There is significant advantage to interdepartmental alignment, and numerous studies have uncovered the benefit that company-wide collaboration can have — efficiency, mutual understanding, goal commonality and clear responsibility name just a few.
With so much to be achieved, how should departments structure their roadmap to alignment?
“The basis of misalignment is always lack of communication,” Amplify’s VP National Sales Manager Rita Schaefer said.
In addressing open communication, another fundamental factor is inclusion; understanding that another team’s performance is intrinsic to overall success helps to keep information and mutuality flowing.
“The teams need to treat each other as equals who both can play a part and bring value to the table.”
For Ryan Greene, head of product marketing at ActionIQ, clear communication and well-defined roles leads to more successful planning, and therefore, optimized execution. When successful project execution involves multiple teams, they “should understand how taken together, they contribute to the overall success of the company,” he said.
Staying connected and avoiding siloed projects helps to keep all team members involved, and understanding how each step leads to success equips both teams to work — as well as pivot, when necessary — with the information needed to achieve mutual success.
In our conversations with Rita and Ryan, they shared additional insights on what causes misalignment between sales and marketing teams and best practices for mitigating inefficiencies.
In Rita Schaefer’s experience, sharing key data helps improve alignment and communication between separate teams.
In your experience, what are the main causes for misalignment between sales and marketing teams?
It simply means that sales and marketing teams are not working together towards a common cause. The basis of misalignment is always lack of communication. The key players on both teams must be on the same page or nothing useful gets done.
Sales and marketing teams need to be joined at the hip.”
How do you create a common set of metrics to measure success to ensure the rubric is understandable to both teams?
We look at all kinds of online data related to our campaigns and it is very useful. We also use the pipeline and give everyone on both teams access so they know where the opportunities are all year long. We train teams on how to look at and use the data we have, and it makes a difference.
What’s the best way to maintain alignment between sales and marketing teams in the long term?
Sales and marketing teams need to be joined at the hip. The teams need to have the same goals and the same priorities. The teams also need to treat each other as equals who both can play a part and bring value to the table. They simply need to work together.
Using a top-down approach, Ryan Greene has found success in first aligning on top-level business goals and narrowing down each team’s specific requisites to achieve those goals.
In your experience, what are the main causes for misalignment between sales and marketing teams?
Siloed teams with misaligned incentive structures. For example, developing marketing strategy focused on top-of-funnel metrics like leads, but no incentive to drive those leads through the sales funnel. Alternatively, sales may only be incentivized to close deals, not create new opportunities. Misaligned incentives create siloed strategies and breakdown in the coordination needed to build and convert a healthy pipeline.
Success metrics should comprehensively measure the activities required to hit your top-level business goals.”
How do you create a common set of metrics to measure success to ensure the rubric is understandable to both teams?
Success metrics should comprehensively measure the activities required to hit your top-level business goals. You have to start with the business goals, and then identify all the important programs and activities required to achieve those goals. These activities span across marketing and sales responsibilities, but both teams should understand how taken together, they contribute to the overall success of the company.
What’s the best way to maintain alignment between sales and marketing teams in the long term?
Clear understanding of who does what and how that contributes to the company and team-level goals. Uncertainty on roles and responsibilities across sales and marketing leads to a breakdown in communication and trust. Once you’ve established who does what, then it is all about communication and accountability. There should be radical transparency on where the pipeline is over and underperforming. With these foundations in place, your marketing and sales teams will be able to coordinate and optimize their programs over the long term.
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