According to Whetten and Cameron, which of the following broad skill categories captures the essence of the most important skills needed of managers?

A) political skills
B) motivational skills
C) technical skills
D) people skills

Whetten and Cameron identify people skills as the most important skills for managers. These include abilities such as communication, leadership, and interpersonal relations. While technical skills may be necessary for certain managerial positions, they are not as critical as people skills. Political skills and motivational skills are also important, but they are subsets of people skills.