Soft Skills Are Out—Long Live the New 'Skills' Revolution!

Imagine this as a mental exercise: Picture Harvard University, the Carnegie Foundation, and the Stanford Research Institute collaborating to uncover what truly makes individuals successful professionally. Imagine their findings revealed that people possess two complementary skill sets. The first set contributes roughly 15% towards workplace success, with the second set accounting for the rest. 85% Which skills would be considered more crucial?

This might seem like a straightforward query, yet it isn’t. Despite the existence of prior studies, we continue to emphasize "hard skills," which have a less significant impact but come across as more appealing. Hard skills encompass a person’s practical knowledge and proficiency with specific technologies and industry tools. Conversely, what truly holds greater importance—often referred to dismissively as "soft skills"—includes competencies such as effective communication and emotional intelligence essential for collaboration. If you stroll through technology expos, you'll commonly hear accolades about individuals’ programming prowess; however, seldom will anyone highlight an individual’s adeptness at working well within teams or managing interpersonal relationships effectively.

This isn’t merely unfortunate; it’s an issue. So long as we label the abilities predominantly responsible for success as "soft," we risk misunderstanding their true importance. It’s time to stop using the phrase "soft skills." Instead, from this point forward, let’s simply refer to them as essential skills.

What, therefore, are the main elements to take into account when assessing a successful candidate? Five points stand out.

1. Disregard knowledge and seek out experience instead.

To grasp this crucial concept, think about two hostage negotiators. One is an outstanding alumnus from the police academy, possessing exceptional academic prowess and having aced all manuals and simulations. The second one isn’t as academically gifted but boasts 22 years of practical fieldwork under their belt. In a critical real-world situation, which one would you rather have handling things?

It’s evident that when faced with high-pressure situations where minor choices carry significant impacts, you would prefer an individual who boasts extensive exposure and a wealth of experiences. Such a person understands potential challenges and remains composed under duress. Consistently, in our process of selecting leading personnel for intricate technology initiatives, we have found that experience stands out as an invaluable advantage.

1. Ignore that degree; pursue competency.

I place great importance on education; however, a college diploma—even from an esteemed university—only signifies proficiency in a narrow range of technical abilities. College primarily teaches you to execute certain tasks, such as programming in a specific language, with your success determined by your performance on tests. However, what about flexibility and the capacity to shift directions? These demands call for adaptability, broad thinking, and foresight—all attributes not captured through standardized testing or letter grades. While discussions around incorporating these factors continue to evolve, there remains a notable absence when it comes to assessing traits such as teamwork capabilities or efficient time-management practices.

A lot of managers pride themselves on recruiting solely college-educated individuals, believing that those who do not hold degrees are deficient in abilities and therefore unworthy. However, this narrow perspective is shifting. While the competencies acquired through higher education are significant, when searching for top-tier talent, focus less on academic credentials and instead prioritize the capability to manage crucial tasks, which frequently depends on interpersonal skills that universities seldom impart.

1. Cuddle up with essential actions

This phrase might seem somewhat ambiguous at first glance, yet it holds immense significance. The reason being: take into account the distinction between hard and soft skills. While effective methods exist for assessing the former, what about establishing dependable measures for the latter? Soft skills are often perceived as unquantifiable traits; however, essential actions can act as standards allowing supervisors to gauge proficiency in competencies which were once deemed intangible. soft .

Could Sandra, acting as a project manager, enhance her time management abilities through crafting a detailed project blueprint, imposing deadlines, and delineating explicit priorities? Similarly, might Harold, serving as a technical leader, improve software development outcomes by engaging his teammates cooperatively in making key choices? Although answering such queries may pose challenges, defining and quantifying these competencies could assist everyone involved in making wiser and more advantageous personnel placements.

1. Praise be to logic and reasoning.

A person I'm acquainted with returned amazed from a job interview. Being a well-qualified engineer, he anticipated discussing his academic background and professional expertise. However, the interviewer posed an unexpected question: "How many quarters would you have to pile up to be as tall as the Empire State Building?" This left my acquaintance bewildered, questioning how one could ascertain this without taking measurements. Nevertheless, the interviewer had a clear purpose behind their query.

His objective was to evaluate essential aptitude in logical reasoning. Rather than seeking a definitive solution, he sought to observe how candidates tackled issues using this method: "The Empire State Building stands at roughly one thousand feet high. Stacking ten quarters amounts to approximately an inch, which means you'd need about 120 quarters for each foot. Consequently, it should require close to 120,000 quarters." While the final figure might not be accurate, demonstrating such cognitive flexibility indicates that individuals have the capability to transcend conventional disciplinary boundaries and engage with problems through wide-ranging and adaptable modes of thought.

1. Acquire the unobvious—soft skills can be honed.

Frequently, when talking about soft skills with my peers, I might come across comments such as, "Too bad these abilities like becoming an excellent communicator or being a good team member cannot be taught." There’s really good news for this: They actually can be learned. Certainly, certain individuals might start off at an advantageous position naturally; however, current studies provide solid evidence showing that enhancing these soft skills is indeed possible. can be cultivated and even perfected.

Here’s the revised version: There is an exception though: In contrast to hard skills that engineers frequently acquire swiftly and independently, soft skills vary based on situations and cannot be perfected solely via training software or instructional guides. Companies should emphasize soft skill development, simulating real-life employee interactions and mentoring them during crucial instances. At my organization, BairesDev, we’ve implemented this approach. giving employees a platform For them to engage in practicing, discussing, and strengthening their skills in communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and initiative within various project-oriented environments. By doing so, you will observe significant progress, which will be advantageous for all participants.

Let's move past discussing "soft skills" and focus instead on enhancing the qualities that truly drive success in today's challenging, constantly changing, and intricate work environment.

Nacho De Marco serves as both the cofounder and CEO at BairesDev.

This blog post initially appeared here GudangMovies21

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