Is there a single career path for demand gen? Or what are some good career paths that can lead to a demand generation leadership role like yours?

There is definitely not a single path for demand gen. I personally transitioned into demand gen from field marketing. I can't say there is a single path that makes more sense than the next, but I can say there were a few things that helped me make the seamless transition. 

1) All the events I ran had a quantative goal along with a qualitative goal. All programs had success metrics attached to them so we could look back and understand was it sucessful or not. 

2) The other was that I always had buy in from the sales, CSM, and other GTM teams. I would start with communicating that this path forward would help them hit their goals and then share how their partnership would bring it even more success.

3) Events are expensive! Field marketing and demand gen will always cost money. Learning how to communicate upwards to c-level and other leadership positions is key. 

Whether you are on the content team, product marketing team, or a fellow field marketer and want to transition into demand gen, focus on proving value of your programs, have a close relationship with sales, and be ready to prove value of your demand gen mix to leadership. 

There is definitely not a single career path for demand gen. Everyone must carve their own path based on the existing skills they have today, and being honest about what they really want to do in the future. I began my career with a heavy focus on developing my skills with marketing tech and operations, and invested heavily in enterprise marketing skills - such as developing a total addressable market and go-to-market strategy, account-based marketing and paid media management.

A good overall basic framework is the "T-shaped marketer" framework. (Google it!) It is a good starting point for understanding all of the disciplines of demand gen and understanding how deep and wide you want to go in your skillset.

Personally, I don't think there is a one single path for Demand Generation. I came into the role by surprise. I was interviewing for a Marketing Manager role at a company, almost 10 years ago and during the interview we were whiteboarding out pipeline funnels. I was talking through waterfall metrics and which type of assets I would place at each stage in the funnel. Then we went on to discuss global digital strategies and then lastly, my favorite, events and the campaigns that surround them. I had lots of experience in SFDC reporting, Pardot and over all dashboarding and my soon to be manager said, "Liz, you're not a Marketing Manager, you're a Demand Generation Manager" (shout out to one of my mentors Allen Johnson)

He taught me how to mold all the different parts of marketing I loved into the Demand Generation role. Being a Sales driven marketer, who knows their data, how campaigns work and the best way to create growth quick was the trick. So, my advice as to career path ... Become passionate about all aspects of marketing and sales. Learn the numbers, ask questions to those who are in the roles you strive for. Connect with me on Linkedin (I'm always an open book), research - you've got this.

There isn't a single, linear career path to landing a senior demand generation leadership role. The field of demand generation is multifaceted and draws on various disciplines within marketing and beyond (including pretty much any GTM role). That said, I think there are a couple of commonalities:

Some folks start in an entry level Demand Generation role (coordinator), and move straight up the ladder (specialist, manager, director). Moving into these mid-career roles involves focusing specifically on strategies to generate and nurture leads, often in close partnership with the SDR or BDR team. This path offers so many learning opportunities: proficiency in building relationships with Sales, marketing automation tools (e.g., HubSpot, Marketo), Inbound strategy, Outbound strategy and ABM, email nurture programs, funnel conversion rate programs, as well as data/funnel analysis.

Many folks get their start in digital: Many professionals begin their careers in roles such as paid media manager, digital marketing specialist, content marketer, or social media manager. You'll gain a ton of critical skills on this path: Understanding of SEO, PPC, email marketing, content strategy, and social media marketing.

Other senior demand generation leaders come from generalist backgrounds, and there's nothing wrong with that. That might be product marketing, customer marketing, community, brand or field marketing. Fostering a broad understanding how different marketing functions interact can provide a holistic view of the marketing ecosystem, one that is absolutely critical when you are responsible for the whole enchilada. In this case, you might be leaning harder into broader marketing strategy, cross-functional collaboration, as well as capturing and leveraging customer insights.

Those are some common paths and any one of them offers real paths to leadership. But if you are looking to improve your chance to land a Demand Generation leadership role, you can focus more on developing attributes. Those include:

• Analytical Mindset: Ability to interpret data and make data-driven decisions.

• Technological Proficiency: Familiarity with marketing technologies and platforms.

• Creative Thinking: Innovative approaches to campaign development and problem-solving.

• Leadership: Inspiring and managing a team effectively.

• Communication: Clear communication with stakeholders at all levels.

• Relationship building: Often forgotten and neglected, it's one of the very most important skills at the upper most levels of leadership.

Final point: I could be wrong but my experience tells me that growth stage startup C level roles (the only space I know) come from one of two backgrounds: PMM or Demand Generation. They are going to hire to solve the problems they are facing. It's usually driving predictable demand first, with a measure of brand building second. Worth considering as you navigate your path towards an upper management role in Marketing

I don't think there is a single career path for demand gen. I have members across team who have come up via martech, digital marketing, sales, product marketing, field marketing, content, sales strategy. You name it!

Regardless of the path, I think it's the ability to focus on understanding the customer and their behaviors. Own representing the voice of the customer and be the expert who can create the plan to share with them the right message, at the right time, on the right channel. Keep an eye on the revenue and how to turn your levers to reach the targets.

No, I believe there are several career paths for demand gen. I’ve also interviewed candidates for demand gen roles from a variety of backgrounds. The space is so vast; different perspectives only enhance a strategy.

Career paths that can lead to a demand generation leadership role include branding and brand awareness, SEM, SEO, ABM, growth marketing, field marketing, and product marketing, to name a few. I personally believe an SEM and SEO background can be an incredibly impactful blend of skills. However, the field is constantly evolving and has plenty of room to benefit from various backgrounds.