In discussions with leaders, I have noticed more and more of them coming to terms with the increased demand for powerful soft skills. I have been a strong believer for a long time, and I am glad to see awareness and clarity starting to grow.
When approaching this subject, I would encourage leaders to start with the ‘why’ of soft skills and understand the need for them to develop these attributes personally.
So why? The definition of being an effective leader is changing. In this future of constant change, all leaders need these highly transferrable, non-technical skills to ensure effective leadership, problem-solving and communication, no matter how the landscape changes.
It is undeniable that the leadership challenges of today and tomorrow will be different. Now, everything is more diverse and complex, and the challenges more people-centred. Leaders need to demonstrate their value in many more and new ways.
Simply put, a failure to act on soft skills development is an increasing cost to you and your organisation. A recent study by the Society for Human Resource Management of soft skills in the workplace described the steep price tag of allowing poor levels of soft-skill development. In large global corporations, it estimated, miscommunication alone costs each business $62.4 million a year. In a small, 100-person organisation, the number is $420,000 annually. Can any business afford that?
Simply put, leaders have a new set of internal and external challenges. Leaders need to inspire they workforces amid a continuing global pandemic, technological transformation and increased competition. They need to lead a new workforce with different (and changing) attitudes and requirements.
Misalignment between leaders and their people’s understanding, direction and changing needs can be fatal to company culture. Leading amid today’s challenging conditions requires a new personal and organisational approach to professional soft skills development, which is unfortunately often overlooked in the rush to digitisation.
However, a lack of soft skills as organisations strive to maximise hard skills can jeopardise progress. Simply put, we must understand the fact that we are leading in a greatly transformed and transforming world. I suggest you think of your own recent experiences:
- How much has changed in how you need to lead?
- How much has the way your team works — and the way you shape their work — changed?
- How much more disruptive are the ill effects of an employee who cannot communicate ideas well and work as an effective teammate?
- How frustrating for a leader is it when that person’s knowledge and expertise cannot effectively add more value?
Who besides you as a leader can resolve this situation? How can you as a leader transform your soft skills if they are not great?
Another common question: Do all leaders need to concern themselves with soft skills? My thought is yes — and especially for tech leaders. Leaders with the technical, even rare, hard knowledge needed to complete certain demanding tasks often fail because they cannot communicate effectively or work with people. They cannot engage others effectively. Sadly, their failure is not a case of being able or unable to develop these skills, it’s simply that they never understood their importance in the first place.
Additionally, any leader who is intent on transforming a business needs soft skills. It’s pointless trying to modernise a company, using vast reserves of tech knowledge to create more powerful processes, if you can’t teach non-tech people to use the new solutions effectively. Soft skills are what make new tech solutions usable and help employees adapt to them.
In short, no leader can escape this new reality. In some ways, technology might have led leaders to believe they could neglect soft skills development for a while, but not any longer.
Okay, so as a leader, how can I get started? Here are some tips:
- Prioritise. We are all different leaders with different starting points. You will be stronger in some soft skill areas than in others. Determine your biggest needs, quick wins, and what will make the biggest impact on your leadership.
- Ask for input and constructive criticism. We are not our own best evaluators. Ask trusted friends for feedback about your soft skill strengths and weaknesses. Share your ideas, find your blind spots, and understand your opportunity better.
- Take a step out of your comfort zone. Most leaders exhibit stronger soft skills when they are comfortable. You must step outside your comfort zone, and you will develop your soft skills faster by applying pressure.
- Take a course. Join whatever kind of class or learning experience you like. Do not wait for HR to assign you something. Get online, take a free class, get started, and learn from applying what you learn. By doing this you are already on your way to improvement.
Arinya Talerngsri is Chief Capability Officer and Managing Director at SEAC — Southeast Asia’s Lifelong Learning Center. She can be reached by email at arinya_t@seasiacenter.com or https://www.linkedin.com/in/arinya-talerngsri-53b81aa. Talk to us about how SEAC can help your business during times of uncertainty at https://forms.gle/wf8upGdmwprxC6Ey9
