Before the end of term, I and a group of fellow students from SKEMA Business School participated in a negotiation contest organized by EM Normandie (Normandy Management School) at Deauville. It was an exciting, challenging and fun learning experience.

During this fantastic event, I made contacts with people from: 10 well-known international companies, 16 among the best business schools of France and more than 140 international students. We were all gathered together to explore the exciting world of sales and negotiation.

The aim of this contest was to put our negotiation skills into practice as if in a real-life business negotiation situation.

At the contest, we met sales managers from: Cardbury, Canon, Danone, Carrefour, HP, Nestle Purina, Oracle, Société Générale, Whirlpool and Hilti.
On the first day of the event, we had a full day’s training in negotiation and sales techniques. The training was carried out by sales and marketing directors from the above-mentioned companies.
 
This training day gave me valuable practical advice and experience, and helped me clarify my plans in the career of sales as well as understanding companies’ operations in depth.
 
We also got inside info on job opportunities at the firms.

On the second day of this experience, I undertook a challenging face-to-face sales simulation. This was an amazing and unique experience where the sales specialists provided me with immediate feedback on my performance in addition to their personal and professional advice on succeeding in negotiations.

After the contest, a ceremony was organized to award the best negotiators. Prizes varied from hotel dinners, laptops, and digital cameras to holiday trips to Tunisia and Turkey.

At the end of the two days, we enjoyed a cocktail, organized by the host school, where we talked to and got to know the different managers, as well as meeting students from the other participating schools.

This experience exceeded my expectations. The two days gave me the opportunity not only to put in practice my negotiation skills but also to increase my interest to continue my career in sales.