Working Across Teams

We did role play today in the Analysis of Business Problems class. The case was about a telephony business looking to add new technology and services to its product portfolio. The chief executive officer (CEO) needs to decide whether to go into business via the wholesale route or the retail (end-user) route. The CEO directed the VP of business development and five other key stakeholders to meet and come up with a plan. The interesting thing about this case was that each stakeholder had a selfish agenda to go for either of the alternatives, but these were hidden from the others. I find this relatable, as I have been in a similar situation.

As an account manager, I won a deal that was very important to the client, to me, and to my organization. The deal had to do with a new solution, but my organization had already started providing it. Due to the nature of the deal, every support team had to give their best, especially the technical team. The technical teams are sometimes ego-fueled and can be difficult to work with. In this case, they felt the client’s technical team was not knowledgeable enough about the solution they wanted us to provide. For the team, this would slow down the provisioning process and may lead to regular changes in the scope of work. This already caused some friction, even though it was their job to ensure service was delivered. As the account manager, I had my agenda, which wasn’t hidden; the business had to be delivered and registered as a sale. This is the life of a salesperson and also the life of the business.

I thought of how well we could work together to ensure smooth and fast delivery. What came to mind was to appeal to the egos of everyone involved. To my internal team, I explained that it was a one-of-a-kind opportunity that they could be proud of and also put in their portfolio as delivering this particular service. It was their project, and even though the knowledge on the client’s side was not there, they could teach them and also create future references for themselves. It was also one of the projects the organization could comfortably put together for the customer testimonials, which would ensure more business for the organization. On the client’s end, I assured them that my team was ready to help and support them through the process, and they could always reach out. This worked out in the end, and some members of the team from both ends became friends outside of work.

Working across teams can sometimes be frustrating especially when you cannot make a decision on your own and must rely on the input of others. What has worked and what we learned today is that you have to figure out what’s in it for everyone and align it with the overall organization’s objectives. The goal of any business is to thrive and be profitable. Whatever agenda each stakeholder has, no matter their stage in the hierarchy, it must be aligned with the goals of the organization.