Identifying skills gaps is the first step to building a team with stronger soft skills.

What’s more important for business success than being smart or having superior technical abilities? Soft skills, those traits that make us effective communicators and collaborators, as well as nimble in the face of change. Here are tips on fostering your team’s soft skills.

Commit to a long-term plan

Strengthening soft skills isn’t a one-and-done project. It requires a multistep approach where you identify the skills critical to your team’s success, identify where gaps exist, devise a plan to close the gap and put the plan into motion.

How to identify soft skill gaps

One place to start identifying soft skill gaps is by looking at what problems are happening now. Customer and employee complaints can point the way here. The goal isn’t to direct blame but to see what skills are lacking that led to dissatisfaction.

Another approach to identifying where improvement is needed is to ask employees what skills they’d like to develop. Surveys and one-to-one conversations can be used to discover the areas employees know they need help.

Address the gap

How you address the gaps will depend on which soft skills need development and your budget.

A low-cost, in-house mentoring program can be an effective way to foster many soft skills like interpersonal communication or problem solving. There are also low-cost outside options to explore. For example, for folks who want to improve their presentation skills, you could support their participation in a Toastmasters International club.

However, sometimes you don’t have the know-how or time to launch an in-house program. Investing in a training by experts can help your team master the skills they need for success. Online and in-person person programs can be tailored to your exact needs.

Provide feedback and seek feedback

When implementing a soft skills development program, make sure it includes an avenue for two-way feedback.

Acknowledge team members’ efforts in training, encourage them when they put their new knowledge into practice (even if the application is imperfect) and recognize their skill advancement when you see it in action.

Also, seek your team’s feedback about the training. Ask what’s working and what might work better?

Lead by example

When the boss shows an interest in developing their own soft skills, they motivate their team to do the same. You’re taking a Dale Carnegie course or read a book on conflict resolution? Share what you’ve learned in conversation. Then let your actions follow your words—practice your soft skills in your interactions with employees and customers.

Leading by example and providing opportunities for your team to develop soft skills will help all of you thrive in an environment where resilience and adaptability are key to success.

Financial fitness is a soft skill Consumers can help with

When you ask employees about skills gaps you might discover that stress about personal finance interferes with their work. Consumers @Work is a complimentary program available to all West Michigan employers that helps people understand basic and advanced personal finances. See how you can partner with Consumers @Work.

 

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