Your cross-functional team is divided on revenue and vision. How do you unite them for success?

Top 3 ways to align your cross-functional team on revenue vs. vision. 1 - Understand their perspectives 2 - Re-iterate the current focus on stratey 3 - Prioritise the decision accordingly

3 Steps on uniting a cross-functional team: 1. Encourage Open Communication and Gather Feedback Create an environment where team members can share their values, concerns, and aspirations. Gather feedback to ensure all voices are heard and unite the team. 2. Align Visions with a Shared Purpose Align the team's vision by integrating financial targets with the company mission. 3. Implement Collaboration and Set Shared Goals Encourage collaboration and set shared goals to reinforce the importance of working together towards a common objective.

A common elephant in the room is the discord between revenue goals and the broader organizational vision, which can fragment efforts and derail progress. To unite a cross-functional team divided on these fronts, start by clearly defining the common goal and emphasizing the importance of both revenue and vision for long-term success. Facilitate open dialogue to ensure everyone’s concerns are heard and understood. Identify shared values and develop a balanced strategy that integrates both aspects. Promote collaboration through cross-departmental projects and regularly review progress towards these unified goals. By focusing on shared objectives and fostering open communication, you can align the team and drive collective success.

To unite a cross-functional team divided on revenue and vision, I facilitate a dialogue to surface shared core values and long-term objectives. Encouraging open communication allows everyone to express concerns and aspirations. This helps identify common ground and create a unified vision that integrates financial targets with the broader company mission. Focusing on what unites us fosters a sense of shared purpose, aligning the team towards collective success.

To unite a cross-functional team divided on revenue and vision: -Reaffirm overall company goals -Facilitate open, respectful dialogue -Find common ground between perspectives -Use data to guide discussions -Develop a balanced strategy addressing both -Establish clear, measurable metrics for both aspects -Promote cross-functional collaboration -Lead by example, demonstrating balance -Hold regular check-ins to assess progress -Celebrate successes that align revenue and vision The key is to show that revenue and vision are complementary, not conflicting. By fostering understanding, collaboration, and a balanced approach, you can guide the team towards a unified strategy that drives both financial success and long-term vision fulfilment.

Nobody believes in "Vision". They think it's some kind of motivational unrealistic words. I have recently read about solving this issue with "Working Backward Strategy". What does it mean: You will start with desired end result in mind and figure out how to get there. Write an imaginary letter as a reference customer. This helps other cross-functional teams imagine how the changes in the next 2-3 years will give value to customers. But keep the balance between too vague and too detailed in your Product Vision. Because you don't know what happens and you might have to apply different solutions to get to the same Vision. If you want to dive deep into "working backward technique", I would suggest "INSPIRED" by Marty Cagan.

A comprehensive product's vision is required in order to align with others. The product's vision is a statement made to the world, setting an horizon, an ideal. It's not "what we are", but "what we will be, what we bring and why". A vision should be large enough to be inspiring. Open to revenue opportunities, but not wide open to anything that could go in. A strong product vision allows a natural alignment. Clarity is a key word in this exercise of creating a vision.

Focus on a unifying theme. Their ideas may be divergent but find a point of convergence where you can rally the team to. Working on the same project, they may have different personal views but getting them to the converging objective of the product or project can help them align better.

Clarifying the vision is essential when uniting a divided cross-functional team. I focus on clearly articulating the overarching vision and long-term goals of the product or project. This involves explaining the bigger picture and how each team member's work contributes to achieving these objectives. I ensure that the vision is communicated consistently across all channels and reiterated in team meetings and individual discussions. By aligning everyone with a shared understanding of where we are headed and why it matters, I help the team see the value of their contributions and the importance of working together. This clarity fosters a sense of purpose and direction, motivating team members to unite and collaborate towards common goals.

To unite a cross-functional team divided between revenue and vision, it's essential to create cohesion through clear, shared objectives. Start by reaffirming a unified vision that balances both aspects, then set SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) goals that directly support this vision and your revenue ambitions. Break these goals down into actionable tasks that clearly show how each team member’s efforts contribute to broader company objectives. This approach not only clarifies roles but also aligns the team's efforts, encouraging collaboration and a shared commitment to achieving dual success in both vision and revenue.

After establishing a unified vision, I set clear, achievable objectives that support both revenue goals and the overarching vision. I break these down into SMART goals—specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. This clarity ensures each team member understands their role in achieving success and how their contributions align with revenue targets and the company's strategic vision. By providing this structure, the team can rally behind shared goals, fostering cohesion and driving collective success.

Imagine you are saying "I'm gonna a businessman and make $50,000 a month passively" in the next 3 years. But when asked what milestones you have to achieve this goal, you are saying: "Well, I don't know yet. I'll figure it out later". This is a motivational statement that you can hear from a 12 years old. You are a Product Manager. You should have solid Business Objectives to achieve that Vision but it doesn't mean that you have to come up with it on your own. Head of Design, Head of Product and Head of Technology should collaborate in this process to take all possible risks and limitations into account when making Business Objectives.

Setting clear, shared objectives helps align efforts and measure progress. Here’s how: 1. Define SMART Goals: Create Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound objectives 2. Align Objectives with Vision: Ensure that all objectives support the unified vision and overall business strategy 3. Prioritize Goals: Rank objectives based on their importance and impact on the project 4. Communicate Objectives: Clearly communicate the goals to the entire team and ensure understanding 5. Monitor Progress: Regularly review progress towards objectives and adjust as necessary

É muito importante definir objetivos claros e específicos, que conectem diretamente as metas de receita com a visão estratégica. Divida esses objetivos em metas SMART (específicas, mensuráveis, alcançáveis, relevantes e com prazo) para garantir que cada membro da equipe saiba exatamente como suas tarefas contribuem para o sucesso geral. Isso serve para alinhar os esforços do time e também para motivá-los, pois mostrar a eles a importância de cada contribuição para as metas que temos que atingir de forma coletiva.

