August 18, 2025 Why Tech Alone Can’t Solve Revenue Growth Challenges

A modern packaging line illustrating operational efficiency that enabled the manufacturer to surpass $500M in revenue two years ahead of schedule.

By Jen Fietz

Manufacturers are increasingly turning to digital tools like Customer Relationship Management (CRM), marketing automation platforms and advanced analytics to fuel growth and streamline operations. These investments reflect a growing recognition of the need to modernize and stay competitive in a rapidly evolving market. Yet, despite pouring resources into these technologies, many manufacturers find themselves frustrated. Pipeline traction remains inconsistent, execution feels scattered and the anticipated results often fall short.

Oftentimes, the challenge lies not in the technology itself, but in ensuring better alignment among the teams utilizing it. Without a cohesive approach that brings sales, marketing and operations together, it can be difficult for even the most sophisticated tools to reach their full potential. True growth doesn’t come from technology alone; it comes from ensuring the people and processes behind it are working in sync. Team alignment is a crucial, yet sometimes underappreciated, element that transforms digital investments into measurable, sustainable results.

The Hidden Barrier to Maximizing Technology’s Potential

For manufacturers, the promise of digital tools like CRMs and marketing automation platforms is clear: streamlined operations, improved pipeline management and accelerated growth. However, the outcomes often don’t live up to the promises. The underlying challenge? Go-to-market teams, sales, marketing and operations that are working in isolation rather than aligned.

When these teams fail to work cohesively, bottlenecks and inefficiencies emerge, slowing progress and adding friction to the pipeline, compounding internal misalignment. Challenges like unclear communication can lead to missed opportunities, uncoordinated handoffs may disrupt momentum, and differing goals can make it harder for teams to fully harness the potential of digital tools.

The truth is that even the most advanced technology can’t reach its full potential without team alignment. Without a unified approach, manufacturers often struggle to make the most of their resources and see limited growth progress. To unlock the full power of digital investments, manufacturers must first address the foundational issue: aligning teams around shared goals and a cohesive strategy.

Building Alignment for Measurable, Sustainable Growth

For many manufacturers, the challenge isn’t a lack of tools, it’s a lack of alignment. When strategy, systems and teams are fully aligned, the guesswork and fragmented efforts that often derail growth are replaced with a unified, focused approach. This alignment creates clarity, ensuring every action taken is purposeful and contributes to a shared vision of success.

The key lies in prioritizing measurable outcomes. By setting clear goals and using data-driven insights to guide decisions, manufacturers can focus efforts on initiatives that deliver tangible, quantifiable results. This not only drives efficiency but also builds confidence across teams, as everyone can see the direct impact of their contributions.

Cross-functional collaboration is at the heart of this transformation. When sales, marketing and operations work together as a cohesive unit, friction is reduced, handoffs are seamless and progress accelerates. This synergy turns fragmented teams into a powerful revenue engine, capable of driving consistent and sustainable growth.

Ultimately, the goal is to create a scalable, repeatable growth process, one that doesn’t just deliver results today, but sets the foundation for long-term success. By aligning teams and strategies, manufacturers can fully unlock the potential of digital investments and be positioned to lead with confidence in an increasingly competitive market.

Case Study: How Alignment Drove a Packaging Manufacturer to Exceed $500M in Growth

The power of alignment isn’t just theoretical; it’s proven. A Midwest-based national packaging manufacturer sought out a strategic growth partner to address its challenges of siloed teams and underperforming systems. By modernizing its digital lead generation and sales processes and aligning its commercial teams around a unified strategy, the company was transformed.

Through a collaborative approach with a partner who understood its challenges and embedded within the organization, the manufacturer achieved a remarkable 54% revenue growth. What’s more, it didn’t just meet its ambitious $500M revenue target, the company surpassed it two years ahead of schedule. This success wasn’t the result of adding more technological tools or chasing quick fixes. It came from creating a cohesive revenue engine where strategy, systems and teams worked seamlessly together.

This case study underscores the impact of alignment. By focusing on measurable outcomes and fostering cross-functional collaboration, manufacturers can unlock growth that is not only significant but also sustainable.

Actionable Strategies to Drive Sustainable Growth

Manufacturers seeking to replicate the success of the case study mentioned above can follow a series of actionable steps to unlock growth and build a scalable foundation for the future:

• Uncover growth: Start by identifying hidden gaps, inefficiencies and untapped opportunities within the business. Thoughtful leaders know a strategic diagnostic approach helps reveal where growth can be accelerated, setting the foundation for impactful change.
• Tailor a blueprint: A one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t work in manufacturing. By crafting customized growth strategies that align with revenue goals, market conditions and operational realities, the plan is sure to be tailored to the individual business.
• Unify teams for execution: Aligning sales, marketing and operations around a shared vision is critical. Define success across teams, implement accountability frameworks and create a unified, executable plan to drive consistent progress and measurable results.
• Streamline for efficiency: Industry leaders know reducing friction is key to success. By integrating systems, processes and teams and then leveraging tools like predictive maintenance and remote monitoring, companies ensure technology investments deliver maximum impact.
• Drive sustainable growth: Expand on early wins by entering new markets, launching innovative offerings and diversifying growth strategies. Forward-thinking manufacturers focus on building scalable, l     ong-term success that positions them as leaders in a competitive landscape.

By focusing on these strategies, manufacturers can create a cohesive, results-driven approach to growth that not only delivers immediate results but also positions the business for long-term success.

Conclusion: Aligning Teams to Unlock the Full Potential of Digital Transformation

For manufacturers aiming to turn digital investments into meaningful traction, the key isn’t just adding another tool; it’s alignment. Digital transformation is only as effective as the teams driving it. When sales, marketing and operations work together seamlessly, technology becomes a powerful enabler of growth rather than a source of frustration.

The first step is to evaluate how teams collaborate. Are systems and processes designed for clarity, accountability and shared goals? Addressing these dynamics can uncover hidden opportunities and set the stage for sustainable success.

The challenge of alignment is one worth solving, and the results speak for themselves. By focusing on team dynamics and partnering with a strategic growth expert, manufacturers can build a scalable foundation for long-term success.

About the Author:
Jen Fietz is the CEO of Stoke RGA, a Wisconsin-based revenue growth accelerator focused on helping manufacturers drive double-digit, scalable revenue growth. Raised in a manufacturing family and having worked directly on the plant floor herself, Fietz understands firsthand the operations, supply chain and workforce challenges facing today’s manufacturers. She uses that expertise to assist      manufacturers to align strategy, sales, marketing and operations and execute with precision to get scalable, sustainable results. Learn more about Stoke RGA at stokerga.com or connect with Jen on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/jenniferfietz.

Read more from the author:

Embracing a New Era in Manufacturing | Insight on Manufacturing, July 2025

Subscribe to Industry Today