Page 195 - HBR's 10 Must Reads on Strategic Marketing

ENDING THE WAR BETWEEN SALES AND MARKETING

Do we need to be more aligned?

The nature of relations between Sales and Marketing in your organization can
run the gamut—from undefined (the groups act independent of one another)
to integrated (the groups share structures, systems, and rewards). Not every
company will want to—or should—move from being undefined to being
defined or from being defined to being aligned. The following table can help
you decide under which circumstances your company should more tightly
integrate its sales and marketing functions.

Undefined Defined Aligned

Don’t make any The company is The company’s The company lacks
changes if . . . small. products and ser- a culture of shared
vices are fairly cut- responsibility.
The company has
good informal and-dried. Sales and
relationships. Traditional market- Marketing report
ing and sales roles separately.
Marketing is still a work in this market.
sales support The sales cycle is
function. There’s no clear fairly short.
and compelling
reason to change.

Tighten the Conflicts are Even with careful A common process
relationship evident between definition of roles, or business funnel
between Sales and the two functions. there’s duplication can be created for
Marketing if . . . of effort between managing and
There’s duplication the functions; or measuring
of effort between tasks are falling revenue-generating
the functions; or through the cracks. activities.
tasks are falling
through the cracks. The market is
commoditized and
The functions makes a traditional
compete for sales force costly.
resources or
funding. Products are devel-
oped, or proto-
typed, or extensively
customized during
the sales process.

Product life cycles
are shortening, and
technology turnover
is accelerating.

move to Defined move to Aligned move to Integrated

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