In many countries, the brand plan arrives in the field as a finished presentation.
Marketing built it. Sales is told to deliver it. The first-line managers see it for the first time at the cycle meeting.
Then the year goes the usual way. If it works, both functions claim it. If it misses, sales says the plan was wrong and marketing says the execution was weak.
In my experience, the fix is not a better handover. It is one plan, built by both.
First-line managers in the room while the plan is written, not only when it is presented.
Segments checked on double visits before they go into the plan. The field knows which doctors and pharmacies really behave the way the slide says.
Field input on materials early, while they are still drafts. Then the full medical, regulatory and compliance review, exactly as it should be. Input shapes the draft. It never replaces approval.
And one review, with one set of numbers, where both functions sit on the same side of the table.
Marketing owns the brand. Sales owns the customer. The plan belongs to both.
“If sales and marketing have two plans, the market sees neither.”
Lesson 1 of 3 in Step 6: Working across functions, with the full guide and a checklist for this week.