Posted by Nathalia Lopes on 22 Março, 2022
There was a time when technical skills were the most in demand on the market. Currently, they are not the only factors to be tracked and developing soft Skills has become a concern for companies.
This perception may have changed at the same time as human capital became more valued and managers began to realize that behavior has a great importance within any company.
Obviously, these trends do not rule out the need for technical skills. In reality, quite the contrary, they show a new demand for more complete professionals that unite both soft Skills and hard Skills.
What in fact are the soft Skills?
Before we can think of ways to develop these kinds of skills within a team or entire companies, the concept needs to be very clear. So let’s clarify what soft kills are and understand how they can affect the functioning of companies.
Well, the concept of soft Skills is very easy to understand. Basically, they are the skills directly related to the emotional intelligence of people and, therefore, very difficult to be developed or identified. They consist of more subjective abilities, such as a good power of persuasion or great empathy.
As you know this, you might be wondering, is it possible to teach people these skills?
We have selected some very interesting tips to help with this process!
How to develop soft Skills in my company?
Recognize and encourage those who are willing to change
It is indisputable that will is a prerequisite for any personal change that needs to happen. Knowing this, leaders and managers need to be attentive to those who show sufficient willingness and initiative to develop.
If only the leader has the will to increase the performance of an entire team that is not convinced that this change is necessary, go back and rethink. The effort employed will have no return.
First of all, people who have soft Skills needs need to be aware of this and willing to do whatever is necessary to reverse the situation.
Talk to your team about soft Skills and, along with them, do some reconnaissance work on what specific skills are missing from the team. This way, through stages, each one will recognize the points where it needs to evolve and the whole team will be aligned in this evolution.
Establish a solid culture
A company’s culture consists of much more than just writing on a wall the expected values of its employees. Taking on the role of the organization’s fingerprint, the culture reflects all the values and beliefs that move the day-to-day business.
In fact, it encompasses from the characteristics of the work environment to the relationship with customers.
There is no magic formula to develop the company’s culture. If you do not have a very concrete culture, you will need to understand how your employees and leaders think in order to understand their relationship with the company.
This can be done in the form of questionnaires, meetings, discussion groups or in the best way the company communicates. It is super important never to ignore the opinion of your employees, after all, they are part of the business and, consequently, of your culture.
With this analysis in hand, think about what aspects you should keep, what you should eliminate, and finally, which ones should be implemented. It is also interesting to make it public so that everyone looks for the expected values in an aligned way.
With everything defined consistently, it is simpler to identify gaps and also guide the hiring process based on defined values.
Educate your employees
It’s kind of impossible to predict people’s behavior. Each person carries a baggage of unknown values that probably was formed through family rearing or contexts prior to entering the labor market. This is not a problem, however, it is possible that some of these values and soft Skills are distinct from what is preached within the company.
So that this does not become a difficulty in the relationship between collaborator and company, make events, dynamics, trainings, meetings, happy hours, championships, encourage your team to work together and perform tasks that involve the skills you seek to develop.
Many startups perform internal hackatons, where employees develop products and have to exercise their creativity, problem solving, leadership and self-management.
Learn the profile of your employees
With all the evolution of technology and the development of studies related to psychology, software was developed capable of mapping the behavioral profile of people with a margin of accuracy above 97%.
You are probably wondering how this can be of assistance to the development of soft Skills.
Well, when we identify the behavioral profile of people through this software, we are able to see certain characteristics that are not recognized only through living together.
Behavioral profiling also offers a necessary self-knowledge so that each employee is encouraged to develop these soft Skills internally.
Let the team be more independent
There will be certain situations where your employees will be more engaged and committed to specific situations. They may be willing to take on more responsibilities, propose new ideas or want to increase their participation in the company or industry in some way.
If that happens, let them follow that flow.
Showing that there is a relationship of trust between employees and leaders can be something that is missing in your company. Obviously, this does not mean letting anyone touch the company as they see fit. In reality, this means analysing the situation and showing greater openness and flexibility in management.
When employees realize that there is openness and trust, they feel stimulated. This kind of attitude helps to develop soft Skills as independence and leadership, key parts for any business.
Source: https://blog.solides.com.br/maneiras-de-desenvolver-soft-skills/