Faith Popcorn On AI and the Transformation of Tomorrow

5 Practical Leadership Development Strategies That Work

Session 3: Senior Leadership Program: Customer Focus & Accountability

It's easy to see why leaders may want to measure [soft skills](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/softskillsinworkplace) in the workplace. 

Since the pandemic, social and emotional skills (soft skills) are more in demand. A 2021 [McKinsey Global Survey](https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/sustainable-inclusive-growth/chart-of-the-day/soft-skills-strong-impacts) on reskilling found the proportion of companies addressing empathy and interpersonal skills doubled in 2020. 

It comes on top of historic [research](https://www.crawco.com/blog/hiring-based-on-soft-skills-leads-to-higher-job-success#:~:text=A%20research%20study%20conducted%20by,from%20technical%20skills%20and%20knowledge.) showing 85% of an employee's success comes from soft skills, while only 15% of their success comes from technical skills.

[**Free Download** : 10 Leadership Qualities That Will Help Solve Challenges in 2024](https://ideas.growthfaculty.com/l/1071223/2024-06-12/5q9w2q)

But soft skills are _difficult to measure_ because they are often **subjective** and not easily **quantifiable**. Unlike hard skills that are technical and measurable abilities, soft skills are a set of personal attributes, behaviours, and qualities that enable people to interact effectively with others.

That's no reason to dismiss measuring soft skills. So here we look at the benefits of soft skills and how you might go about measuring them.

Without thinking of skills as hard or soft, what might be some employee characteristics that would help you in [leading and managing](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/leadingandmanagingpeople) a team or a company?

You might think of traits that help with collaboration, a feeling of [inclusion and belonging](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/inclusionandbelongingatwork), teamwork, meeting deadlines, or explaining complex tasks.

Your list might include communication, teamwork, [adaptability](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/adaptabilityintheworkplace), problem-solving, time management, leadership, and [emotional intelligence.](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/emotionalintelligence)

If so, you've listed soft skills, so you can see why they are vital to the success of any team or organisation.

Why Are Soft Skills Essential in the Workplace?

While hard skills can be measured with tests or assessments, measuring soft skills requires observing peoples behaviour, evaluating their performance, and collecting feedback from others.

Because measuring soft skills is subjective, the methods used can be open to interpretation and bias. For instance, one person may give a colleague a high mark for communication skills, while another may have a different opinion.

Despite the difficulties in measuring soft skills its worth finding ways to do so, and in particular when making hiring decisions.

As we said earlier, soft skills are essential for success in most jobs, and are increasingly becoming a requirement for recruiters. 

[FREE DOWNLOAD: The ROI of a Healthy Work Culture](https://ideas.growthfaculty.com/l/1071223/2024-06-12/5q9w2b)

7 Ways to Measure Soft Skills in the Workplace

First, it's important to know which skills are needed to perform well in the position. Hard skills are often specific to a particular role or job, whereas soft skills are transferable across roles and industries.

For example, programming is a hard skill that is specific to the field of software development, while communication is a soft skill that is transferable to many different fields.

1.Understand What Hard and Soft Skills are Required for the Role

Soft skills can be discovered with behavioural-based interview questions.

During the hiring process, you can ask candidates questions that focus on their past experiences and how they handled certain situations. This can help you gauge their soft skills, such as communication, teamwork, problem-solving, and leadership. Later in this blog I share some example questions.

When trying to assess or measure skills in a prospective employee, think about what you can and cant achieve with [workplace coaching](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/workplacecoaching) or training.

Hard skills can be taught through training programs or educational courses, and an individual's proficiency in a specific hard skill can be developed over time.

Soft skills, on the other hand, are often inherent personal qualities, and while they can be developed through [leadership development](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/leadershipdevelopment), training and practice, they require self-awareness and may not be as easily developed as hard skills.

2.Ask Questions That Assess Candidate Qualities & Behaviour

Conduct regular performance evaluations that assess an employee's soft skills. You can use a rating scale or provide feedback on specific behaviours or competencies that are important to your organisation.

For example, you might measure how often team members show commitment to team goals.

As Jon Gordon says in _The Power of a Positive Team_: _"Your team doesn't care if you're a superstar. They care if you're a super team member."_

3.Look at Performance to Measure Soft Skills

360-degree feedback is gathering feedback from colleagues, peers, and managers to gain a holistic view of an employee's soft skills.

A 360 can provide a more comprehensive assessment of their strengths and areas for improvement.

Understanding how you positively or negatively affect those around you is a key component of self-awareness, one of the foundation elements of developing soft skill competencies.

As Michael Bunting, author of _Vertical Growth_ [on self-awareness](https://thegrowthfaculty.com/articles/verticalgrowth), explained to us, it is critical that we live from the self-examining mind and become very clear on who we are, what we stand for, and the core values that govern our behaviour and decisions.

4.360 Degree Feedback

Encourage employees to assess their own soft skills using self-assessment tools or surveys. This can help them identify areas of strength and where they might need to take action to develop their skills.

