Laura Munoz, Ph.D.

Dr. Laura Munoz is an Associate Professor of Marketing with the Satish and Yasmin Gupta College of Business at the University of Dallas. She received her Ph.D. in Marketing and International Business from the University of Texas – Pan American (now The University of Texas of the Rio Grande - AACSB accredited). As part of her commitment to continuous education, she has completed the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School, The Case Method Seminar at Harvard Business School and is certified on the Chally Assessment, a sales hiring assessment tool, from the Sales Education Foundation. Her passion lies in professional selling and as such, she connects theory with practice by being a faculty coach in national sales competitions. In addition, she is the faculty advisor for Market Share – Marketing, the college’s undergraduate student organization affiliated with the American Marketing Association. 

Dr. Munoz’ main research interests lie in professional selling and on those topics that emerge from the intersection between marketing and entrepreneurship. She is currently starting to work on channel of distribution topics. Her research has been published in leading journals such as the Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management, Marketing Management Journal, Marketing Education Review, and The Journal of Business & Entrepreneurship to mention a few. In addition, she has over 25 papers accepted at national and international conferences such as the American Marketing Association, the Association for Consumer Research, The Academy of Marketing Science, and The National Conference in Sales Management.

Among her awards, she received the 2015 Outstanding Service Award at the National Conference in Sales Management for her work as a Board Member and the University of Dallas Haggar Scholar (2013 and 2015). Dr. Munoz won the Best Track Paper award in 2005 from the Association for Global Business Conference for her work on online communities and her 2016 work on entrepreneurship was nominated for the “Most Relevant for Entrepreneurs” award at the U.S. Association of Business and Entrepreneurship Conference. 

Why did you become a professor?
I became a professor because I think being a professor is a noble profession for everyone involved. Students and professors can learn from each other leading to a sustained learning environment. 

What do you enjoy most about teaching?
Exchanging ideas and discussing views with students. It is the interaction with students that makes my job a blessing.

What do you hope students gain from your courses?
Commitment to continuous improvement where they value the pursue of knowledge. 

What did you do prior to entering academia?
I had a myriad of jobs. I have worked in retail sales, auditing, as well as a teaching and research assistant.  

What are you passionate about outside of the University?
I am passionate about my son and being an engaged mother. 

What are your research interests?
My main interests are in sales. For example, I have looked into what leads to unethical sales behaviors among salespeople and what areas are prone to such behaviors. I am now looking into the role that religious speech content exhibited by a salesperson plays in potential buyers. I have also done entrepreneurial research looking into individuals who form complex start ups; specifically, craft breweries. 

Research Interests

Professional Selling, Channels of Distribution, Entrepreneurship, and Pedagogy

Awards & Honors

Outstanding Service Award 2015, 2016 – National Conference in Sales Management 

Haggar Scholar Award 2015 – University of Dallas
University level award to attend the Negotiation Seminar at Harvard University.

Haggar Scholar Award 2013 – University of Dallas
University level award to attend the Harvard Case Method Seminar at Harvard University

Coached the winning team in the 2013 regional marketing contest: Market the IMA! (Institute of Managerial Accountants). The University received a plaque and a $500 donation.

Recognized in the Thank a Teacher Program Fall 2011 – University of North Texas at Dallas
Received an appreciation letter from the Office of the Provost acknowledging the positive impact I had on students as reported in that years’ the graduation survey.

Linda S. Felts Award (2009) - The University of Texas of the Permian Basin.
Recognition for Outstanding Student Assistance. 

Best Track Paper (2005) - Association for Global Business Conference.
Track #8: Online Buying, Internal Marketing, and Marketing Strategy. 
Paper: Emotions and Emoticons Expressed in Online Communities: A Latin American Comparison. Laura Serviere, Monica D. Hernandez, and Michael S. Minor.

Honorable Mention (2006) - 2nd Annual College of Business Video Workshop “Capturing Consumption.” Video: “Cucci or Gucci? An Exploratory Study of Counterfeits on the U.S.-Mexico Border. Co-author: Sindy Chapa. April 22. The University of Texas-Pan American.

University of Illinois at Chicago/Kauffman Foundation Symposium Scholarship (2006).
To assist the UIC Research Symposium on Marketing and Entrepreneurship, August 1-3 in Chicago, Illinois. 

University of Minnesota, Georgia Tech, and Georgia School of Management Scholarship (2005).
To assist with the Sixth Annual Doctoral Workshop on International Entrepreneurship (2005), May 20-22 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. 

SPECIAL MENTIONS
Runner up for “Most relevant to Entrepreneurs Paper” Award 2015 – “The Moderating Role of Cultural Fit and Prior Start-up Experience on Entrepreneur-Opportunity Fit: A Theoretical Development,” USASBE Conference. 

Nominated to the University of Texas of the Permian Basin 2009 President’s Teaching Award.

KEY STUDENT ENGAGEMENT WORK
Faculty Sales Coach: 
Sales Decathlon top 20 finalist 2014 – Northern Illinois University
Global Bilingual Sales Competition 2016 – Florida International University

Market Share – Marketing Faculty Advisor 2014 – present