My sales director wants to customize every deal to hit their targets, while my operations director insists on strict standardization, creating constant warfare between sales and delivery. How do we resolve this structural conflict on our leadership team?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

This classic battle between sales and operations is structural, but it must be resolved at the leadership level before it tears your delivery apart. To fix this, you must look to your V/TO. Your V/TO defines your target market and your three uniques. If your sales director is selling customized solutions that do not fit your target market or core focus, they are violating your strategic alignment. Review your core focus with both directors. Next, look at your Accountability Chart. The sales seat is accountable for bringing in the right revenue, while the operations seat is accountable for delivering that service profitably and consistently. Bring both leaders together to define a clear package of standard offerings. Any deal that falls outside of these standards must go through a formal approval process. This forces them to collaborate on what is best for the business, not just their individual departments. Use your weekly Level 10 Meetings to IDS any client accounts that are causing delivery friction. If the sales director continues to sell customized deals that operations cannot deliver, they are failing their seat requirements. By forcing both seats to align under the same V/TO and holding them accountable to a shared gross margin metric on the Scorecard, you turn friction into healthy collaboration.