A good place to start is Patrick Lencioni's [6 Types of Working Genius](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/6typesofworkinggenius). Below is the briefest summary of each genius type and the corresponding natural gift it's likely you possess.

*   **Wonder** - you see potential.
*   **Invention** - you see ideas.
*   **Discernment** - you assess ideas.
*   **Galvanizing** - you rally others to act on ideas.
*   **Enablement** - you help to bring ideas to life.
*   **Tenacity** - you push ideas to completion.

Patrick Lencioni will explain in detail this diagnostic tool and what each working genius trait means in his Global Headline event in February 2025: [Patrick Lencioni: Building High Performing Teams.](https://thegrowthfaculty.com/events/PatrickLencioni-BuildingHighPeformingTeams/overview?sid=a0KRG00000BELB92AP)

Alternatively, have each team member do Kirstin Ferguson's [Head & Heart Leader Scale](https://headheartleader.com/) developed with Professor Lisa Bradley at the Queensland University of Technology Business School.

Coupled with her book [Head & Heart](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/Kirstinfergusonheadandheart), this free tool reveals which of your leadership traits and characteristics are strongest and weakest.

5.Self-assessment tools

Acting out scenarios can be very helpful in assessing gaps in the soft skills of employees.

Create scenarios that require employees to use their soft skills, such as conflict resolution, communication, or problem-solving. Observe their behaviour and provide feedback on how they can improve.

6.Role-playing and simulations

Observe employees in their day-to-day work and shadow them to gain a better understanding of how they use their soft skills. This can help you identify areas where they need additional support or training.

Kim Scott in _Radical Candor_ (explained [here](https://thegrowthfaculty.com/articles/radicalcandorgivingfeedback) by Amy Sandler) tells how Sheryl Sandberg, when at Google, observed her in a meeting and took her aside afterwards about a small but distracting habit in her presentation skills (Kim used 'um' too much, said Sheryl). Sheryl lined Kim up with a speech coach to fix a minor but irritating issue.

7.Observation and shadowing

A LinkedIn Talent Trend survey in 2019 found that 75% of employers still use behavioural questions to assess candidates for soft skills, and 70% use body language.

Body language signals to look out for might be the amount of eye contact \(direct to camera if virtual\), smiling, good posture, nods to show active listening, and little fidgeting.

Keeping these signals in mind, you might like to pick from these question examples.

Interview Questions to Assess Soft Skills

Behaviour-based questions could include:

- "Can you describe a time when you had to deal with a difficult customer, and how did you handle the situation?"

- Can you describe a time when you had to work with someone who had a different work style than you? How did you handle it?

- Can you describe a time when you had to manage multiple projects at once?

Behaviour-based questions

Situational-based questions are a type of interview question that presents a hypothetical scenario and asks the candidate how they would respond or handle the situation.

- If you were working on a project with a team member who was not responding to your emails or calls, what steps would you take to address the issue?

- You have a deadline that is fast approaching, but one member of your team is not meeting their deadlines. How would you solve this problem and ensure that the project is completed on time?

- You have been assigned to work with someone who has a different work style than you. How would you ensure that you are able to work effectively together?

Situational-based questions

Adaptability is an important soft skill that enables individuals to adjust to changes in the workplace, take on new challenges, and learn new skills quickly.

Here are some questions you can ask to assess a candidate's adaptability skills:

- Can you describe a time when you had to quickly adapt to a new situation or unexpected change in the workplace?

- How do you approach learning new skills or tools that you have never used before?

- Have you ever had to take on a project or task outside of your usual responsibilities? How did you handle it, and what was the outcome?

- Can you describe a time when you had to change your approach to a problem or project midway through? What steps did you take to ensure success?

Adaptability-based questions

While measuring hard skills can be more straightforward and objective, measuring soft skills requires a more nuanced and subjective approach. It is important to recognise the differences between these two types of skills, and to use creative and varied methods for measuring each.

Summary

They say that when organisations are **moving fast**, there's rarely enough time and space for leadership training and support. The [immersive live virtual learning program](https://thegrowthfaculty.com/) with Growth Faculty membership is one option to consider when researching how best to develop aspiring or current leaders.

Growth Faculty also offers a good value [Enterprise plan](https://thegrowthfaculty.com/#plans) for larger companies to develop leadership skills in teams of 20 or more employees.

References:

_Soft skills, strong impacts, 2021,_ McKinsey and Company

_Hiring Based on Soft Skills Leads to Higher Job Success, 2019,_ Crawford website

Growth Faculty speakers

Photo by [Kenny Eliason](https://unsplash.com/@neonbrand?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText) on [Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/photos/y_6rqStQBYQ?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText)

How to Measure Soft Skills in the Workplace

Methods and questions to help assess soft skills in candidates and employees

Keep informed
Stay Inspired

How to Measure Soft Skills in the Workplace

Methods and questions to help assess soft skills in candidates and employees

Keep informedStay Inspired

Keep informed
Stay Inspired