Transforming Workplace Culture: Hiring and Developing Soft Skills

Today’s businesses operate in a more competitive landscape than ever before. A company's success may depend heavily on its employees' technical expertise, but their soft skills also play a vital role.

Soft skills include communication, teamwork, adaptability, and problem-solving, all of which are essential for building strong relationships, fostering a positive work culture, and driving overall productivity.  While many believe that hiring for soft skills is essential when looking at applicants, some suggest training for soft skills and hiring for the required hard skills for a specific job is more beneficial. 

In this blog article, we will explore why hiring employees for soft skills and training seasoned veterans is beneficial and why it can be a strategic move for your organization. 

Boost Diversity and Reduce Training Costs by Hiring for Soft Skills at the Start

The main argument for maintaining a strategy of hiring candidates who already possess strong soft skills is that it will save businesses from having to train employees from scratch, which can be time-consuming and costly. Hiring for soft skills minimizes the need for extensive training programs, saving valuable resources. However, there are other great benefits to shifting your organization’s recruitment focus to hiring people with soft skills, including the immediate impact of team integration and boosting diversity and inclusion. 

Immediate Impact

Additionally, businesses that hire new employees who possess strong soft skills will see an immediate impact on their performance because these individuals have an easier time integrating into existing teams, communicating effectively, and contributing from day one.  

Greater Diversity and Inclusion

Diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts are ethical imperatives and strategic advantages for businesses. Hiring individuals with a variety of backgrounds and varied perspectives enriches your talent pool, fosters creativity, and drives innovation throughout your organization.  

Additionally, according to TalentCulture, by shifting your focus from technical skills, which will become outdated in just a few years, versus hiring for soft skills, which last a lifetime, you can greatly diversify your talent pipeline. Hiring employees with soft skills like empathy, cultural awareness, and teamwork creates an inclusive work environment where every employee feels valued and respected. 

Hire or Train for Soft Skills to See Various Benefits

Hiring employees with soft skills or training existing employees with these essential skills will help create a harmonious work environment that fosters collaboration and avoids conflict. Employees with strong soft skills help promote a positive team culture, encouraging open communication and collaboration, which leads to increased productivity, innovation, and employee satisfaction.

There are also many other benefits for focusing on soft skills in your recruitment and training efforts, including improved customer satisfaction and employee adaptability and innovation. 

Improved Customer Service

Soft skills are instrumental in delivering exceptional customer service. Employees with greater empathy, communication, and problem-solving skills can build strong relationships with customers by effectively understanding their needs and providing personalized solutions. Individuals who excel in these areas exhibit outstanding customer service, enhancing brand reputation, customer loyalty, and business growth. 

Adaptability and Innovation 

Today’s business environment is always changing, so adaptability is necessary for employees. People who demonstrate adaptability and flexibility enable companies to respond quickly to market shifts, adopt new technologies, and easily navigate uncertainties. Also, employees with strong soft skills are more open to change and more likely to contribute innovative ideas, leading to increased creativity and competitive advantage. 

Training for Soft Skills

While some argue that hiring employees with existing soft skills will provide an advantage, there is also a lot of evidence that shows training and upskilling employees offer great benefits as well. Of course, soft skills are essential, and many of your existing employees are irreplaceable. Training and upskilling for soft skills greatly improve employee satisfaction and retention and will improve company culture in the long term. 

While training programs can be expensive, there are many affordable options for creating training programs that will reduce costs. For example, Proliant offers learning management solutions that work with existing HR systems and streamline the training process, saving businesses time and money during upskilling and training efforts. 

Learn more about learning management solutions and integrations for training and development by contacting one of our experts.