Marketing Operations Process Improvement

Standardising Content Briefing & Optimising Internal Tools

Client

Global Consumer Goods Retailer

Role

Project Process Leader

Duration

7 months

Scope

World-wide

Overview

I was brought in to fix broken marketing operations where content requests took too long and delivery timelines were unpredictable.

Marketing teams used internal tools to request content, but briefing templates were blank text boxes. This meant endless clarification emails, missed deadlines, expensive rework, and frustrated stakeholders.

Over seven months, I redesigned briefing templates, managed the product backlog, and delivered features that made the system work.

20%

Cycle Time Reduction

From 15 to 12 days

65%

Clarification Reduction

From 2.3 to 0.8 rounds

100%

Template Adoption

All markets standardised

40%

Rework Reduction

Fewer revisions required

Key Challenges

Identifying systemic issues across the organisation

Non-prompted Briefs

Templates were unstructured text fields requiring multiple clarification cycles before production could begin.

Timeline Unclarity

Without standardised processes, delivery timelines varied. Teams couldn't plan effectively or schedule campaigns reliably.

Rework Cycles

Ambiguous briefs led to assumptions. When incorrect, content required extensive revisions, increasing costs.

Tool Fragmentation

Tools evolved organically without product strategy. Different markets used different workflows.

Limited Visibility

Once requests entered the system, stakeholders had minimal progress insight. Managers received constant status inquiries.

Market Inconsistency

Each market developed unique workarounds. Fragmentation made it difficult to implement improvements at scale.

Root Cause Analysis

Key Finding

After conducting 30+ stakeholder interviews, the fundamental issue became clear: this was a systems problem, not a people problem. Teams were working diligently within broken processes. Templates didn't capture essential information. Tools lacked basic functionality. Processes had never been intentionally designed.

Discovery & Analysis

Understanding current state operations

🔍

Stakeholder Research

Conducted 30+ interviews with marketing teams, production managers, agency partners, and approval stakeholders.

📊

Process Mapping

Documented complete journey from request submission through delivery. Identified all handoffs and failure points.

⏱️

Data Analysis

Analysed historical data to quantify cycle times and identify bottlenecks. Clarification cycles consumed 40% of request time.

Identified Bottlenecks

Issue	Impact	Root Cause
Incomplete Briefs	35% required 2+ clarification rounds	Templates lacked structured fields
Unclear Approvals	3 days lost per approval stage	Approval workflows undefined
Missing Specifications	40% of assets required rework	No technical specification requirements
Status Requests	100+ status emails weekly	No real-time tracking capability
Manual Routing	Requests frequently misdirected	No automated routing logic

Template Standardisation

Redesigning briefing templates

Comprehensive capture: Include all fields required by production teams to execute without clarification
Clear guidance: Provide explicit field labels, examples, and validation to guide users
Global consistency: Standardise terminology and structure across all request types and markets
Balanced thoroughness: Ensure completeness without creating excessive administrative burden

Before & After Templates

Original Template

Campaign Name Unstructured free text field
Requirements Large text area without prompts
Technical Specs Not systematically captured
Timeline Single deadline field
Approvals Free text stakeholder listing

Standardised Template

Structured Data Dropdown selections for market, type, brand, category
Detailed Brief Objective, audience, message, tone, call-to-action
Full Specifications Format, dimensions, file type, resolution, colour profile
Milestone Schedule First draft, review, final approval, delivery dates
Defined Workflow Auto-populated stakeholder matrix by request type

Template Coverage

Five core templates addressing primary request types

Campaign creative assets: Display advertising, social media, email
Video production: Product demonstrations, testimonials, instructional content
Print collateral: Brochures, point-of-sale materials, packaging
Website content: Landing pages, product descriptions, editorial
Presentation materials: Sales presentations, event materials, training

Product Management Approach

Treating internal tools as strategic products

1

Strategic Roadmap

Developed 6-month roadmap balancing immediate improvements with strategic capabilities.

2

Backlog Management

Maintained prioritised backlog using impact divided by effort to optimise resources.

3

Agile Delivery

Implemented 2-week sprint cycles with proper scoping, testing, and communication.

4

Continuous Feedback

Established feedback mechanisms to inform ongoing development priorities.

Programme Timeline

📊

Phase 1: Foundation (Months 1-2)

Stakeholder research, process mapping, data analysis, bottleneck identification, business case development

🎨

Phase 2: Design & Quick Wins (Months 2-4)

Template design workshops, field validation, quick-win feature delivery (status visibility, notifications, reporting)

🚀

Phase 3: Platform & Scale (Months 4-7)

Strategic features (routing, workflows, SLA tracking), pilot programme, regional expansion, global deployment

Product Backlog

Prioritised using MoSCoW framework

Feature	Priority	Status	Impact
MUST HAVE
Template Library	P0	✅ Delivered	Critical
Auto-routing	P0	✅ Delivered	Critical
Status Dashboard	P0	✅ Delivered	High
Approval Workflows	P1	✅ Delivered	High

Product Backlog (continued)

Feature	Priority	Status	Impact
SHOULD HAVE
SLA Tracking	P1	✅ Delivered	High
Duplicate Detection	P1	✅ Delivered	Medium
Analytics Platform	P1	✅ Delivered	High
Escalation Logic	P2	✅ Delivered	Medium

Prioritisation: Impact score divided by effort score. Features scoring above 2.0 were prioritised for development.

Results & Impact

Quantified improvements across key metrics

20%

Cycle Time

From 15 to 12 days

65%

Clarifications

From 2.3 to 0.8 rounds

100%

Template Usage

All markets standardised

40%

Rework

Fewer revisions required

Business Impact

The 20% reduction in cycle time represents approximately 3 days saved per request. With over 200 monthly requests, this translates to roughly 600 days of annual capacity returned.

The 40% reduction in rework resulted in approximately 30% fewer agency hours required per request, delivering tangible cost savings.

The 75% decrease in status inquiry emails freed production managers to focus on value-adding activities.

Stakeholder Feedback

"The templates now capture everything we need upfront. Production teams can begin work immediately."

Marketing Manager, Germany

"Having visibility into request status has fundamentally changed how I plan campaign timelines."

Creative Director, UK

Key Learnings

End-to-End Process Understanding
Comprehensive process mapping revealed bottlenecks that weren't apparent when examining individual touchpoints. The most significant issues occurred at handoff points between teams.
Templates as Strategic Tools
Effective briefing templates serve dual purposes: guiding requesters through strategic thinking while capturing operational requirements.
Product Management for Internal Tools
Applying product management disciplines to internal tools transforms their effectiveness. This shifts focus from reactive maintenance to strategic capability development.

Key Learnings (continued)

Standardisation Enables Scale
While markets initially resisted standardisation, consistent processes ultimately facilitated easier customisation. Standardisation provides the foundation for sustainable local adaptation.
Change Management as Core Deliverable
Technical implementation represents approximately 50% of programme effort. Training, communication, and transition support require equal investment to ensure adoption.

Core Principle

Process improvement succeeds when addressing both system design and user adoption simultaneously. Optimal templates fail without user engagement. Enthusiastic users cannot succeed with inadequate tools.