The 5 most sought-after soft skills and how to develop them

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What soft skills should every candidate have? We asked over 140 applicants. They told us that, in their experience, these are the 5 skills most sought after by employers.

So-called “soft skills”, such as teamwork and emotional intelligence, are sometimes given short shrift. After all, anyone can claim to be a real team player and adapt easily to new circumstances.

However, it is precisely these skills that are often the deciding factor in the final round of the selection process. Technical knowledge and experience do not matter any longer at that point, because all of the candidates meet these requirements. The employer assesses whether a person can function well within the team. This is where soft skills are indispensable.

So it pays to invest in these skills. According to research by PageGroup carried out among a large group of applicants, these are the five most important skills employers are looking for:

1. Communication skills

Nearly 69% of applicants see good communication as one of the key skills for success in their job. Some people are not naturally gifted with the ability to share their specific knowledge with colleagues who are less familiar with their field.

This was not a problem in the past, as you usually only worked with people in your field. That has changed. Specialists, such as IT people, accountants and engineers, are also expected to share their knowledge with their counterparts in other fields. These courses will help you improve your communication skills, such as presentations and providing constructive criticism.

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2. Problem-solving ability

Problem solvers who can deal creatively with problems within their team or company are highly sought after by employers. Job applicants are also aware of this, with almost half (48.7%) stating that innovation and problem-solving skills are important. So be sure to give concrete examples of solutions to specific problems during your job interviews. These courses can help you improve your ability to solve problems.
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3. Ability to work well in a team

Working together usually translates into a better product or service. By allocating responsibilities effectively, there is more space and time to monitor quality and pay attention to details. And so 45% of applicants consider the ability to work well in a team to be important.

After all, a team does not work automatically. An environment has to be created in which everyone feels comfortable and does their best to achieve the best result. What role does the manager play in this? And what role can employees themselves play in this? These courses will help you become a better team player.
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4. Adaptability

Constantly changing technology and companies that must continuously adapt to the market mean that employees must be flexible enough to acquire new skills all the time. Some specialists even claim that in the near future, we will have not one but four to six different careers, for which we will have to retrain each time. This requires a great deal of flexibility on the part of the workforce. More than 34% of jobseekers report that employers value a flexible attitude. These courses can help you improve your adaptability.
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5. Emotional intelligence

Emotional intelligence is the ability to understand your own emotions and those of others. The skills involved in emotional intelligence are self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy and social skills.

As teams become more and more international, the demands on employees’ empathy increase. Different cultures have different ways of relating to one another. Emotional intelligence can help you work better together with others in such an environment. That is why close to 21% of job applicants cite it as an important characteristic. Here are some courses to develop your skills in this area.