Within a business, sales and operations typically have a symbiotic (yet challenging) relationship. Both teams are integral to the success of the company, with sales teams focused on driving revenue and closing deals, and operations teams concerned with ensuring products and services are delivered as promised. While it might seem like both teams are working towards the same goals, their difference in focus can create friction, leading to misunderstanding, disorganization, missed deadlines, and even upset customers.
However, when sales and operations are aligned, the results can be powerful, leading to smoother processes, better customer experiences, and increased profitability. Whether you’re dealing with communication breakdowns, conflicting goals, or a lack of shared data, here’s everything you need to know about how to bridge sales-operations gaps.
Understanding the Gap Between Sales and Operations
To effectively bridge sales-operations gaps, it’s important to understand the distinct roles these departments play and how their work impacts one another. Firstly, let’s discuss sales. Sales teams are the frontline drivers of revenue, and they’re responsible for acquiring new business, closing deals, and in some organizations, maintaining customer relationships.
On the other hand, operation teams are the backbone of service delivery, and they ensure that the promises made by sales are fulfilled. Typically, operations handle the logistics, production, inventory management, and overall execution of the business plan.
While they are essentially working towards the same goals of organizational excellence and client satisfaction, there are several common sources of tension, which can lead to a “gap.” For example, sales teams today feel the pressure, with more than half saying it’s harder to sell than it was a year ago.
Other sources of tension can include
- Miscommunications: Without proper processes, miscommunications between both teams can be common, regarding everything from expected delivery times to customer expectations.
- Differing priorities: Sales teams are driven by revenue targets and customer satisfaction, while operations typically prioritize efficiency, cost control, and consistency. These differing goals can lead to conflicting approaches and focuses.
- Lack of data sharing: Sales and operations teams need to effectively share critical data to support smooth decision-making and a seamless customer experience. If both teams are not sharing data effectively, it can lead to missed opportunities and inefficiencies.
Instead of ignoring these deficiencies, organizations can align their teams to create smoother, more efficient workflows.
Benefits of Bridging the Sales and Operations Gap
Learning how to bridge sales-operations gaps is not just about reducing inefficiencies. When sales and operations are communicating and sharing customer data effectively, there are many benefits for organizations and their customers.
1. Sales can share their valuable customer knowledge
The sales department collaborates closely with customers, which means they have a better idea of what customers need and want. For example, they often know:
- What customers are buying
- Customers’ key pain points
- What challenges do customers face in getting their items
The sales team may even know ahead of time when customers are likely to start purchasing a particular product more frequently, or when customer demand for a specific product is starting to decline. The sales team may offer critical insights to the operations department, including likely product lifecycle changes and challenges.
2. Operations can share their behind-the-scenes insights
Similarly, operations have vital knowledge about what’s happening with products, shipments, and services, which can be useful for the sales team to know. For example, suppose that shipping delays have made it difficult to bring in a specific product, or backorders are increasing for certain items. Operations can pass along this data to the sales team, which can use it to inform their approaches.
3. Expectations can be (realistically) aligned
Overall, when sales and operations share information effectively, it can lead to realistic expectations and satisfied customers. For example, sales teams often promise customers certain delivery dates, product features, and service levels. However, if they aren’t fully informed about operational constraints and real-world updates, they might make promises that aren’t feasible. Ultimately, clear and consistent communication between the two business units ensures that both teams are aware of what’s possible.
4. Customers can receive the best service
Fundamentally, the goal of both sales and operations is to provide customers with a positive experience. Good communication between the two departments ensures that customer expectations are continuously met (and even exceeded) at every stage of the customer lifecycle.
How to Bridge the Sales and Operations Gap
The divide between sales and operations can create significant challenges, but it’s also an opportunity to build stronger, more efficient teams. Fortunately, there are several ways businesses can learn to bridge sales-operations gaps.
1. Use a comprehensive inventory management solution
Your inventory management solution is a key part of managing the needs of your customers and can eliminate organizational data silos. When leveraged correctly, it becomes a central repository for data regarding:
- Multi-site visibility
- Backorder times
- Shipping times
- Product lifecycles
Your sales and operations teams should be contributing vital information to those systems so that the entire business can stay on top of the latest information.
2. Outline clear processes
Your organization should have clear processes in play that guide interactions and handoffs between sales and operations.
- Make sure each department’s role is clear. Both teams should have well-defined responsibilities, especially when it comes to owning data and information.
- Establish what each team should expect from the other. If they don’t know what to expect, they may be frustrated when they don’t get the information they need.
- Lay out overall business processes and goals. Make sure that all the members of your team know the key goals of your business and the strategies you intend to use to get there.
3. Create a communication plan
To bridge the gap between sales and operations, the two teams must be able to communicate with one another. To do this effectively, create a communication plan. It should answer questions such as:
- What strategy should members of the sales and operations team use to communicate with one another?
- Should they use internal messaging?
- How is data passed along?
Also, create opportunities for sales and operations to communicate regularly. Schedule meetings, create an internal newsletter, and share updates in a shared Slack channel.
4. Have (and share) the right data
Both sales and operations need to know which data they should be looking out for, and take steps to share it. Consider these questions:
- What information do you need about your products? Carefully consider how promotion planning, product lifecycles, and ordering times can impact supply and demand, then make sure that you’re sharing vital information across organizations.
- Who has access to that information?
- How can you share and update that information effectively?
By clearly laying out the data that you need and ensuring that you have the right platform for sharing that data, you can improve communications and bridge the gap between sales and operations.
Improve data and insights with StockIQ
Effectively learning how to bridge sales-operations gaps requires tools to help democratize data in your organization. And for that, you can turn to StockIQ.
StockIQ is advanced, user-friendly inventory management software that allows your business to control inventory, simplify ordering, and improve forecasting. Plus, all stakeholders can access StockIQ’s intelligent data and dashboards, making it easy for your teams to share critical information.
Find out how StockIQ can help eliminate gaps and silos in your organization by contacting us today or requesting a StockIQ demo.
