haaga-Helia can represent Finland again next year.
– The Solution Sales course provided strong B2B sales skills and helped me improve my spoken English, which boosted my confidence significantly. I also learned useful presentation and teamwork skills that will definitely be helpful at ICSC, says Jonas Larsen.
ICSC offers future sales professionals a great opportunity to practise real-life sales situations. The competition programme includes a sales role-play contest and a career fair where students network with companies.
– International sales competitions give students the chance to challenge themselves, develop their personal sales skills in a goal-oriented way, and build international networks, says Haaga-Helia Senior Lecturer in Sales Anu Nieminen.
The competition days won’t be all serious – at the end of the event, students will even get to visit Disney World.
– I’m especially looking forward to meeting other competitors and experiencing the unique atmosphere. It’s exciting to be part of an event where every participant gives their all, says Taika Tiihonen.
More information about the ICSC competition
In the photo: Taika Tiihonen, Rinske Zuiddam, Olivia Pyhältö and Jonas Larsen.
