AMA Study Reveals the Skills Marketers Need in the Future
“In this age of automation, marketers who want to stay competitive should not lose sight of the importance of ‘human’ skills—especially communication, innovation, and adaptability.”
That’s one of the conclusions reached by researchers at the AMA, who canvassed more than 1,200 marketing professionals last year and analyzed more than 450 posted jobs.
Other conclusions reached by the researchers?
- Marketing strategy, digital marketing, and project management top the list of technical and job-specific skills that the average marketer needs to succeed in their current role.
- Generative AI is the top-rated future skill, with 43% of survey respondents predicting it will become more important in five years.
- Data privacy is quickly rising in importance as a skill for marketers, driven by a wave of comprehensive state-based regulations and mounting consumer pressure.
- The most significant competency gaps, calculated by subtracting the average self-reported current competency from average current importance, are in digital marketing, data and analytics, proving ROI, and data privacy and compliance. These are areas where marketers are not fully equipped to meet the demands of their current roles.
Compared to mid-managers and individual contributors, those with VP titles and above rate gen AI as more important to their current role, as well as believe it will become more important for their roles in the next five years.
What This Means
What does this all mean for marketers?
It means if you are not improving your skills, you are likely to lose ground in a highly competitive work environment, especially if we are entering a recessionary environment in the next six months. Layoffs are the main fallout from slow or no growth. How will you respond? Will you be able to either keep your job by being indispensable because of your skills or will you be the first out the door?
AMA Triangle is here to help, whichever direction you go. We will continue to offer programs and workshops that sharpen your skills while assisting you in your networking opportunities. If you haven’t joined yet, consider jumping into the pool. If you are a member, keep an eye out for new and exciting opportunities to learn as we all navigate towards a highly uncertain environment.
