How does your workforce measure up when it comes to soft skills? Research commissioned by the Backing Soft Skills Campaign estimates that by 2020, over half a million UK workers will be significantly held back by their lack of soft skills, at a cost of around £8.4bn to the UK economy. 
Their report suggested that all UK workers need to have these 5 linked skill sets: 
· Communication and interpersonal skills 
· Teamwork 
· Time and self –management 
· Decision-making and initiative-taking 
· Taking responsibility 
 
Workers with these skills tend to easily understand what is required of them, work well with others, follow instructions, handle conflict, solve problems, accept criticism, and demonstrate good manners when dealing with peers, managers and customers. 
 
Soft skills gaps lead to employees underperforming, and mean businesses face lower productivity, competitiveness, and profitability. 
 
Do you place enough importance on soft skills when you are recruiting or training your team? Perhaps it’s time to think beyond what people can do, and start to measure how they do it? 
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