What do competitive dance and business have in common? Kai Harris.
A local to eastern Nebraska, Kai Harris grew up in the Omaha area and attended Elkhorn South High School. After graduation, she had the decision on where to attend college: Lincoln or Omaha. Craving a different scene – most of her peers were heading to the capital – Kai shifted her attention to UNO. With the positive reputation of the College of Business Administration and the attractive addition of a competitive dance team, the decision was an easy one.
Originally, Kai pursued a marketing degree where she enjoyed parts of the study, but truly found her passion in making connections with people. Enrolling in the professional selling classes gave Kai a taste of what these connections look like in a real-world environment, from cold-call appointment setting, to pitching oneself to a potential employer, to roleplaying with professionals to sell a product. It was during the spring of 2022 that she attended this class and was bitten by the sales bug.
Beyond excelling in the classroom, Kai competed and was honored at a Global Sales Competition “Rising Stars Event”. In her first external sales competition experience she placed in the Top 100 students in the Roleplay Competition while competing with international graduate and undergraduate students. Additionally, she has had 3 sales internships while in school, where she has clearly demonstrated mastery in key sales skills such as building rapport, prospecting, and conducting client needs discovery.
Kai is a member of the CBA Scholars Academy to which she accredits the development of a wide range of skills over these past four years. The academy includes mentorship with local professionals and exposes students to the various businesses around the city. Kai opted to change mentors from year to year; the first being an alumnus of the academy, then to the CFO of City Ventures, and finally to her last coach who has offered guidance on the next transition of her life. Because of her academic achievements, Kai has been awarded the Duffy Family Scholarship, Pettengill Estate Scholarship, and the UNO Dean’s Scholarship.
It's not all about academics though. Kai serves as the squad captain of the UNO Dance Team, where her pride in how much the team has developed shines. Overcoming the logistic obstacles during Covid, the team originally competed virtually filming their routines and submitting them. They won in their category, Game Day, grabbing first in the National Championship. The following year they won again in the same category.
With the responsibilities of dance and her education, Kai acknowledges the support she receives from UNO and the CBA as a welcomed resource for her. “UNO has provided a sense of community for me,” Kai says. “The people I’ve met in my class, I’ve been able to make a lot of friendship and relationships with my peers and professors.”
After graduation, Kai plans on moving to Chicago where her sister lives. She is interviewing at a variety of companies in a full-time sales position. As a part-time job, she is continuing with her passion of dance as a choreographer for a recruitment company that assists high school graduates in selecting colleges with dance team options.
To incoming freshman, she has this to say. “Get involved as much as you can. Build connections with your professors. They want the best for you and want you to succeed.”