When Production and Sales Collide

I find it interesting that no matter what organization I work with there always seems to be a major disconnect between production and sales. Even in service organization there is disconnect between the service providers and their sales. Shouldn’t they be on the same page? Aren’t they trying to achieve the same goal? 

If you ask them why there is such disconnect, they will say things like:

“Sales doesn’t understand what it takes to make the product. They make promises that we can’t keep.”

“Production just doesn’t get it. We have to have it this way or we can’t make the sale. The competition is doing it why can’t we?”

When they get together all they do is fight. No one stops and listens to the other side. Why you may ask. Unless you are in sales or production in which case you think you already know the answer. I believe it is because we haven’t trained people to effectively problem solve. Therefore all the past experiences of the individual come into play. And of course our past memories are never wrong….Right? 

Wrong. Most people remember at least of version (their view point) of the past situation. Of course the future will be a repeat of the past. But it doesn’t have to be. 

All segments of the organization need to be able to sit down and withhold judgment not only on the issue but also the individuals involved. Sales and production can and should be an incredible force for your organization. They need to see the other as a trusted partner not an evil force that needs to be conquered.

Tell us about how you have been able to get your sales and production teams to work together.

Weather Happens!

If anything brings out the Grinch in people its weather delays. It’s December 16^th. It’s snowy and icy in several of the major cities major cities along the east coast. Flights are being delayed and canceled. Thus travel plans are being short circuited. All this equals highly stressed and irritated passengers.  But what are the airlines/airports to do???

Well it depends on who you listen to. As I set at the gate an announcement is made “Flight xxxx has not left their airport because of weather. It appears that they will arrive at least an hour late. Please come to the counter if you have any questions or need any assistance.” If you travel as much as I do this is not an unusual situation to be in. Maybe because I do travel frequently I know this is going to happen. I try to plan my travels to include time for just such situations. Especially in December in the Northeast or Northern Midwest states.

As I sat and watched people (one of my favorite past times in the airport) I couldn’t help but over hear the conversation at the counter. The passenger was really upset because the flight was going to be late and they might miss their connecting flight. As I listened further I learned that her (we’ll call her Ms. M) plans included her husband, son and mother. They were going to a graduation of one of her other children. The airline representative informed her that there weren’t any other seats available at this time but they could guarantee them a seat on an early flight the next day. Ms. M went on to lecture the representative on the fact that they had been waiting there for 6 hours on standby (because their earlier flight had been canceled) and now the airline was suggesting that she take her family home and get up at 1:00am to come back to the airport. “Would you want to do that to your mother?” she asked repeatedly. Along with trying to make them feel bad because Grandma was going to miss the graduation.

Now I realize this was a tough situation however what was the airline to do part the skies and melt all the snow and ice so the plane could magically appear at the gate? Were they to create an extra plane, get a flight crew, plan the flight, register it with the FAA , and the airports in the next 30 minutes? I am sure she would have said yes to all of these.

Why do we expect that all our problems can be made to go away if we are condescending and arrogant with people who are trying to help? Are we the only people that are having issues? Maybe someone else has a more serious reason for getting to their location? When did we become such a rude society? I watch several people go to through the line and treat the representatives as if the representative was purposefully trying to ruin their lives. Did they really want all the flights to go out as scheduled? If the flights did take off as scheduled, when they really shouldn’t have, and an accident happened then everyone would sue the airlines for making a bad decision. Do travelers not realize that winter weather happens?

Maybe instead of getting pushy and obnoxious when things don’t go as planned we should take a breath and work with people to find solutions to the problems.Especially the ones that no one can control. Last time I checked no one can control the weather. There are things in your organization that you cannot control (like a break down in equipment, illness, etc.). Some of these situation require all the creative juices you can pull together to overcome. Getting angry and stressed will not help the situation. In fact it usually makes the situation worse. I have to give credit to the United Airlines staff for keeping their cool and working as efficiently as possible to get people to their desired destinations. My trip took 6 hours longer than I had planned but the important point is that I made it home safely. Thanks United Airlines.

Merry Christmas to all and safe travels!

Why are we blaming the airlines?

Now I am sure that I will ire several people with this perspective but I am going to raise the issue. Why shouldn’t the airlines charge for carry-on baggage? Have you seen what some people carry-on to the airplane these days? Now there are lines on the boarding ramps waiting for hand checked bags. Isn’t that like valet parking? Shouldn’t there be an extra charge for that?


Now let’s think about this. For years we have been pushing the point of view that the customer is always right. And we have also decided somewhere in that same equation that every vendor is out to take it to their customers. That it is somehow wrong to make a profit. That everyone is price gouging and should only be allowed the profit that the customer deems appropriate. When did the average customer become so knowledgeable that they know exactly the actual cost of production? Oh and don’t forget every employee working at these companies should be making a good salary. What is a good salary? Who decides what that is?

Then there are the board of directors and stockholders of the company. I am sure the directors and stockholders want a huge profit so they can get increased dividends. Is there a limit on what the profit should be? What is the compensation for the board members? Who decides? Do we really want the government to get involved?

Whatever happened to letting the market set the acceptable price based on the demand? Why are we telling companies what price they can charge for their product or services? Several years ago people complained that the price of tickets were too high. So the airlines cut the price of tickets by reducing some of the services. What did everyone expect? Has air travel become a right of every citizen?

I am not aware of the reason for adding the checked bag charge. It could have been to help cover the cost of having baggage personnel. It could have been to get people to bring less baggage. But it appears to have raised the amount of baggage being carried on to the plane. Could this be an example of trying to fix the symptoms and not looking at the root issue?

I’ve not been involved in the airline industry but maybe the organization studied what the customer was asking for (cheaper flights) and found a way to provide what they wanted. The result was, in essence, an ala carte menu of flight services. The flight (the seat on the plane and transportation to the chosen location) is the basic purchase. Then you can add other services: food, checked bag, carryon bags, etc.

What I see is a clear example of conflicting expectations and assumptions. And maybe some of the expectations are unrealistic. For example would it be realistic for me to expect that I should be able to fly non-stop to all my travel destinations? Oh and I want it at the same price as the other flights. And I want a free upgrade to first class. With a perfect meal. Is this really realistic? So what is a company to do?

I am not saying that all airlines are running as efficient as possible, but what company is. Maybe we need to look at what we are expecting from our companies (all companies) and realize that for our US companies to successful and compete on the global market they need to profit. Let the companies work on their internal improvement processes. The consumer should then make the best decision available to them.