The Essential Soft Skills for Your Employees

There is no time like the present to assess your staff’s skillsets and consider your company’s talent needs for the future. By next year, the World Economic Forum estimates that 42% of the core capabilities needed to fulfill job functions will have changed. By 2030, the organization expects more than one billion people will need to be reskilled.

Companies can’t afford to get left behind, so it is vital to invest in reskilling initiatives that go beyond strengthening technological and data literacy. Employees also need to build people skills to succeed. Deloitte has even found that by 2030, two-thirds of all jobs will be soft skills-intensive occupations.

To prepare your staff and your business for the future of work, I invite you to create a plan to hone their interpersonal aptitudes.

What Are the Most In-Demand Soft Skills?

There are many talents that your organization could benefit from, so it can be helpful to take cues from other companies to see where they are focusing their energies. Drawing on research from LinkedIn and The HR Digest, some of the most sought after capabilities include:

• Leadership and management
• Emotional intelligence (EQ)
• Communication
• Collaboration
• Creativity and innovation
• Critical thinking and problem solving
• Resiliency and adaptability
• Stress management and mindfulness
• Change management
• Time management

Leadership and management

Organizations need leaders who can influence and inspire their colleagues. Managers also need to build skills to better engage their team members in their work, motivate performance as well as support the emotional and mental wellbeing of employees.

Emotional intelligence (EQ)

EQ includes self-awareness and social awareness. When employees understand themselves, know how to harness their emotions and motivations and can empathize and connect with others, they will be more effective in stimulating their own success, collaborating productively and inspiring action within their teams.

Communication

The rise in remote and hybrid functions has made communication skills even more essential. To work productively across multiple locations and time zones, individuals need to know how to actively listen to their colleagues, clearly convey messages and deliver information in a way that resonates with others.

Collaboration

Teamwork will continue to be important in the future of work, particularly as cross-functionality becomes more commonplace. By understanding how to build strong relationships and partner effectively with diverse teammates, your employees will be better equipped to perform at their highest level.

Creativity and innovation

With so much change across all industries, organizations need to innovate to stay ahead of their competitors. Providing training to enhance creativity, challenge standard thinking patterns and embrace new approaches will have a positive impact on your company’s ability to keep up and be a leader in your field.

Critical thinking and problem solving

Automation is finding its way into just about every job function. With more data points than ever before, employees need to have strong capabilities to synthesize information, consider multiple perspectives and solve complex challenges.

Resiliency and adaptability

In a world full where transformation occurs at increasingly fast speeds, it’s important to empower staff with the knowledge and tools to navigate unfamiliar situations and adjust to new circumstances so that they can embrace the opportunities that come from change.

Stress management and mindfulness

Transitions and ambiguity often cause tension. Empowering employees to manage external pressures in a healthy way can help your organization thrive, so many companies are investing in programs that promote stress management strategies.

Change management

In addition to navigating the emotional tax of transformation, staff at all levels are also being asked to serve as change leaders. Delivering change management trainings can help individuals build capacity in organizing and inspiring new ways of doing business.

Time management

Employees have been working longer hours since the onset of the pandemic, which does not necessarily equate to higher productivity. To achieve objectives and minimize burnout, offer tools to empower people to manage their time and prioritize effectively.

How Can You Prioritize the Most Important Soft Skills for Your Employee Base?

Depending on the way your organization operates, you may find that certain aptitudes are more mission-critical than others. As you plan your approach, I recommend that you consider the talents that will be most useful to your company by evaluating business needs in terms of:

• Current obstacles your organization is facing
• Expensive pain points within your teams
• Company goals for the next year, three years and five years
• Skills gaps between your current state and desired future

With an understanding of the capabilities that will address today’s issues and support future objectives, you can begin to map the urgency and impact of the capacities you wish to focus on. I also recommend that you can use our latest eBook to activate your plan.

Soft skills are essential to your organization’s success. By identifying the top talents that will most benefit your business, you can initiate a strategy that will allow your company and your employees to succeed.

Learn more about how Emergenetics can support your teams in building vital soft skills, such as leadership, collaboration, communication, innovation and more! Or, fill out the form below to speak with a staff member today.

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