Peter Mitchell Named Lutgert Outstanding Undergraduate Student 2021

April 27, 2021 / Lutgert News / Tags: Sales, Award, 2021, Marketing, Outstanding Undergraduate Student, Undergraduate, Management

The Outstanding Undergraduate Student Award is the top honor given to an undergraduate student in the Lutgert College of Business, based on excellence in leadership, scholarship, and service to the university and to the community. With more than 3,000 business majors in a college known for producing leaders, earning the designate of Outstanding Student is no small accomplishment! This year’s honor goes to Peter Mitchell.

FGCU is about so much more than just being a student, it’s all about being part of a community that strives to get better each and every day.

Mitchell is a May graduate with majors in both Management and Marketing, summa cum laude honors, and 500+ service learning hours (more than six times the minimum required for graduation). He served as Team Manager for the women’s basketball team, a University Recreation & Wellness Ambassador and intramural sports official, an officer for the college’s chapter of the international honor society Beta Gamma Sigma, and president and founding member of the sales club. He is also a crowned champion at state, national, and even international collegiate sales competitions, bringing the College’s sales team to a #7 international ranking and putting Lutgert’s new minor in Professional Sales squarely on the map.

"To provide a brief glimpse into a sales role play," says Mitchell, "you’re essentially given a product or service and placed in a room with someone playing the role of a buyer. From there, you have to build rapport, figure out their problems through strategic questioning, cater a presentation to their needs, handle objections, and close on a deal. Furthermore, you are being assessed by a panel of three to five judges, all of whom are either college professors, college recruiters, or company executives. Also, everything is recorded." He adds with a wry smile, "No pressure, am I right?"

In the spring of 2020, Mitchell’s role-play performance helped make FGCU the top rookie school at the National Collegiate Sales Competition, the oldest and most prestigious collegiate sales competition. The following fall, Mitchell and his teammate Michael Kastler finished 5^th out of more than 80 schools competing in the Sales Management Case Competition at the International Collegiate Sales Competition.

"Peter’s contribution on and for the sales team cannot be understated," said Dr. Brent Baker, who serves as the team’s faculty advisor and coach. "He has recruited new members, organized the club’s first fund raiser, and represented the sales club with organizations interested in meeting and networking with FGCU students interested in sales. He works hard to make sure the foundation he is laying will help the club grow and thrive after his departure." Mitchell is moving to Atlanta after graduation to work as a business development associate with Salesforce.

Mitchell also runs a popular Instagram food blog called Frittata Friday (@frittata_friday) where he experiments with frittata recipes and shares the results with various guests over meaningful conversation.

"I sincerely hope I had a positive impact on FGCU since FGCU had such a positive impact on me," Peter said. "FGCU is about so much more than just being a student, it’s all about being part of a community that strives to get better each and every day."