THE HARD WORK OF SOFT SKILLS

One of the things McKinsey learned in their research is how highly employers value “soft skills”. 

But they are harder to define, distill, or express. They struggled to find good examples of training programs for soft skills that are precise and focused. They say that this is because soft skills encompass such a wide range of concepts, from personal characteristics (confidence, temperament, work ethic) to social and cognitive skills (communications, problem solving). Providers and employers have improved their capabilities when it comes to describing technical tasks and competencies. McKinsey argue that it is time they do the same for soft skills.