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Soft Skills Are Hard—And Critical to Career Success by Theresa E. Kane, Ph.D. Technical training, job credentials, task experience: all are valid and accepted workplace requirements. No one would question the need for training to upgrade the work-specific aspects of a job. But what about the "soft" stuff, the "touchy-feely" skills like communication, teamwork, the ability to manage conflict and build trusting working relationships, to appropriately control emotional responses? For too many, these skills are dismissed as unimportant or expendable or they are simply taken for granted. Trainers and consultants who introduce these behavioral issues into the work environment are labeled as out of touch with real business concerns; their improvement theories dismissed as "psycho-babble." Only people with performance issues have to deal with these issues. For everyone else, they are just check-off boxes on performance reviews to keep the human resources department happy. What top performers, employers of choice and organization researchers know, however, is that these basic skills are actually more important to employers and their long-term success than work-specific technical skills (Bynner 1997). Hiring managers respect and expect technical expertise. But technical skills without the motivation to keep growing and learning new ones will soon become obsolete. Employers want people open and adaptable with a passion for continuous improvement in all aspects of their performance. Interviewing skills may get you the job, but the ability to effectively communicate with your boss, co-workers and customers will ultimately determine your long-term success. Ability comprises more than knowing the mechanics of the task; it also includes interpersonal skills, alignment with the corporate culture, the ability to work as an effective and contributing team member and the political savvy to know how to get things done in the organization (Beck & Yaeger 2002). Dismissing the importance of these "soft" skills is a mistake. Assuming they are easy and natural prohibits many from pursuing development opportunities to improve their ability to listen, provide feedback, speak up appropriately and manage workplace conflict. These skills are not easy; the soft stuff is hard. Trusting relationships take time to build and can be destroyed by a single violation. Just because you have ears does not mean you can actively listen. Mouths may speak but do not always say the right thing. Conflicts escalate, causing lost productivity by preventing people from concentrating on the work they were hired to do. We think it's easy because we should have learned these skills long ago and it's hard to admit we could use improvement. It's hard because our bad habits are ingrained in our ways of conducting ourselves, and it takes willpower and courage to try new ways of approaching the behavioral side of our performance. While most companies and job seekers don't hesitate to upgrade technical expertise, the majority let these soft skills go unchecked and neglected. Yet the higher the level you are in the organization the more critical they become, and the earlier you begin developing them the better. The real key is to truly understand that you are never done, that these skills can always be enhanced by continued reflection, practice and hard work. Top performers know that the secret to being the sought-after candidate includes ongoing attention to interpersonal and social skills and the qualities of self-awareness and emotional control. Robert E. Kelley (1999), author of "How to Be a Star Performer at Work," identifies some non-technical strategies critical to career success:
Other important attributes include adaptability, continuous learning, managing diversity and cross-cultural awareness, emotional intelligence and the ability to give and receive feedback. These are not "nice to have when you have time" skills - they are the difference between being part of the top 10 percent and being part of the rest of the pack vying for fewer and fewer opportunities. So, before you dismiss the team development or communication skills program because you're too busy doing "real work," before you yell and scream at your co-worker over some relatively inconsequential task-specific issue, before you consider soft skills training something that HR offers but no one has time to take, think about how maybe you could take your skills and performance to the next level of effectiveness. It won't necessarily be easy, but it will be worth it. Dr. Theresa Kane has more than twenty years of extensive corporate experience as both a line and a human resources manager. As well as serving as a consultant throughout the United States, she has consulted and facilitated workshops in Hong Kong, Japan, Ireland, France, and Scotland. Theresa is the author of numerous academic and professional articles, development workbooks, and educational directories. Her latest publication, Career Coaching Your Kids (Davis-Black Publishing, with Montross and Ginn), helps parents identify appropriate levels of involvement in their children's career decisions. Her other work includes An Introvert's Guide to Networking, Power in Organization, Demystifying OD, and a cable television program entitled Real People Real Jobs.
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