5 Reasons for IT & Marketing Collaboration

 1. Customer Focus
In many organizations, IT concentrates on the “back office” and overlook customer facing scenarios affecting marketing and sales. This creates friction. Having these groups in the front office eases tension and increases collaboration. This also balances the company budget among them since they are seen as equally important. Silos can then be diminished.

2. Agile Culture
Getting IT in step with the business strategy helps them solve problems. Not running dysfunctional silo agendas. IT and Marketing can be agile and deliver solutions in step with sales and senior level management’s goals.

3. Intelligent User Experience
Starting with the customer, and not the solution, means the IT team is involved in knowing the customer’s journey — the whole journey.This means they join with marketing at this early phase. This enables them to build a system with the end in mind. Sales leadership should have involvement as well since they know the pain points experienced on the front line better than anyone.  The efforts are in lock-step with the customer. Makes sense, right?  Everything is interconnected around the customer.

4. Adopting Change
IT and marketing have a leading role in culture change. They have an equal impact on creating a purpose-driven organization. On the IT front, the culture is enabled by IT systems. Remember, has responsibility for systems affecting employee communications, and good communication breaks down boundaries. For example, internal blogging platforms, messaging, desktop collaboration are where the convergence of talented resources have the most impact on getting more done.

5. Process Enablement
IT often has the higher budget allocation based on the business strategy of the company. But IT should be viewed and encouraged to be an enabler that can elevate sales and marketing. Getting everyone in the room to agree on what makes the most sense for the company. This goes back to all the steps previously mentioned:

a. Customer Focus promotes collaboration
b. Agile Cultures engage all teams in business decisions
c. Intelligent User Experience means all know the “Journey”
d. Adoption Change requires creative communication systems
e. Process Enablement means everyone moving toward the same goal

The need for collaboration has given birth to the term “business innovation” and “convergence”. You’ll find rare talent in “Marketing Technologists”. These are the folks who can cross disciplines. They’re hedging their bets and well-positioned for what’s ahead.