Power to Sell

In this episode of the Power to Sell podcast, students sat down with Don Masters, Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Border States, to discuss why time is one of the most valuable assets in professional sales. Masters shares the best advice he ever received: treat time like money by breaking annual quotas into daily goals to maximize productivity and consistency. One area of focus...

This episode of the Power to Sell podcast features an interview with Cece Morken, a successful North Dakota State University alumni and former CEO of Headspace. Throughout the conversation, Morken discusses her transition from sales and marketing into high-level executive leadership and corporate board roles. She emphasizes that effective selling and leading both require deep empathy and a focus o...

In this episode of the Power to Sell podcast, training manager Ann Melancon joins student hosts to discuss her career path and the relationship-driven culture at CED (Consolidated Electrical Distributors). After a 15-year career gap as a stay-at-home mother, Ann returned to the workforce at CED, a company she praises for its integrity and family-oriented environment. Ann describes CED as a decentr...

In this episode of the Power to Sell podcast, NDSU students sit down with Joe Sandin, founder and CEO of Onsharp, to explore lessons from his 26-year journey as a technology entrepreneur and business leader. A central theme throughout the conversation is the importance of putting in the reps, the belief that mastery in sales, leadership, and entrepreneurship comes from consistent, disciplined effo...

In this episode of Power to Sell , NDSU students interview Ryan Watkins, the CEO of the upper Midwest region for Marsh McLennan Agency. Watkins shares his professional journey, which began with high-volume cold calling and transitioned into a successful career in the insurance industry. He reflects on his rise through various leadership roles, eventually overseeing a half-billion-dollar business w...

In this episode of Power to Sell , NDSU students sit down with publicist and author KJ Blattenbauer. KJ discusses her career journey and the core principles of her new book, Pitchworthy . She shares practical advice for small business owners and students on how to persuade audiences and build credibility without a large budget. Blattenbauer emphasizes that successful pitching requires brevity, cla...

In this episode of Power to Sell , NDSU students sit down with Sandi Piatz , President and CEO of the United Way of Cass-Clay . Sandi walks through her impressive career path—from a startup software company, to sales and technology consulting, to serving as Microsoft’s site leader—before making the leap into the nonprofit sector. She shares how her long-standing commitment to community involvement...

In this episode of Power to Sell , NDSU students sit down with Lanelle Vasichek , Senior Director of Global Brand for Bobcat Company . Lanelle shares her career journey and the path that led her to her current leadership role at Bobcat. She reflects on the monumental challenge of building a global brand function in a company that had traditionally focused on “selling excavators and selling loaders...

This episode of The Power to Sell Podcast , features Thom Coats, Professor and Director of the sales program at Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU). Coats details his career shift from over 25 years in sales and a six-year stint in law enforcement to academia. A central theme is the transformative power of sales education, which he argues can "change family trees" by helping student...

In this episode of Power to Sell , NDSU students sat down with Gary Halvorson, Executive Vice President at CHS. Recorded at CHS headquarters in Minneapolis, the conversation explores the foundation of trust in both sales and leadership. Halvorson shares his journey from growing up on a small North Dakota farm to leading a global Fortune 100 cooperative serving farmers and consumers around the worl...

In our second episode of Fall 2025, NDSU students sat down with Angelia Vang, Digital Marketing Strategist with DSG Supply, to discuss how genuine curiosity is the ultimate catalyst for career growth and organizational impact. Angelia, who started her career in merchandising before shifting into marketing, shares how her "curiosity really pulled me toward marketing" . Angelia reveals tha...

Students kick off season seven of the Power to Sell podcast from Northwestern Mutual’s corporate headquarters in Milwaukee, sitting down with Chief Field Officer, John Roberts . Roberts, who is responsible for supporting the company’s 22,000 independent financial advisors and team members, explains why mastery of human influence is crucial for his leadership role. Dive into a dynamic conversation...

In the final Spring 2025 episode of the Power to Sell podcast, students interviewed Eric Gjerdevig, a sales lecturer at NDSU and former business owner. The interview explores Gjerdevig’s professional journey, from his early exposure to technology and accidental entry into sales to his experience at Great Plains Software and Microsoft and ultimately starting and selling his own software consulting...

