Judging by the headlines like “Big Data Sparks Corporate Turf Fights” and “5 Things CFOs Hate About IT,” you might think that every IT organization is at odds with the company’s business leaders.

But let me ask you, does this look like a group of people at odds with one another?

These are business and IT executives from retailer Coach attending the recent SAS Global Forum Executive conference.

Why are they there together? And how dare they get along well enough to take a selfie?

As their account executive, I got to spend quite a bit of time with them in Washington DC during the conference, and the smiles weren’t just for the camera. It struck me that Coach made a great decision sending leaders and representatives to the conference from both IT and the lines of business. Here are five of the benefits I witnessed myself:

1. Sit in the same sessions together and get the same perspectives. Instead of trying to convince each other after a conference is over about this great new idea you learned, IT and business leaders can learn it together and discuss how to apply it to the business.
2. Rally together around the same new concepts. Technology conferences always showcase the latest and greatest tools, techniques and concepts. If you attend conference together, both IT and business leaders can find a common starting point and understand the newest ways to solve problems together.
3. Discuss ideas while they’re fresh. Don’t wait until you’re back home to brainstorm on how to apply ideas to your business. You can text each other during a presentation. Or talk about your ideas over lunch while the main points are still resonating.
4. Ask questions of the same experts. One panel at SAS Global Forum included a CEO, a CIO and a business consultant. The level of expertise is high among the speakers and attendees at these conferences. Being there together allows IT and business leaders to pose questions to their counterparts and to each other.
5. Get to know each other outside of work. A change of scenery, interesting keynotes and conference kickback parties can help IT and business leaders get to know each other better and open up the flow of communication and find common ground.

Coach is my favorite example from this year, but I know there were other large contingents at SAS Global Forum this year and previous years. Who did you attend the conference with? And what benefits did you realize by attending together?