Having done Marketing Operations projects for over a decade, we have encountered some pretty remarkeble situations and statements. We thought it is about time we share them with you. Here are some symptoms of an out of control marketing environment illustrated by some real life quotes:
Hybrid job titles Job rotations, inheritance after a merge, horizontal task forces and a drive to specialize roles and responsibilities to the utmost detail, job titles are becoming pretty ‘exotic’. “We can play domino with business cards around here.”
Territorial Balkanization Managerial entities turn into small, but heavily protected kingdoms, sometimes managed by enlightened rulers but more often by dictators. “Disseminating information is a no-no.”
Hands-up mentality Tunnel vision behavior and lack of willingness to think as a collective and support each other. Often a protective mechanism to survive complex situations. ”Why should I spend 10% extra, just so that another department can save 60%?”
Vicious circle of madness Like a sticker on an escalator that goes up, disappears for a while and then pops up at the beginning again, the problem that you escalated is coming back to you after circulating around through the company for weeks. “I am not escalating this, because it will hit me in the back when I don’t have time for it.”
Reversed problem solving Instead of dividing a bigger problem into smaller parts, managers hope to find the bigger picture by gathering details. “If we aren’t getting complaints from the field, we must be on schedule.”
Process personalization Processes are not standardized or documented. “We don’t need a process for that, we have Naomi.”
Black market Processes, applications and budgets are managed from the ‘bottom-up’, rather than ‘top-down’. Often, they operate in parallel to the less popular official infrastructure. “I can’t save money by migrating that application. It is financed by non-existing budgets.”
