As the world of work evolves in 2025, the demand for effective leadership has never been higher. Managers across all sectors face rapid change, from digital transformation to hybrid teams and ultimately must rise to new challenges in order to stay ahead. Whether you’re a first-time supervisor or a seasoned executive, success now requires a blend of timeless people skills and forward-looking capabilities. Below are the top 10 skills we beleive every manager needs in order to thrive in 2025.

1. Self-Awareness and Self-Development

Great management starts with knowing yourself. Self-aware managers understand their strengths, weaknesses, and the impact of their behaviour on others. This insight makes them more adaptable and effective. In fact, research shows that leaders who see themselves clearly make better decisions, communicate more effectively, and lead more profitable companies. By cultivating self-awareness and a habit of continuous learning, you set the foundation for all other skills.

• Seek regular feedback: Ask your team and peers for input on your management style. Listen openly to both praises and critiques to identify blind spots.
• Reflect and self-assess: Take time each week to reflect on what went well and what you could improve. Keeping a journal or notes can help track your growth.
• Invest in learning: Embrace a growth mindset. Attend workshops, read leadership articles, or find a mentor; always be learning and refining your skills.

2. Effective Communication

Communication isn’t just about talking, it’s about influencing, aligning, and driving action. Managers with strong communication skills build trust and clarity within their teams. Notably, companies with robust communication cultures are 3.5 times more likely to outperform their competitors (source: linkedin.com). In 2025’s fast-paced environment, you need to convey ideas clearly across in-person, written, and virtual channels. This includes active listening; often the most overlooked part of communication. When you communicate well, you prevent bottlenecks and keep everyone moving in the same direction.

• Practice active listening: In meetings and one-on-ones, concentrate fully on the speaker. Avoid interrupting. Summarise what you heard to ensure understanding.
• Be clear and concise: Whether giving instructions or feedback, get to the point and avoid jargon. Check that your message is understood by asking questions or looking for non-verbal cues.
• Tailor your message: Adapt your style to your audience. For example, senior stakeholders may want big-picture context, while your team might need detailed guidance.
• Encourage open dialogue: Create a culture where team members feel safe to ask questions and share ideas. Regularly invite feedback and make it easy for people to speak up.

3. Empathy and Emotional Intelligence

Managing people means understanding people. Empathy; the ability to put yourself in others’ shoes, is a core part of emotional intelligence and an essential 2025 management skill. Empathetic managers build stronger relationships and higher engagement on their teams. This skill is especially crucial during times of change or stress; employees want leaders who genuinely care. Experts are even calling for “empathy-driven leadership” as a foundational skill for future managers. By showing empathy, you foster trust and loyalty, creating an environment where team members feel valued and supported.

• Learn about your team members: Take time to get to know each person’s goals, challenges, and work styles. Understanding their perspective will help you lead them more effectively.
• Show genuine concern: If someone is struggling (at work or personally), acknowledge it and offer support. Simple acts like asking “How are you feeling about this project?” can go a long way.
• Manage with compassion: During tough times or change, consider the emotional impact on your team. Adjust your approach, for example, by easing deadlines or providing reassurance, when people are under pressure.
• Build your EI: Practice naming and managing your own emotions at work. By staying calm and positive under stress, you set the tone for your team. Emotional self-control is as important as empathy toward others.

4. Coaching and Mentoring

Today’s managers aren’t just taskmasters, they are teachers and coaches. A great manager develops their team’s skills and careers. By coaching and mentoring, you empower employees to reach their potential. Middle managers can even be “talent multipliers,” boosting their team’s effectiveness through coaching. This means taking time to guide, train, and give constructive feedback. Rather than simply directing work, focus on growing your people. Not only does this improve performance, it also builds trust and loyalty (people are more likely to stay when they feel their boss is invested in their growth).

• Offer regular feedback: Don’t wait for annual reviews. Give timely, specific feedback that helps employees improve. For example, after a presentation, you might praise clear points and suggest tips for pacing.
• Use a mentorship mindset: When solving problems, resist the urge to give all the answers. Instead, ask guiding questions: “What do you think we could do?” This helps team members learn to think for themselves.
• Create development plans: Work with each team member on a simple growth plan. Identify a skill they want to build, and provide opportunities (like stretch assignments or courses) to develop it.
• Recognise and encourage strengths: Notice what each person does well and find ways to leverage those strengths. A bit of encouragement and recognition can greatly boost someone’s confidence and development.

5. Inclusive Leadership

An effective 2025 manager creates an environment where everyone on the team feels valued and included. Inclusive leadership means actively embracing diversity of background, experience, ideas and making sure all voices are heard. This skill isn’t just about fairness; it’s linked to better team performance and innovation. In fact, inclusive leadership is cited as one of the top in-demand leadership skills for the future. Being inclusive involves practising empathy (Skill #3) and communication (Skill #2) in ways that empower others. It’s crucial for managers to be aware of biases, seek diverse perspectives, and foster a culture of respect.

