The topic is well known and has already been treated countless times by companies, consultants and industry experts through articles, books, blogs, presentations, company websites and other occasions.
So far be it from me to want to delve into the subject again during this brief reflection.
However, the thought that came to me the other day while I was in a company that manufactures machinery seemed so simple and logical to me that it seemed appropriate to share it.
Imagine for a moment that the Production area and the Purchasing area of company X travel on misaligned tracks, not caring about when and how the other moves. Missing pieces, delivery delays, production stops and excess stocks, just to imagine some of the possible scenarios.
Then think of the Administration area and the Information Systems area of company Y and assume that they do not exchange data and information in real time and in an accurate and automated way. Imagine that data is not entered correctly and on time into the systems or that these produce misaligned, partial or incorrect documents. Collections and payments out of control, cash flows at the mercy of events, reporting not available when required. Horror movie nightmares.
Finally, try to think that the Human Resources area and the Payroll area (whether internal or external) of company Z do not communicate in a precise and timely manner. Wrong payslips, communications not forwarded to employees on time, wrong cost processing and forecast budgets, and so on. Raise your hand if you would like to find yourself dealing with situations like this.
So here I asked myself why still today many companies don't pay the same attention to the coordination and alignment of the Marketing area and activities with the Sales area and activities. Whether these company areas are large or small, perhaps even managed by the same people in smaller companies, not paying the same attention and care to align their activities and efforts, directing them naturally towards the customer, can lead medium/long term to scenarios similar to those described above, especially in periods in which the market does not help.
And then … good alignment!