How do you develop soft skills in the workplace?

Soft skills are in high demand, but can soft skills be taught? Fortunately, they can, and soft skills training for employees is a great way to develop your team.

Soft skills are just as teachable as technical skills, but don’t be fooled by the word “soft.” We often refer to them as “power skills”—that’s how valuable they are. Experts agree that soft skills are essential in the workplace and add value to your company.

You’ll want to ensure that new hires have soft skills when they first join your company, but you can always implement soft skills training to improve or teach them. That’s why thinking about how to teach soft skills to employees should be an important part of your employee development plan.

So, how do you teach soft skills? We’ll answer this question (and more) in today’s post.

What is an example of a soft skill?

Soft skills, also called people skills, are the mix of interpersonal skills, character traits, and professional aptitudes that enhance a person’s ability to do their job. Here is a list of 10 soft skills in the workplace that are in demand according to LinkedIn:

1. Communication
2. Organization
3. Teamwork
4. Punctuality
5. Critical thinking
6. Social skills
7. Creativity
8. Interpersonal communication
9. Adaptability
10. Friendly personality

If you want to begin teaching soft skills in the workplace, decide which skills you want your employees to possess. Ask yourself, “What soft skills will benefit my company and customers?” Then, use that information to guide your soft skills training content.

5 benefits of training on soft skills

1. Increase retention

The Great Resignation isn’t slowing down. If you want to move past the continual cycle of employees resigning and having to recruit, interview, and onboard over and over again, you'll want to increase your employee development efforts.

2. Improve engagement

Providing challenges and opportunities to learn new skills helps employees stay motivated and engaged in their work. Employee engagement is often influenced by leadership, and teaching soft skills to employees is a great way to show you’re invested in their personal growth and success.

3. Support collaboration

Meaningful collaboration can be an ongoing challenge for teams. When employees have busy schedules and goals to meet, sometimes it feels easier to do things alone (especially when working remotely). Making sure people are developing soft skills in the workplace guarantees they’ll have the skills they need to collaborate.

4. Increase customer satisfaction

You’ve probably heard sayings like, “The customer comes first.” While that may be a value your company holds, you might be surprised to know that one of the best ways to make your customers happy starts with making your employees happy. A critical piece of the employee experience is training and development.

5. Build company reputation

Word will spread if you’re doing a stellar job supporting your employees and prioritizing a great work experience. Many candidates are shopping around for new roles, given the state of the economy. So, if job seekers see your company as one that will provide ongoing opportunities for development and advancement, you’ll be at the top of their lists.

Leverage human capital by developing soft skills in the workplace

Human capital is one of those things that you can’t really measure. It’s the value an employee brings to your company—a combination of their skills, experience, training, and anything else that helps your company succeed.

The good news is that you can leverage the power of your company’s human capital by developing soft skills in the workplace. When you help your employees improve their skills, you’re investing in your human capital.

Here’s why a soft skills training program is so critical for every organization.

Teaching soft skills to employees leads to job success

Soft skills are often underrated, but employees with soft skills are more likely to be successful.

Research conducted with Fortune 500 CEOs found that 75% of long-term job success was due to soft skills. Therefore, only a quarter of long-term success can be attributed to an employee’s technical skill sets. Long-term job success translates to employees who stick around and improve themselves along the way.

So, can soft skills be taught? We hope by now you know the answer is “Yes!” Are you ready to start developing soft skills in the workplace?

Launch your soft skills training for employees with Unboxed Training & Technology

Now that you have a clear understanding of soft skills, the question becomes, “How do you teach soft skills?”

The best way to teach soft skills is by launching a training program using a robust learning management system (LMS). An LMS houses your soft skills training content, tracks learner progress, and even offers opportunities to create customizable learner journeys and coaching to your team at scale.

And don’t worry, you don’t need to be a tech expert or have prior experience teaching soft skills to employees to create a soft skills program. At Unboxed, we will help you develop a comprehensive soft skills training program that engages employees and improves their experience at your company.

Employees with today's most in-demand soft skills are invaluable to your company’s success. Ready to start developing soft skills in the workplace with a soft skills program? Request a demo of Spoke LMS to see how Unboxed Training & Technology can help you implement soft skills training for employees today.