Insights

For over 25 years, I've navigated the dynamic landscape of technology marketing. This journey has taken me from the hands-on collaboration of early-stage companies to the complexities of larger organisations, often where teams have worked in siloes. However, a consistent theme throughout has been the challenge of misalignment, most noticeably between marketing and sales teams, but also involving other crucial departments like product development, operations, and customer success. In some instances, this lack of alignment even extends to our wider partner ecosystem, all of whom share a vested interest in driving growth and revenue.

Looking back to the early days, working with small businesses meant close collaboration with CEOs and Sales Directors. This gave me invaluable insight into the direct needs of sales. Back then, marketing was strictly focused on generating leads that delivered real business impact or ROI. With lean budgets, we focused on creative, customer-centric strategies like hosting intimate events, leveraging industry partnerships, and building brand credibility through PR and early SEO efforts. Everything was designed to deeply understand the customer and directly support sales in hitting their revenue goals.

Moving into larger organisations, however, that synergy became harder to maintain. Siloed teams, misaligned KPIs, and competing priorities made true collaboration more challenging. Despite shared overarching goals, the disconnect often diluted the impact of both marketing and sales efforts. The rise of vanity metrics and challenging quarterly targets only added to the misalignment, overshadowing the strategic collaboration so necessary for sustainable, long-term growth.

More recently, following the pandemic, the renewed emphasis on sustainable revenue generation, coupled with what feels like constantly rising targets, has significantly amplified the pressure on teams responsible for growth and profits.

Now, with the rapid adoption of AI, a new dimension is added to this landscape, presenting both exciting opportunities and potential challenges. AI certainly has the potential to enhance efficiency, enable better decision-making, and streamline processes. However, it cannot replace the crucial human elements of strategic thinking, genuine collaboration, and clear communication. Its true value lies in how effectively it supports a truly unified approach between marketing and sales, always grounded in a deep understanding of the customer.

The organisations that will truly thrive in this era are those that actively bridge divides, not just between marketing and sales, but across all teams, functions, and partners working together toward a shared revenue goal. By strategically integrating powerful tools like AI into this collaborative framework, they can harness technology as a powerful enabler, not a standalone solution. True alignment is, and will ultimately be, driven by culture, leadership, and a shared vision for sustainable growth.