Madison Kuntz Competing in the 2024 Walton Sales Competition as Part of Her Research on Emotional Intelligence in Sales
Author: Madison Kuntz | Major: Finance | Semester: Fall 2024
My name is Madison Kuntz, and I am a Finance major with minors in Marketing and Business Analytics at the University of Arkansas. Under the mentorship of Dr. Molly Rapert from the Walton Marketing Department, I am conducting research for my honors thesis exploring the effects of emotional intelligence in the sales profession and this is documentation of my research from the Fall 2024 semester. After graduation, I plan to pursue a career in finance and sales in the Northwest Arkansas area.
In the spring of my junior year, I began researching my honors thesis, “Exploring Emotional Intelligence as a Determinant of Sales Performance: A Triadic Analysis from Academic, Corporate, and Personal Perspectives.” My research seeks to determine if emotional intelligence (EI) plays a key role in sales success, particularly among college students. With the University of Arkansas expanding its sales program, my work is timely, aiming to inform how EI might be integrated into sales curricula and industry training. By studying the emotional intelligence of students, I hope to provide insights into how EI impacts academic performance in sales courses and success in sales competitions like the Walton Sales Competition, but also how this could influence training in the real workplace and demonstrate how EI can trickle from college to post-grad careers, ultimately affecting the sales profession as a whole.
Emotional intelligence has always fascinated me, partly due to my father’s background in psychology and business. After participating in the CIMBA study abroad program and completing two internships in sales, I noticed that the top performers weren’t just knowledgeable—they excelled at managing their own emotions and understanding their clients’ emotions. This insight inspired me to explore the link between EI and sales success.
The inspiration for my research topic came from a blend of personal interest and academic experiences. My background in finance and my minors in business analytics and marketing gave me the analytical skills to measure EI’s impact on sales success. But it was my study abroad experience and internships that pushed me to research this concept more seriously. I wanted to explore how EI, which has been widely studied in psychology, could be applied specifically to sales.
My journey into research would not have been the same without the mentorship of Dr. Molly Rapert. I met Dr. Rapert during my study abroad experience in Italy. Having her as a professor in Italy was a life-changing experience, as she encouraged me to think about my studies in a new way. Her philosophy on life, particularly the idea of a “domino effect” where everything happens for a reason, inspired me to pursue research that is both meaningful and personally significant. When it came time to choose a thesis advisor, Dr. Rapert was the obvious choice. Her expertise in business and her guidance in navigating the complexities of research have been invaluable.
Through the research process, I’ve learned that emotional intelligence is not a new concept, but its application in sales and business is still developing. The origins of emotional intelligence date back to ancient Greek philosophers like Aristotle, who observed that emotional regulation is key to success in life. Thousands of years later, Daniel Goleman’s 1998 work on EI revolutionized how we understand emotions in the context of personal and professional success. My research aims to connect this theoretical foundation to practical outcomes in sales.
I’ve encountered several challenges in my research, particularly with time management and survey distribution. Balancing academics and research has been difficult, and I wished I had started earlier. Distributing my Emotional Intelligence survey to the right participants, specifically students in the Walton Sales Competition, required cooperation from faculty. Despite these hurdles, Dr. Rapert has been instrumental in keeping me on track, while other professors in the sales department have generously supported my efforts to reach the right participants.
As of now, I have collected data through my Emotional Intelligence (EI) survey, which was distributed to participants in the Walton Sales Competition. To ensure ethical rigor, I adhered to IRB protocol, obtaining approval before administering the survey. The survey was created on Qualtrics, and it incorporates the Four-Branch Model of Emotional Intelligence, as established by Mayer, Salovey, and Caruso. This model breaks down EI into four domains: Perceiving Emotions, Using Emotions to Facilitate Thought, Understanding Emotions, and Managing Emotions. Along with the EI assessment, the survey includes questions to measure participants’ performance in the Walton Sales Competition, a competitive event simulating real-world sales scenarios. The questions capture rankings and overall sales scores, allowing me to directly link EI levels to success in this sales competition. Next, I will conduct statistical analyses, including regression analysis and correlation tests, to determine if there is a significant relationship between EI and performance in sales-related activities. I plan to compare survey results with participants’ competition rankings to explore whether emotional intelligence contributes to success in these scenarios. Once the data is analyzed, I will finalize my thesis and write my conclusions.
The Honors College Research Grant has played a vital role in enabling me to focus on my thesis without the financial pressure of a part-time job. This funding has provided the flexibility I needed to dedicate time to my research and allowed me to concentrate on gathering and analyzing data. Without the grant, balancing work and research would have been much more challenging, and I’m extremely grateful for the support it has provided.
Emotional intelligence is a key factor in sales, but its impact is often overlooked. My research aims to highlight how EI influences sales success among college students, potentially reshaping university sales training and offering valuable insights for companies. If EI is linked to better performance, it could lead to more effective training, improved hiring, and stronger outcomes for both students and professionals.
The research I’m conducting is more than just an academic exercise—it’s an exploration of how emotional intelligence can make a real difference in the workplace.