Why Are Soft Skills Prioritized in Today’s Talent Acquisition?

If you are a business owner and would like to understand why today’s recruiters are hell bent on picking up candidates with the appropriate soft skills rather than collecting individuals with an arsenal of technical expertise, you have come to the right place.

This is a time when how well individuals can work with others is more important than the technical expertise they possess. (With increased automation) businesses have started to realize that training new employees and giving them the necessary hard skills is far more beneficial than trying to instill soft skills when someone does not have them.

Let’s take a look at why soft skills matter most in today’s talent acquisition.

Soft skills have become more important with the rise of remote work culture (it being a necessity after pandemic). Skills like time management, self-motivation, and communication are necessary to create fruitful collaboration across a global team.

With technological innovation extra pressure is implied onto the managerial roles. The demand therefore rises for skills to mentor and guide teams, motivate, or inspire people. Technology alone cannot guarantee long-term growth.

Soft skills enable an individual to build a rapport with a team (even more so, when the team is scattered throughout the world). It is necessary for high productivity. In many cases hard skills can be trained or taught on the job which cannot be done with soft skills. This makes them harder to find.

Soft skills are essential when it comes to building human relationships. And when it comes to building a relationship with clients or customers, having soft skills like active listening, patience, and empathy are paramount.

While formal education offers technical skills and rudimentary knowledge, soft skills are often the element that set workers apart in the industry. Individuals can enter the market with a certification, but it’s the skill to collaborate with others, relay ideas effectively, and solve intricate problems that makes one truly valuable in the long-run.

Once overshadowed by technical qualifications, soft skills are now playing a crucial role in hiring decisions. Talent acquisition, now, is sharing less and less similarity with traditional hiring methods. It is emphasising more on a candidate’s soft skills rather than credentials like years of experience and degrees.

Soft skills are now viewed as reliable markers that not only guide candidates with suitable qualifications but also with adaptive and interpersonal qualities that pushes the boat towards the right direction.

In other words, recruiters are adding more value to the skills that let an individual navigate challenges, collaborate with diverse team members, and improve the team dynamics.

If you ask how many soft skills are there that your business can benefit from, the list would be a long one. But, among many some can be a little more beneficial to your company. Take a look at the skills below that most companies are searching for today:

It involves understanding and influencing or managing your emotions and also being able to do that in others. If an employee has high emotional intelligence, they can look at relationships empathetically and resolve issues effectively and sustain a positive work environment.

Adaptability is key because dynamism is second nature in every work environment. This skill makes employees resilient as they adjust their approach and strategies, embrace new tech, and navigate change when needed. This skill holds a high value because it is essential to survive and thrive in ever-changing industries.

Overseeing tasks is just the tip of an iceberg when it comes to the skill called leadership. An individual with leadership qualities enables an entire team to feel as a unit and share a common goal. This allows teams to achieve greater heights otherwise impossible with an individualistic mindset.

Almost every skill of an individual is devalued if they do not possess good communication skills (verbal and/or written). And effective communication is more than listening and speaking. With great communication skills one can listen actively, catch nuanced cues, and create constructive dialogue.

Professionals who can allocate time strategically to responsibilities and tasks can ensure efficiency. It means that they can be highly productive and meeting deadlines would be way easier than others who don’t possess this skill. They will also be able to maintain a well-organized workflow and may have a better work-life balance.

It is the ability to evaluate information objectively and come to an informed conclusion. Professionals who have this skill or excel in it, examine information critically, think through challenges with a logical mindset, and aid in strategic decision-making. That is why this skill is invaluable for businesses.

It can be tricky to identify soft skills during an interview (especially for remote hiring) because measuring these skills is not a straightforward matter. However, the following are some of the tried and tested methods to find the right potential within individuals:

• Can you describe to me a scenario where you faced a significant challenge in your previous workplace and how you managed it?  
• Can you tell me about how you worked with your team in response to greater work volume?

These types of questions can reveal whether a candidate has problem-solving, teamwork, communication, or leadership abilities or not.

You can give your candidate to solve a problem during the hiring process. You want to see how they react to the problem and can they take what they already know and use their skill set effectively to solve the problem.

The ability to learn from experience (past mistakes and right steps) and the ability to apply that knowledge to new scenarios is a crucial component of critical thinking. By presenting a new problem you can gauge their hidden potential.

To observe in real-time how a candidate reacts to challenges is made easiest with situational tasks and role-playing exercises. For example, suppose you are hiring a data analyst, you could ask your candidate to role-play a difficult scenario (lack of clear objectives, data growth issues, etc.). This will let you pick their critical thinking ability, problem-solving skill, and overall competence.

Many organizations are now using tests to measure specific soft-skills. Tools like DiSC Profile, and Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) can help you take a close look at an individual’s interpersonal skills, and personality traits. Some talent acquisition platforms even let you have custom tests for specific skills like adaptability and communication. Using these may not give you foolproof results, but they can surely help.

If you are struggling to find appropriate talent to build your in-house team, it is time to consider hiring offshore experts or virtual assistants for the tasks. You will be able to access a much larger talent pool and use a fraction of your resource you’d be spending on your in-house team for a much greater result.

If you adapt to the changing situation you will be able to hire talent with the right set of soft skills to take your business growth to the next level. But your work does not end there. You should continue to nurture these soft skills.

Soft skills training is an excellent idea that can increase job satisfaction for the employee and amp up the productivity you desire. In the recent future, you can expect to see companies prioritizing long-term growth focus on developing soft skills such as curiosity, agility, flexibility, resilience, social influence, and leadership.