What are the most important soft and hard skills Demand Generation managers can build to become successful in their field going forward?

The most important soft and hard skills to help you build your demand gen career are captured below. While I captured each in three buckets, there is so much more to consider. Demand gen spans over many disciplines.

Soft skills:

• Effective communication
• Critical thinking
• Empathy

Hard skills:

• Data analysis
• Deep knowledge of your skill (e.g., SEO)
• Digital marketing strategy

Dig into what you are passionate about in demand generation and truly become a subject matter expert. Read often. Study daily. You have the tools to grow in your career. Keep these attributes in mind as you continue to grow.

Demand generation encompasses so many unique skills - both technical, but also business acumen. I'd contend there is no perfect singular answer to this question, as each company's situation will be unique and have some nuance around what skills would be most beneficial.

With that said, there are some core fundamental skills you should develop:

• Hard skills: SEO, CRO, digital advertising, data analytics, copywriting (super underrated!), nurture strategy (this one could differentiate you), and it wouldn't hurt to be dangerous with some of the common marketing automation platforms 
• Soft skills: creative, collaborative (you can't do this alone!), strong communication, disciplined and organized (this one is also highly underrated, but arguably when this one is lacking it can destroy all trust and credibility)

These lists are by no means comprehensive, but certainly a great foundation that one should have entering into a DG Manager role and ones that will serve you well as you continue to progress in your career. 

A short list of a few skills that immediately come to mind:

Soft skills:

• Organization

• Time management

• Project management

• Drawing conclusions from data

• Presentation skills

Hard skills:

• Google Analytics

• Marketing Automation platforms

• Writing

• Design

• CRM systems, such as Salesforce

• Marketing funnel

• SEO

If "manager" is reference people management, I believe the most important skill sets are primarily soft skills. It's a focus on empowering your team and knowing when to lead from the front vs leading from the back. Highly recommend taking a "situational leadership" course. However if you're referencing "manager" from an individual contributor standpoint, I believe:

Soft Skills:

• Critical thinking

• Growth mindset

• Effective communication

• Executive presence

Hard Skills:

• Customer and Audience Segmentation

• SEM, Display

• Email automation

• Content Strategy

• Measurement and reporting

• CRM basic

• AI prompting