In episode #40 of the Power to Sell podcast, students sat down with Valentina Montesano, an Azure Sales Specialist at Microsoft. Valentina discussed her journey from competitive cheerleading and community college to transferring to the University of Florida and eventually landing a role at Microsoft through their Aspire program for recent graduates. She shares insights on networking, preparing for...

In episode #39, students interviewed Todd Prigozen, the CEO of Bobcat of New York City and Long Island. The conversation explores the importance of perseverance and grit and the dynamic nature of doing business in New York, contrasting it with experiences in other regions and overseas in London, particularly regarding logistics, staffing, and customer interactions. Todd also shares his career jour...

In this episode (#38), students sat down in New York City with Reed Overfelt, a seasoned technology executive and serial CEO. Overfelt discussed his career journey, from his early involvement with the internet to his experiences building and selling multiple tech companies. The conversation explores key aspects of sales and leadership, including the importance of listening, building trust, navigat...

In this episode of Power to Sell, NDSU students sat down with Joe Pallo, author of How to Sell Nothing: The Logical Way to Make the Emotional Sale. With over 35 years of experience in commission sales and thousands of sales calls under his belt, Joe shares insights on why emotional connections—not just logic—drive successful sales. He offers real-world advice for young professionals and reflects o...

In our third episode of Spring Semester 2025 (episode 36), students sat down with Dan Florness, the CEO of Fastenal, at their headquarters in Winona, MN. Dan shared the history of Fastenal, including stories about the founder, Bob Kierlin, and how Bob shaped the values and culture that are alive and well in Fastenal today.  Dan discussed the importance of ongoing education for team members and num...

For our second episode of Spring 2025 (episode 35), students sat down with NDSU alumni Marcus Pratt, a Sales Engineer at Midwest Mechanical Solutions. Marcus talked about his time at NDSU as an engineering student and how he leveraged that into a technical sales career. Sales was not on Marcus’s radar in college, but sometimes the opportunities that land in our laps are the ones that were meant to...

For our first episode of Spring 2025 (episode 34), students sat down with the CEO of Corvent Medical, Richard Walsh.  Richard talked about his career in medical device sales, the story of Corvent Medical, and the importance of setting goals. Students had an excellent opportunity to understand better the entrepreneurial journey of a medical device startup, which started during COVID-19, regulatory...

For our seventh and final episode of Fall 2024 (episode 33), students sat down with Shannon Hauf, the Senior Vice President and Head of North America, Australia, and New Zealand Product Supply for Bayer. Shannon shared her journey from growing up on a farm in southern Minnesota to being an executive at Bayer today. Shannon discussed the importance of trust, responsibility, resilience, teamwork, pa...

For our sixth episode of Fall 2024 (episode 32), students sat down with Patty Post, the Founder of Checkable. Patty shared her entrepreneurial journey, talked openly about challenges, and discussed her goals and motivation. Students had an excellent opportunity to understand better the entrepreneurial journey in a small medical device startup, the regulatory challenges, and the importance of stayi...

Students continued to explore the theme of 'dorm room to the boardroom' when they sat down with Darren Jacoby, CEO of Protosthetics, on a Sunday afternoon in Boston, MA, to record our fifth episode of Fall Semester 2024 (episode 31). A unique aspect of this interview is two of our student hosts are sales internships at Protosthetics, which led to a slightly deeper discussion about produc...

In our fourth episode of Fall Semester 2024 (episode 30), students continued to explore the theme of dorm room to boardroom by sitting down with Wes Cummins, CEO of Applied Digital, at their headquarters in Dallas, TX. Wes shared stories about the beginning of Applied Digital, their massive investments into North Dakota, and why those investments make sense.  He discussed the importance of being a...

In our third episode of Fall Semester 2024 (episode 29), students continued to explore the theme of dorm room to boardroom by sitting down with Kevin Black, CEO of Creedence Energy Services. Kevin shared his founder story with Creedence Energy Services, talked about his time at NDSU, discussed business challenges such as economic downturns and COVID-19, and shared great stories with our students....