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Organisations are increasingly realising that for business and brand strategies
to be effectively aligned, the brand can no longer be driven and managed just by
Marketing.
Consistently delivering on the brand promise means that the whole organisation -
at every level - needs to "live" the brand. This requires effective cross-functional
collaboration.
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And the most critical collaboration - that of Marketing and Human Resources
working together to build a truly brand-based culture.
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The Benefits to Marketing
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HR's core audience are the organisation's employees. Because a brand's enduring strength comes from consistent delivery against the brand promise, HR can play a seminal role in establishing and sustaining a brand-based culture through recruitment, induction, performance reviews / appraisals, reward & recognition programs, and training and development.
HR can also work closely with Marketing in developing internal communications that demonstrate and reinforce how employees should "live" the brand.
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Aligning the internal and external brand is, in essence, about changing and shaping
organisational culture; research undertaken by McKinsey into critical success factors
underpinning change management initiatives (like brand alignment programs), identified
the need for "change agents" at every level of an organisation who embody and live
the core values and who are individuals respected within the organisation. By identifying
such individuals (and aligning their messages and behaviours), powerful internal
role models are created. HR is without question the function best-placed to identify
and foster the participation of such internal change agents.
The Benefits to HR
HR functions can also benefit from closer collaboration with Marketing.
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Through effective brand positioning and communications, Marketing strengthens HR's ability to attract and retain employees committed to advancing the organisation's brand and business strategies.
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Today, recruits look for employers who will enhance their market profile and value, and an organisation's brand can play a vital role in attracting and retaining good talent.
From an HR perspective, this has undoubtedly elevated the importance of branding and increased the need for HR to work more closely with Marketing. Indeed, Marketing's understanding of external customers helps HR determine the tools and messages to help employees deliver on the brand promise.
Effective Collaboration
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Meaningful collaboration between HR and Marketing, however, requires addressing some likely key barriers (e.g. different cultures and remuneration structures, a lack of commitment and understanding from senior management, an organisational focus on short rather than longer-term results).
In many organisations, HR "own" the internal values while Marketing "own" the values the organisation wants customers to experience. But without real functional collaboration, brand initiatives will remain disparate and confuse rather than motivate employees.
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To reap the full benefits of a Marketing-HR collaboration, requires that a genuine partnership be forged between the two functions.
To this end, regular cross-departmental meetings should be held where strategies are shared, synergies identified and any duplication resolved. Collaboration should be based on organisation-wide business objectives, rather than functional objectives.
In terms of implementation, agreement on what needs to be done collectively and as individual functions is core.
More specifically, a joint management structure facilitating frequent evaluations and strategy refinements is fundamental. This can be in the form of a cross-departmental Steering Committee or a joint Working Group.
In monitoring and managing HR and Marketing's collaboration, the two functions should provide regular progress updates.
HR and Marketing might not be natural allies, but experience shows that effective collaboration increases successful recruiting, and overall employee understanding and support of the brand. This helps organisations build a more robust culture and brand - and ultimately, achieve superior business results.
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