It’s good to be an expert at your job — but it might not be what gets you into a management role.
“Sometimes being a deep expert isn’t always an indicator of being a great manager,” Lori Castillo Martinez, EVP of talent growth and development at Salesforce, said in an interview with Business Insider.
The Salesforce executive said two skills are more important for getting noticed for a management role: collaboration and task management.
“Our best managers are those that are really leveraging those human skills, leaning in, understanding the needs of their teams,” Martinez said. “And when we see that potential, these are the folks that then we start doing some deeper work with.”
The Salesforce executive said the best managers can look across all the work that needs to be done and know where human skills are needed and where AI agents could better maximize a team’s capability.
A good manager is also able to identify the skillsets of others.
“As a manager, being able to spot that really key talent that is bringing some of those key skills to the table,” Martinez said.
Like many companies, Salesforce has been modernizing its workforce and learning how jobs are being redesigned. The company recently expanded its AI offerings with the launch of Agentforce, a platform that creates agents for specific tasks. Martinez said more than ever, it’s important to know which tasks are best suited for agents and humans.
The Salesforce exec said that as the company continues to explore AI platforms, the best managers will be those who can analyze their teams and maximize productivity.
Recent hiring data suggests that skilling up in AI could help you land a job faster, even if you’re not applying to a tech-specific role. LinkedIn data shows that AI hiring recently increased 30% faster than overall hiring. The figures include those who build AI, as well as those who use it in their jobs.
Martinez also said that, in general, anyone who wants to make any transition within a company should “take advantage of every learning opportunity,” especially if your company offers upskilling courses or technology training. Salesforce offers a number of upskilling opportunities, including an AI certification, Martinez said.
“I do think this is going to be a personal advantage,” Martinez said. “Those people that are leaning in, understanding that skill in and of itself, of human and AI or human and Agent interaction, and getting more and more experience.”
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