• Value diverse perspectives: Invite input from team members with different backgrounds or roles, especially when brainstorming or problem-solving. Diverse viewpoints lead to more creative solutions.
• Ensure everyone participates: In meetings, watch out for people being talked over or staying silent. Step in to balance the discussion: “I’d love to hear from those who haven’t had a chance to speak yet.”
• Learn about bias: Educate yourself on unconscious biases that can affect hiring, promoting, and day-to-day management. Simple steps like standardising interview questions or rotating meeting leadership can reduce bias.
• Celebrate differences: Acknowledge cultural or personal events important to your team (from festivals to work anniversaries). Small gestures to celebrate each individual reinforce an inclusive team culture.

6. Adaptability and Agility

If one thing is constant, it’s change. Managers must be ready to adapt, whether it’s adopting a new software, adjusting to market shifts, or leading a suddenly remote team. Being adaptable means staying flexible and positive when plans evolve. It also means a willingness to learn new skills (like mastering that new analytics tool) and to handle uncertainty. Comfort with ambiguity is considered a “future-proof” skill in the age of AI and rapid change. In practice, agile managers are quick to adjust course and can guide their teams through change without losing momentum.

• Embrace change: Instead of dreading changes in process or technology, approach them with curiosity. Ask “What can we learn from this?” and frame changes as opportunities for growth.
• Encourage innovation: Be open to new ideas from your team. If someone suggests a novel way to do a task, give it a try. Encouraging experimentation helps your team become more agile and resilient.
• Plan for the unexpected: Develop contingency plans for key projects. Discuss “What if” scenarios with your team so that when something unexpected happens, you’re not starting from scratch.
• Stay tech-savvy: You don’t need to be a tech expert, but stay informed about tools and trends in your industry. Take short courses or ask colleagues about new technologies so you can comfortably lead your team through digital changes.

7. Decision-Making and Problem-Solving

Managers are decision-makers, day in and day out. From quick calls on budget items to big strategic choices, you need to make decisions in a timely, informed manner. Strong decision-making combines analytical thinking with intuition and experience. It’s also about knowing when to consult others and when to be decisive on your own. Experts recommend training managers to make faster, smarter decisions – because in 2025, indecision can stall a team. Hand-in-hand with decision-making is complex problem-solving, the ability to dissect problems, analyse information, and find solutions. McKinsey highlights complex problem-solving as a critical capability, involving defining the problem, structuring its components, and prioritising issues (great read:mckinsey.com). Together, these skills enable you to navigate challenges effectively.

• Use data and evidence: Whenever possible, ground your decisions in facts. Before deciding, gather relevant data or metrics (for example, team workload numbers before deciding to hire). This builds confidence in your choices.
• Balance speed with care: Not every decision needs extensive analysis. Identify which decisions are minor (and can be made quickly) and which are major (where it’s worth taking extra time or seeking input).
• Involve the right people: For complex problems, involve team members or stakeholders who have expertise. Two heads are often better than one, just ensure clarity on who will make the final call.
• Learn from outcomes: Treat decisions as learning opportunities. After a big decision, debrief with your team: Did the outcome match expectations? What could we do differently next time? This reflection will improve future decision-making.

8. Strategic Thinking and Vision

Beyond handling day-to-day tasks, managers in 2025 need to see the big picture. Strategic thinking is about understanding your organisation’s goals and plotting how your team can contribute. It means looking ahead, anticipating trends or challenges, and aligning team priorities with long-term objectives. Managers who think strategically help their teams work smarter, not just harder, by focusing on what truly matters. For example, designing and executing plans that mobilise your team toward common goals is a key skill for middle and senior managers. You don’t have to be an executive to be strategic, even line managers benefit from this broader vision to guide daily decisions.

• Know your company’s strategy: Make sure you understand the organisation’s mission, values, and high-level goals. Ask senior leaders questions and read strategic plans. This context helps you make aligned decisions.
• Connect the dots: Help team members see how their work contributes to larger objectives. For instance, explain how a particular project will impact the customer experience or revenue.
• Set clear goals and metrics: Work with your team to define a few key goals for the quarter or year that ladder up to the organisation’s strategy. Use KPIs or OKRs to track progress, so everyone knows what success looks like.
• Make time for planning: Carve out time in your schedule for strategic thinking. It could be an hour a week to review progress and plan ahead. Use this time to identify upcoming risks or opportunities and adjust plans as needed.

