Sales Management 08.08.2024

Aligning Through Cross-Functional Collaboration and Consensus Building

Shownotes

In this episode, Christopher Mael discusses how he has made alignment meetings the most enjoyable part of the month. Christopher explains how he created a unified, goal-oriented environment by bringing diverse perspectives together and facilitating honest conversations to address gaps and align perceptions. He emphasizes the importance of understanding leadership’s priorities and building consensus, even when different metrics and priorities exist across functions.

Best Moments

02:34 –	Christopher discusses how he made executive team meetings, which were previously like “Thunder Dome" and "Mad Max", into the most enjoyable part of the month by facilitating open and respectful conversations to find consensus.
05:41 –	Christopher emphasizes the importance of creating the space for tough conversations, asking difficult questions, and aligning perceptions across different functions to achieve shared goals.
11:15 –	Christopher shares his view that the biggest misconception about alignment is that it exists most of the time, and that open dialogue is required to uncover differences in priorities and expectations.
14:47 –	Christopher provides several book recommendations on demand forecasting and collaboration

About the guest

Christopher Mael has been the Director of Sales and Operations Planning for Precor subsidiary Peloton and the fitness space for the last five years. Previously he worked for Loud Technologies, a global leader in performance professional audio equipment for over 12 years.

Connect with Christopher Mael

Key takeaways

Make alignment meetings the most enjoyable part of the month by facilitating difficult conversations and bringing diverse perspectives together
Build consensus and align perceptions by creating space for honest conversations and understanding leadership’s priorities
Address misconceptions about alignment, as it is not a given and can prevent teams from being on the same page

Quotes

“The biggest misconception about alignment is that it exists most of the time. You get into a meeting and people think they’re all on the same page, and they might even be grumpy, like, why are we even having this meeting?” -Christopher Mael

Highlights from this episode

What inspired you to make alignment meetings the most enjoyable part of the month as a leader, and how did you do it?

Chris was inspired to make alignment meetings the most enjoyable part of the month when he realized that the executive team meetings were previously “Thunder Dome” and “Mad Max”, with everyone focused on their metrics and KPIs. He was tasked with facilitating these meetings and finding consensus among the diverse perspectives.

Christopher explains that he was able to achieve this by creating an environment where people could speak freely and respectfully, while still hashing through difficult topics. He found that this alignment enabled the company to turn around and achieve double-digit EBIT growth. He cites a moment where one of the executives came into the meeting excited, saying it was his favorite meeting of the month, as a key turning point in making these alignment meetings successful and enjoyable.

So in summary, companies should consider rebranding when their current brand no longer reflects who they are as a maturing organization, when going through major changes like M&A, when facing trademark challenges, or when they need to stand out in a commoditized market.

How can sales and marketing teams better collaborate on forecasting to plan for growth, especially when things may be uncertain?

According to Christopher, the key to better collaboration between sales and marketing teams on forecasting is to create a forum for open dialogue and engagement, rather than just relying on data and charts. He notes that traditional forecasting methods can be overly quantitative and inaccessible to leaders, leading to a lack of buy-in and ownership.

To improve this, Christopher suggests starting the forecasting process by aligning on the company’s top-level goals and priorities for growth, whether that’s revenue, earnings, or something else. From there, teams can work together to set measurable milestones and action plans to track progress toward those shared objectives. The key is creating a space for tough conversations and ensuring everyone has a voice, rather than just presenting data. This helps build consensus and commitment to the forecasting process, even in uncertain times.

What are some practical tips for getting different functions like sales, marketing, and supply chain on the same page around shared goals and expectations?

Christopher shares some practical tips for getting different functions like sales, marketing, and supply chain on the same page around shared goals and expectations include:

Create the space for open and honest conversations. He emphasizes the importance of having a closed-door meeting where teams can discuss challenges and differing perspectives without fear of repercussions.
Ask tough questions to uncover misalignment. He suggests probing to understand if teams have a shared vision of success and if their individual goals and metrics are aligned or contradictory.
Focus on defining success at the top. He recommends starting by aligning leadership on the overarching goals and priorities for the business, rather than just individual department objectives.
Cascade goals and milestones down from the top. Once the leadership team has agreed on the definition of success, Christopher suggests breaking that down into measurable goals and action plans that the different functions can work towards together.

The key is creating an environment of trust and open dialogue, rather than just relying on data and metrics, to ensure true alignment across the organization.

How do you approach building consensus when there are different priorities and metrics for success?

According to Christopher, the key to building consensus when there are different priorities and metrics for success is to:

Start at the top by understanding the priorities and values of the company’s leadership or owners. Ask them directly “What does success look like for you?”
Bring the leadership team together to align on the overarching goals and definition of success, whether that’s revenue growth, earnings, new product development, etc. This top-down alignment is critical.
Once the high-level goals are established, cascade those down into measurable milestones and action plans that the different functions can work towards together.

The goal is to move away from individual department metrics and KPIs that can be adversarial, and instead create a unified set of objectives that everyone is committed to achieving. This requires open dialogue, tough questions, and a willingness to address any gaps or misalignment in perceptions.

What are some common misconceptions about alignment that may prevent teams from being on the same page, and how can those be addressed?

Christopher highlights some common misconceptions about the alignment that can prevent teams from being on the same page including:

The belief that alignment already exists. He notes that people often think they are aligned until they start digging into the details and find significant differences in priorities and expectations.
The assumption is that everyone agrees without actually having tough conversations. He emphasizes the importance of creating space for open dialogue and not just assuming consensus.
The misconception is that alignment is a static thing, rather than an ongoing process. He stresses that alignment requires continuous communication and adjustment as priorities and circumstances change.

To address these misconceptions, Christopher recommends:

Directly asking leadership what they define as success, rather than making assumptions
Facilitating honest, respectful discussions to uncover any gaps in perceptions
Establishing clear, measurable goals and milestones that the entire team can work towards