A staggering 92% of talent professionals and hiring managers in LinkedIn’s 2019 Global Talent Trends report said that soft skills are equally important, or more important, than hard skills.
Soft skill development is essential for everyone, from managers to new-starters. With the right training in place, your teams will be ready to grow and excel.
Soft skills are things we all look for in great employees, and great people.
From communication and conflict resolution to time management and listening skills, soft skills are essential for teams to work together effectively.
Great soft skills for employees might not be technical, but they’re essential when it comes to success and development in your people.
If you’re wondering what exactly soft skills are, some great examples include problem solving, communication and creativity.
When it comes to improving soft skills, including listening and critical thinking, practice is key. That’s why many organizations use scenario and interaction-based training.
On the other hand, hard skills comprise subject expertise, technical skills and mathematics knowledge.
During hard skills training, employees will often learn through practicing technical aspects of their job or by taking subject-specific courses. Hard skills are pretty easy to measure, so tracking progress and recognizing areas for improvement is straightforward.
There are countless benefits for your people when it comes to improving soft skills development.
Employees who understand good communication, active listening and empathy will often make great team members. Soft skills training gives your team the chance to improve these crucial skills.
Communication, compassion and understanding are equally important soft skills for managers and leaders. The strongest leaders are those who can be in the right place at the right time, with the right resources for their team.
Great corporate soft skills training should result in a more confident, resilient and adaptable workforce, leading to higher levels of job satisfaction and overall happiness. The 2022 LinkedIn Workplace Report shows that companies who provide better learning opportunities retain employees for nearly twice as long as those who don’t.
Problem solving is about much more than technical skills. Improving employees’ creativity, teamwork and listening skills is crucial for problem solving.
Training your employees to have great communication skills and a positive attitude will mean your customers receive the best possible service.
With great soft skills in sales such as teamwork, strong leadership and fantastic customer service, your business will soon see the benefits in terms of revenue. In fact, statistics show that every dollar invested in sales training returned $29 in incremental revenues.
Too often training becomes a tick-box exercise rather than an opportunity for progression and development. If you’re finding this to be the case, it could be time to rethink your approach. Here are just a few ways to innovate your soft skills training:
Are your employees struggling to engage with pen and paper learning, or e-learning modules? If so, it could be time for a more innovative approach.
Game-based training will have your teams excited to learn and progress, as they play and learn on the go.
The best part? Gaming is a universal language that speaks to everyone, no matter what their different learning styles.
Nobody learns at their best when they’re overwhelmed with information.
That’s why soft skills training for employees should be broken down into bitesize modules, which can be repeated whenever and wherever they’re needed.
You’ll find that learning ‘little and often’ will amount to a great deal of knowledge.
Be it visual, auditory, reading/writing or kinaesthetic, we know that everyone has their own unique learning style. However your people learn best, your training needs to be able to challenge and engage them.
Whether you use minigames, leaderboards or level progressions, there are so many innovative ways to make your training more engaging.
Taking notes and passing tests is one thing, but when can you put those learnings into action?
With virtual soft skills training, your teams can train using virtual and augmented reality, giving them the chance to put their skills to the test in a realistic, virtual environment.
Training days and in-person courses might work when it comes to developing the skills of small teams, but it can be difficult to keep up with demand as your organization grows. That’s why digital training is the way forward.
The more flexible your training, the more opportunities for learning and development you’re providing your people.
