When a customer says “We’ll place this big order, if you can rush it.”, sales usually feels pretty enthusiastic, because that means extra commission, and company growth.

When sales calls production to share the good news, production is not so enthusiastic. For production that means extra effort, and changes in plans.

My take on this classic tension: The entire company must be unified around giving customers what they want, subject to two limits.

1) Say no when saying yes to one customer will hurt another customer. Don’t say you’ll rush Tom’s order if it will make Jim’s order late.

2) Say no when saying yes will give away profit inappropriately. Don’t give a customer half price just to get the order.

Look for a way around those limits even if it takes extra effort or creative planning. When it’s possible and profitable for production to do what customer Tom wants and what customer Jim wants, no limit has been reached. Say yes.

Sales must advocate courageously for the needs of the customer, and at the same time show an attitude of respect for the perspective production brings to the table.

It’s our job to inconvenience ourselves to serve our customers well. Anyone who has a pattern of saying no to avoid extra effort doesn’t fit a culture of customer service and must change or exit.