Hard Skills vs Soft Skills: What’s the Difference?
Bradford R. GlaserEmployees are usually hired because they possess certain qualities that make them the right candidates for the job. For instance, you might be looking for someone with social media experience, strong communication skills, and proficiency in Adobe. This list already includes both hard and soft skills you’d like your new hire to have! But what exactly are hard vs soft skills, and what’s the difference between the two? What should you prioritize?
In this post, learn the need-to-know basics about the difference between hard vs soft skills.
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Table of Contents
What Are Hard Skills?
Hard skills are measurable, teachable abilities. On a resume, you might find someone’s hard skills listed as “technical skills” or “technical abilities.”
Some examples of hard skills include:
- Proficiency with Microsoft products
- Data analysis
- Ability to speak a foreign language
- Event planning
- Project management
What Are Soft Skills?
Soft skills are traits that an employee possesses that contribute to their success at their job. Although soft skills are part of an individual’s personality, they can still be taught. However, they can be difficult to concretely measure, which is why there can be some debate about the importance of hard vs soft skills.
Some examples of soft skills include:
- Problem-solving skills
- Communication skills
- Negotiation skills
- Leadership skills
- Decision-making skills
Do My Employees Need Both Hard and Soft Skills?
Yes! It’s crucial that your employees possess both hard and soft skills in order to excel at their jobs! You might be wondering why soft skills are so necessary for a successful career. To get a better understanding of why both hard and soft skills matter in the workplace, let’s take a look at a few examples.
Suppose you’re looking to hire a salesperson. In this case, you likely want the employee to have specific hard skills, such as proficiency in PowerPoint, industry knowledge, and the ability to generate sales reports. However, certain soft skills are also imperative for a salesperson’s success, such as strong communication, persuasion, and customer service skills, as well as strong emotional intelligence to read people.
As another example, imagine you’re looking for a new project manager. In addition to having hard skills such as risk management, budgeting, scheduling, and performance analysis, you might also seek someone with soft skills such as innovation, decision-making, leadership, and problem-solving.
The fact is, whenever there is human interaction, soft skills are necessary. Nearly every job requires building relationships with coworkers and/or clients, whether virtually or in person.
Having the tools to smoothly navigate interactions is what allows us to reach our desired goals. Without soft skills, conflict would constantly arise, ideas would be miscommunicated, and work would not get done efficiently.
Benefits of Soft Skills Training
There are so many benefits to training your employees in applicable soft skills. The following are some of the top advantages companies have seen in utilizing soft skills training:
- Employee retention: Retention improves when you invest in employee growth and demonstrate potential for advancement within the company.
- Improved customer satisfaction: Soft-skills training helps employees listen closely and communicate effectively with customers, leading to higher satisfaction.
- Improved teamwork: With the right soft skills, your team can resolve internal conflicts and work together efficiently.
- Boosted productivity: Soft skills like decision-making and problem-solving resolve complex issues faster, increasing productivity.
When combined, these benefits can lead to increased sales and greater profits for your business. High engagement, often fostered by a soft skills focus, correlates with 147% higher earnings per share than competitors.
Start Soft-Skills Training with HRDQ
Understanding the difference between hard and soft skills highlights the need for training in both. If you’re ready to equip your team with the right skills, HRDQ offers just the right training for you. Take a look at our collection of over 90 downloadable, customizable training courses that you could deliver to your organization today. Explore our Reproducible Training Library to get started!
