Thom Coats

About Thom Coats

WHAT I DO: I help students prepare for their careers in the business world and also help…

Experience

1. Professor of Practice, Director of the Center for Professional Selling

   Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU)

   Aug 2020 — Present · Murfreesboro, TN, US

   The mission of the MTSU Center for Professional Selling is to promote excellence in the field of professional selling and sales management by providing world-class sales education and training to students while also remaining up-to-date on sales technology and research. The goal is to allow students to hit the ground running in any sales organization. We also want to create an alliance between the academic community and the business community so that businesses have the opportunity to hire outstanding student talent. Professional Sales is one of the most in-demand career fields across Tennessee. Jobs in this career area include sales representatives, account managers, and sales managers across all industries. With a large projected workforce deficit, there are more employment opportunities in these areas than there are skilled workers to fill them. A major in Marketing, with a concentration in Professional Sales, prepares students for a career that offers high-income potential, variety and flexibility, and career growth and development. Courses offered will help students develop the skills of excellent oral and written communication, relationship development, self-confidence, and critical thinking and problem-solving. These highly sought-after skills are transferable across all industries.

Education

• Mississippi State University

  Bachelor of Business Administration, Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services

  1980 — 1985

• Western Governors University

  Master of Business Administration - MBA, Business Administration, Management and Operations

  2017 — 2017

Skills

• Human Resources
• Business Networking
• Peo
• Selling
• Coaching
• Business-to-Business (B2b)
• Sales Operations
• Customer Retention
• Saas
• New Hire Orientations
• Lead Generation
• Marketing
• Account Management
• Cold Calling
• Business Development
• Direct Sales
• Training
• New Business Development
• Benefits Administration
• Salesforce.com
• Applicant Tracking Systems
• College Recruiting
• Sales Management
• Performance Management
• Crm
• Employee Training
• Technical Recruiting
• Consulting
• Recruiting
• B2b
• Small Business
• Hiring
• Sales Force Development
• Sales Presentations
• Management
• Team Building
• Onboarding
• Qualifying Prospects
• Payroll
• Solution Selling