Sales engineering a specialized option for Akron engineering students

The University of Akron News

12/15/2021

UA engineering students Brock Haas and Joey Esker

Brock Haas, a third-year chemical engineering student at The University of Akron, and Joey Esker, a fourth-year mechanical engineering student, never planned on becoming sales engineers.

“Growing up, I knew I wanted to go into engineering from a young age. I felt like engineering would be a good fit, but I never considered sales as an option for my career until I came to Akron,” says Haas.

When Haas enrolled at The University of Akron in the chemical engineering program, he was excited about the possibilities his degree would give him. He liked talking to people and was good at “selling stuff” so he wanted to explore a path that would incorporate these strengths in addition to the knowledge he was gaining from his engineering program.

In Esker’s case, his love for sales started in 2018 when he worked at Great Lakes Honda and sold cars for a summer. He did not know sales engineering was a field until he met with companies at the career fair hosted by the College’s Co-op and Placement Office. Businesses, such as Pepperl+Fuchs and Timken, were in need of sales engineers, so Esker had a lightbulb moment.

“As soon as I heard I could mix sales with my engineering degree I was sold!” says Esker.

Calling all extroverts

All engineering programs at UA prepare students for the technical components required of a sales position, and many classes involve group projects and teamwork on certain labs, such as the one-credit Project Management and Teamwork class taken by chemical and corrosion engineering students. Here, students work on teams to create a lab-based design project. First year students and sophomores develop teamworking skills and contribute based on their interests and experience. The juniors take on increased responsibility as group leaders, while the seniors manage the project, train team members, and help their teammates complete their tasks.

“The best types of hires for sales positions are engineers with outgoing personalities,” says Bill DiCarlo, Sales Engineering Co-op Supervisor at Pepperl-Fuchs. “We look for self-starters with a personal drive, but who also enjoy working with others. They need to have a desire to problem solve and make strong connections with others.”

At Pepperl-Fuchs, students on co-op learn how to clearly communicate the products they are selling. Since the company manufactures highly technical products, students must know their technical specifications as well as develop an understanding of what the customer is looking for to meet their needs and ultimately, make the sale. Building relationships with customers is critical, says DiCarlo, and a good sales engineer should be knowledgeable and easygoing.

Student organization builds skills

Students may also choose to enhance their teamwork skills outside of the classroom, and layer in additional competencies like sales and business fundamentals.

Both Esker and Haas are members of the UA chapter of the National Society of Sales Engineers, a student organization for engineering and business students that provides opportunities to explore careers in technical sales. They regularly meet with industry professionals who share information about their career and company and participate in student-led workshops, such as Business 101 for Engineers and LinkedIn Etiquette. The most looked forward to event is the annual National Sales Engineering Conference (NSEC).

NSEC, held virtually this past October, engages students in a multi-part roleplay designed to simulate a real-life sales engineering experience. This year, 32 teams participated from 10 universities nationwide including The University of Central Florida, Texas A&M, and North Carolina State. During competition, students work together to solve a technical problem for a potential customer described in a case study. Real professional sales engineers act as buyers and judges.

This year, the UA team of Isaac Edmondson and Spencer Frase were awarded first place and the UA team consisting of Joey Esker and Brock Haas received third place honors.

“We killed it this year,” says Esker. “We had two of our teams finish in the top three out of 35 teams. This is a huge accomplishment for us.”

Certificate program develops skills

At The University of Akron, there are many opportunities to develop skills that would lead to a more sales focused engineering position upon graduation. In addition to experience students receive in class, as members of the Society for Sales Engineers or co-op positions that have a sales focus, students can participate in the 12-credit Certificate in Professional Selling for Engineering Majors program. In 2014, UA became the first school in the country to offer a sales certificate specifically designed for engineering students.

Students in the certificate program have access to the brand-new Sales Biometrics Lab, the only one of its kind in the country. An infrared camera measures heat response to sales stress during role playing and iMotions software measures eye tracking, facial change, heartrate change, hand temperature and hand sweat. The end result produces data that accurately measure how sales subjects will respond physiologically to sales stress.

“If you combine a student with exceptional technical aptitude and high sales presentation skills, they will have their pick of job offers when it comes time to graduate,” says Dave Payne, Director of The Fisher Institute for Professional Selling.

Positive outlook for careers

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual wage of a sales engineer in 2020 is $108,830 per year. Engineering graduates interested in sales positions have a broad range of opportunities available to them in customer interfacing positions, from account managers and product mangers to field application engineers.

Perks of the job include travel opportunities, healthy starting salaries with the chance for bonuses and commission, even company cars.

“I am seeing an increasing number of students go on to sales engineering type positions when they graduate,” says Stephanie LaGuardia, director of the Co-op and Placement Program. “The demand is higher than ever, and employers keep coming back to Akron again and again because of the quality of our students. No one works harder than an Akron engineering Zip!”