Clear communication is essential for uniting a divided team. I ensure everyone understands not just the 'what' but also the 'why' behind each decision. I articulate how revenue goals support the broader vision and how the vision drives revenue growth. By linking these aspects, team members see their work as part of a cohesive whole. This approach reduces friction, enhances collaboration, and fosters a shared understanding of our objectives, ultimately driving success.

Words are your *weapon as a Product Manager. Hit the Bulls eye. Your Vision and Business Objectives should get people excited.

Clear and effective communication is crucial in aligning a team with both revenue goals and a shared vision. Make sure to clearly articulate not only what needs to be done but also why it's important. Explain how achieving revenue targets contributes to the broader vision, and how, in turn, this vision can help drive revenue growth. By explicitly linking these two elements, you help team members see the interconnectedness of their tasks with the overall objectives. This understanding fosters a sense of purpose, reduces internal friction, and enhances collaboration, uniting the team under a common goal.

Clear communication is crucial for ensuring everyone understands their roles and responsibilities. Here’s how: 1. Use Multiple Channels: Utilize various communication tools and platforms to reach all team members 2. Be Transparent: Share information openly and honestly to build trust and prevent misunderstandings 3. Provide Context: Explain the reasons behind decisions and how they align with the vision and objectives 4. Encourage Open Dialogue: Create an environment where team members feel comfortable voicing their opinions and concerns 5. Regular Updates: Keep the team informed about progress, changes, and any challenges encountered

Realizar reuniões regulares onde o time pode tirar dúvidas e fazer as atualizações do seu progresso, promove um entendimento mútuo e reduz mal-entendidos, além de fomentar uma cultura de colaboração ao vincular o progresso de receita com a evolução da visão, permitindo que cada membro do time veja o impacto de seu trabalho nas metas da empresa. Isso reforça o senso de propósito, coesão e pertencimento.

Would you work 8 hours for 2-3 years for free? Absolutely not! That's why If you want your cross-functional teams help you with Business Objectives to achieve the Product Vision, help them understand what the benefit for them. It'll be different for Customer Service, Sales, Marketing and so on. It's something like this: If the customer is happy, everyone is happy. If the customer is angry, everyone is angry. Believe me, this thing happened to me. (the angry one)

Empowering team members fosters ownership and accountability. Here’s how: 1. Delegate Authority: Give team members the authority to make decisions within their areas of responsibility 2. Provide Resources: Ensure that the team has the tools and resources needed to succeed 3. Encourage Initiative: Support team members in taking initiative and proposing solutions 4. Recognize Contributions: Acknowledge and celebrate individual and team achievements 5. Offer Support: Be available to provide guidance and assistance when needed

Empowering your team is a powerful strategy for fostering unity and driving performance. Grant team members the autonomy to make decisions within their areas of expertise, ensuring these decisions align with the overall objectives of both achieving revenue targets and advancing the company vision. When team members feel trusted and have ownership over their work, they are more engaged and committed to the success of the project. This sense of responsibility not only boosts morale but also cultivates a culture of accountability. Empowerment leads to innovative problem-solving and proactive contributions, as individuals take initiative knowing they have the support and trust of the organization.

This is the most important and the most difficult aspect in a situation where the strategic priorities of the teams don't align (e.g. business priorities vs product vision). Once as a Product you have heard the problems, pain-points and opportunities of each side, and you have come up with a win-win solution and also communicated (Kotler 8 steps to communicating a change). Now you might have to onboard each team individually explaining them the reasoning and clear in terms of measure of support (budget, resources, FTEs etc.) needed now or in future. Once this is done all of the leaders of the collaborating team have to be brought to a same forum where we can evaluate changes (more/less) in the support thought the timeline of the product.

Based on my experience, the best way to foster collaboration is by making everyone aware of the common goal or organisation's vision that everyone is working towards. Conflicts happen when different teams work with a myopic vision and just focus on short-term goals. When we start viewing tasks keeping the vision in mind, prioritising tasks becomes very easy. I truly believe that in most organisations the communication is not very clear, and teams are not actually aware of the vision that they are working towards which not only leads to conflicts but also leads to de-motivation towards work. Hence, the best way to foster collaboration is by communicating and making everyone aware of the common goal.

Encourage your team members to work together, facilitating sessions where they can share knowledge and brainstorm solutions that consider both perspectives. This cross-functional collaboration not only sparks innovation but also builds a sense of community and mutual respect among team members. When individuals understand and appreciate the contributions of their colleagues from different departments, they're more likely to discover synergistic solutions that enhance both the company's revenue growth and its strategic vision. This cooperative environment helps the entire organization operate more cohesively and effectively.

Collaboration between cross-functional teams is one of the most important aspect in product management. If you are willing to foster an innovative collaborative environment, you would need to create this space through listening, empathy, open-mindness, self-awareness. Collaboration can take many forms: ideation, sharing, support... But consistently results in a team feeling motivated, and ready to take on challenges to achieve greater goals.

Create an environment where all team members feel safe to express their concerns and opinions. Facilitate open discussions that allow for diverse viewpoints to be heard and considered. Use these conflicts as opportunities to revisit and reinforce the shared vision and objectives, helping everyone refocus on the bigger picture. By handling conflicts in this way, you not only resolve immediate issues but also foster a stronger, more cohesive team dynamic. This approach turns potential setbacks into learning opportunities that enhance collaboration and strengthen commitment to the team's collective success.