Are your marketing teams sitting together? Are they located on the same floor as the technologists? Are the two integrated with the same goals? Probably not. But, today’s most powerful marketing initiatives are a consolidated effort, where the brainiacs and the sexy sit together, accountable to the same person, with one timeline and one budget.
When Sergio Zyman, former chief marketing officer of Coca-Cola, created the CMO title, he didn’t just coin a title, he invented a situation that made him more than just the company’s “ad guy” — he
became a key player responsible for Coke’s marketing results.
While a great innovation then, the rules have changed slightly. Today, you need marketers to work together with technologists. From the onset, the brainiacs (consultants, technologists, researchers, analysts, strategists) and the sexy (producers, innovators, designers or experience builders) must work together to decide how to tackle the project at hand. Unlike in the past, where each team member saw the challenges through the vantage point of their position, the contemporary approach requires a holistic outlook where teams see the assignment from many different viewpoints.
The result is a more efficient team, where each individual understands parameters and constraints that may be unique to the other disciplines or separate projects, and an energized system of innovation where concepts like tracking and optimization are made visually compelling by creators and innovators. The result is a one-stop shop built on a single workflow concept which yields time and cost savings.
To accomplish this, first physically reorganize your teams to create an environment where the technologists are in close proximity to the creators and have accountability to the same person.
Then, motivate teams to collaborate around specific business initiatives. Take a closer look at the background of your teams. Do they have the ability/willingness to take a broader approach?
Some companies are ready to take this challenge and others are more hesitant. Look around and see how other companies are tackling this new approach. What you will find is that fusion wires the organization for growth and innovation.
