In a state known for its thunderstorms, a UCF graduate used a different kind of storm to be named the 2010 Mentor of the Year by the Professional Selling Program at the university.

Bill Peppler, an associate vice president of SkillStorm, a company that specializes in consulting and outsourcing, received the honor in May from the program, which is part of the Business Administration’s Department of Marketing.

The award was voted on by the students of the program in recognition of Peppler’s outstanding mentor abilities and eagerness to lead students in the direction of success.

The competitive and limited program accepts about 32 students who are looking for careers in sales and marketing, according to a release.

The program’s students are offered a mentorship opportunity as they are paired with sales professionals who offer their guidance and knowledge of the sales industry.

SkillStorm is a platinum sponsor of the Professional Selling Program.

Peppler, who was picked out of a pool of more than 110 mentors, said it was an honor to receive the award.

“What means the most is that this award was voted by the students,” Peppler said. “The fact that they voted on it means the most to me.”

The mentorship program helps students get involved in their careers and have hands-on experience as well.

“It is a great opportunity to get your first position in sales,” Peppler said. “If we are going to hire anyone, we’d like to hire UCF students.”

Peppler, along with every mentor in the program, was assigned a mentoree, but he acted as a mentor for all of the students.

Peppler assisted students with mock interviews, speed selling, resume planning, tournament teams and business plan writing sessions. He also held an open door policy at SkillStorm, located near UCF’s main campus on Rouse Road.

“We opened our doors for every student and allowed them to watch and experience us in action,” Peppler said.

Many students benefit from seeing professionals work first hand, including UCF senior Tyler Wilson.

Wilson showed enough interest and dedication to the sales field that he was hired by SkillStorm.

“I voted Bill Peppler as mentor of the year, because I learned a lot from him with his open-door policy,” Wilson said. “He is a genuine person who helped me tremendously with sales competition, he gave feedback and great advice.

“I love working for him. He invested a lot in me, and he wants me to succeed.”

Peppler became involved with SkillStorm because both the president and vice president were UCF alumni and his past fraternity brothers.

“This is one of the reasons we give back to the university,” Peppler said.

Peppler not only shows a professional attitude toward his mentorees, but also to his work at SkillStorm.

“[Bill] is a pleasure to work with,” said John Mahony, a managing partner at SkillStorm. “He is constantly pushing himself, and he puts a lot of time and effort into his work. He is always encouraging people to come shadow himself and the team to see what we do.”

SkillStorm provides diversified technical services to various organizations nationwide.

The company specializes in information technology, engineering and project management consulting, outsourcing and staff augmentation solutions.

SkillStorm’s client list includes many Fortune 500 companies.

SkillStorm has 13 offices throughout the U.S., with corporate headquarters located in San Diego.

Peppler has a bachelor’s degree from UCF and a master’s degree in business management from Troy University.

He is an active member of the UCF Golden Knights Association and the UCF Alumni Association, and he sits on the board of directors for the UCF Foundation Annual Fund.

Peppler is also a member of the Central Florida Internal Association of Microsoft Certified Partners, the ITT advisory board, the Winter Park Tech advisory board, the Help Desk Institute and the Central Florida Technology Incubator Initiative.

This year will be his 13th working for SkillStorm.