9. Collaboration and Influence

No manager is an island. The ability to collaborate with others, not just within your own team, but across departments and with stakeholders, is crucial. Equally important is the skill of influence: guiding others to support an initiative even if you don’t have direct authority over them. In modern organisations, managers often lead project teams or work with peers where influencing without formal authority is key. In fact, persuasion and influence are listed among the top skills for the future of work. Effective collaboration and influence require strong relationships, mutual trust, and clear communication. Managers who excel here break down silos and get things done through others by building buy-in.

• Build relationships beyond your team: Take the initiative to connect with other departments. A quick coffee chat (virtual or in person) with a peer in another division can lay the groundwork for easier collaboration later.
• Find mutual wins: When you need cooperation from another team, frame requests in terms of shared goals. Explain how working together benefits both sides or the wider organisation, so it’s not just a favour to you.
• Practice influencing skills: Rather than relying on authority, appeal to logic and emotion. For example, if you need to convince leadership to approve a new tool, prepare data on efficiency gains (logic) and stories of team frustration with the old system (emotion).
• Be a team player: Model the collaboration you seek by being helpful to others. If you support colleagues on their projects and build a reputation for fairness, they’ll be more inclined to reciprocate when you need help rallying support.

10. Time Management and Delegation

With endless to-do lists and constant demands, effective managers must excel at managing time, both their own and their team’s. Time management is not about squeezing more hours of work, but about prioritising what matters and maintaining focus. It’s considered such a fundamental skill that leadership programs explicitly teach goal setting and time management to new managers. Along with managing your time comes the art of delegation. Delegating isn’t simply offloading work; it’s about keeping things moving, developing your team, and focusing on your highest priorities. Managers who delegate well empower others and avoid burning out by trying to do everything themselves.

• Prioritise ruthlessly: Use tools like to-do lists or digital planners to rank tasks by importance and urgency. Tackle high-impact tasks first and learn to say “no” or defer lower-priority work when necessary.
• Schedule focus time: Block out time on your calendar for deep work when you silence notifications and concentrate on critical tasks. Protect this time as you would a meeting, to ensure important work gets done without interruption.
• Delegate intentionally: Identify tasks that others on your team can handle or learn to handle. Match tasks with people’s development goals, delegation can be a chance for them to grow. Provide clear instructions and outcomes, then let them run with it.
• Avoid micromanaging: Once you delegate, resist the urge to hover. Set check-in points instead of constant oversight. Trust your team to deliver, this builds their confidence and frees you to focus on strategic issues.

Using tools like a free skills matrix can help managers identify and develop hidden potential within their teams.

The best managers in 2025 will be those who continuously sharpen these ten skills. It might feel like a wide range of abilities, from emotional intelligence to strategic planning but they are all connected. By starting with self-awareness and communication, then building up to strategy and influence, you’ll create a solid toolkit for any leadership challenge. Remember, you don’t have to master everything overnight. Focus on a few areas at a time, practice the actionable steps, and track your progress. For instance, the upleashed® skills matrix is a useful tool that can support you in mapping out team competencies and pinpointing where to grow next. By investing in these skills and using the right support tools, you’ll unlock your team’s hidden potential and set everyone up for success in the years ahead.

Further Reading and Inspiration: Many of the insights shared in this article were shaped by ongoing conversations in the world of leadership and workforce development. The following resources offer practical guidance, trusted research, and thought-provoking perspectives that helped inform this piece. They’re well worth a read:

Harvard Business Review: “You Need a Skills-Based Approach to Hiring and Developing Talent”
https://hbr.org/2021/06/you-need-a-skills-based-approach-to-hiring-and-developing-talent

McKinsey & Company: “Increasing your return on talent: The moves and metrics that matter”
https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/increasing-your-return-on-talent-the-moves-and-metrics-that-matter

Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM): “2022 Workplace Learning & Development Trends Report”
https://www.shrm.org/content/dam/en/shrm/research/2022-Workplace-Learning-and-Development-Trends-Report.pdf

Deloitte Insights: “The skills-based organization: A new operating model for work and the workforce”
https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/topics/talent/organizational-skill-based-hiring.html

World Economic Forum: “The Future of Jobs Report 2023”
https://www.weforum.org/reports/the-future-of-jobs-report-2023

Upleashed Advanced Skills Matrix: Detailed Information & Download
https://upleashed.com/excel-skills-matrix-template/

Upleashed Skills Matrix Implementation Guide
https://upleashed.com/skills-matrix-implementation-guide/

Free Skills Matrix Template (Download)
https://upleashed.com/download-free-skills-matrix-template/

Upleashed Skills Matrix Tutorial (Video)
https://youtu.be/HeZpfoRGarE?si=h6xvxfAHroMYHLF6

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