Which Department is Most Important to Your Company?

Dec. 15, 2011
Breaking down large populations into unique and often separate groups is a very human trait. Whether it is in school, at a cocktail party, or within a neighborhood, individuals seek to identify with a group similar to themselves in make-up, knowledge, ...

Breaking down large populations into unique and often separate groups is a very human trait.

Whether it is in school, at a cocktail party, or within a neighborhood, individuals seek to identify with a group similar to themselves in make-up, knowledge, skills, or interests.

This tendency to cluster is exacerbated within an organization because of formal structures that are put into place which are designed to perform certain, specific tasks.

In the end, we find that these clusters frequently view themselves as more important and critical to the organization than anyone else.

The marketing department will argue that they set the direction for the company's products and services- and deal with the customers, the lifeblood of any firm.

The HR folks will make the case that since a company is made up of people, the quality of those people and ultimately the organization rests in their hands.

The production area of a company will contend that unless products and services are readied for customers in a timely fashion, nothing else can happen.

The individuals in charge of the supply chain will claim that the production folks can do nothing unless the supply chain is supporting them.

The finance office views themselves as the keepers of the keys, so to speak. Money, the mother's milk of the firm, has to flow through them.

And so it goes

What do you think is the most important part of your company (if there is one)?

Popular Sponsored Recommendations

Empowering the Modern Workforce: The Power of Connected Worker Technologies

March 1, 2024
Explore real-world strategies to boost worker safety, collaboration, training, and productivity in manufacturing. Emphasizing Industry 4.0, we'll discuss digitalization and automation...

Transformative Capabilities for XaaS Models in Manufacturing

Feb. 14, 2024
The manufacturing sector is undergoing a pivotal shift toward "servitization," or enhancing product offerings with services and embracing a subscription model. This transition...

Shifting Your Business from Products to Service-Based Business Models: Generating Predictable Revenues

Oct. 27, 2023
Executive summary on a recent IndustryWeek-hosted webinar sponsored by SAP

Building on Resilience

March 24, 2024
Splunk surveyed leaders across the manufacturing industry and 44% of them reported weekly critical outages due to security incidents. And over half of them said that they don’...

Voice your opinion!

To join the conversation, and become an exclusive member of IndustryWeek, create an account today!