Develop your soft skills
Soft skills are vital for tech professionals.
While your core technical skills are obviously vital, blending them with soft skills is crucial if you want to advance your career and succeed in IT.
According to our annual Hays Salary Guide employers consider soft skills to be either more or equally important to a candidate’s hard or technical skills.
No matter what area of the technology sector you specialise in, you can’t afford to ignore your soft skills.
There’s a plethora of soft skills worth developing to enhance your professional profile.
To help guide your upskilling, here we look at seven important soft skills that employers prioritise when recruiting new employees.
1. Problem solving
2. Communication
3. Teamwork
4. Adaptability
5. Critical thinking
6. Work ethic
7. Attention to detail
While your core technical skills are obviously vital, blending them with soft skills is crucial if you want to advance your career and succeed in IT.
According to our annual Hays Salary Guide employers consider soft skills to be either more or equally important to a candidate’s hard or technical skills.
No matter what area of the technology sector you specialise in, you can’t afford to ignore your soft skills.
There’s a plethora of soft skills worth developing to enhance your professional profile.
To help guide your upskilling, here we look at seven important soft skills that employers prioritise when recruiting new employees.
1. Problem solving
2. Communication
3. Teamwork
4. Adaptability
5. Critical thinking
6. Work ethic
7. Attention to detail
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How are soft skills different from technical skills?
Before we jump into the key soft skills that tech employers are looking for, it’s important to understand how they differ from technical skills.
Technical or hard skills are the abilities and knowledge needed to perform specific tasks. They’re usually activities that can be learned and measured objectively. For example, a Developer needs to know how to write code in different languages.
In contrast, soft skills are the personal attributes that help you interact with others, solve problems and get work done. They are personal strengths that help you maintain positive working relationships. Without them, you’ll find it difficult to succeed at work. They’re more subjective than technical skills. For example, communicating clearly and concisely is a soft skill. While soft skills do not come naturally to everyone, they are also skills you can learn.
While both technical and soft skills are important, the emphasis tech employers place on soft skills has increased in recent years.
Technical or hard skills are the abilities and knowledge needed to perform specific tasks. They’re usually activities that can be learned and measured objectively. For example, a Developer needs to know how to write code in different languages.
In contrast, soft skills are the personal attributes that help you interact with others, solve problems and get work done. They are personal strengths that help you maintain positive working relationships. Without them, you’ll find it difficult to succeed at work. They’re more subjective than technical skills. For example, communicating clearly and concisely is a soft skill. While soft skills do not come naturally to everyone, they are also skills you can learn.
While both technical and soft skills are important, the emphasis tech employers place on soft skills has increased in recent years.
Why are soft skills necessary for technology jobs?
While hard skills allow you to carry out specific duties, your soft skills ensure you perform them professionally.
For instance, many technology jobs require you to work with others in a team and communicate effectively. You may even need to explain complex technical concepts to non-technical staff or customers.
In addition, the tech sector is constantly evolving. New technologies and methods require you to adapt to change quickly, think creatively and solve new problems. As the technology sector becomes more complex, employers increasingly place a premium on professionals who have strong soft skills.
For instance, many technology jobs require you to work with others in a team and communicate effectively. You may even need to explain complex technical concepts to non-technical staff or customers.
In addition, the tech sector is constantly evolving. New technologies and methods require you to adapt to change quickly, think creatively and solve new problems. As the technology sector becomes more complex, employers increasingly place a premium on professionals who have strong soft skills.
7 essential soft skills for tech professionals
According to the Hays Salary Guide, employers prioritise the following soft skills when hiring permanent staff:
1. Problem solving
One of the essential soft skills in any IT or tech position is detecting and solving problems quickly. Employers demand employees who can adapt swiftly and come up with inventive answers on the fly in a fast-paced, ever-changing business environment.
Developing effective IT problem-solving skills requires a mix of analytical, creative and critical thinking. You’ll be better equipped to discover innovative answers that others haven’t considered by learning how to think flexibly and approach problems from various angles.
Explore problem solving skills courses with Hays Learning.
Developing effective IT problem-solving skills requires a mix of analytical, creative and critical thinking. You’ll be better equipped to discover innovative answers that others haven’t considered by learning how to think flexibly and approach problems from various angles.
Explore problem solving skills courses with Hays Learning.
2. Communication
Communication skills are critical when working in technology. The technology industry is rife with complex technical terms and ideas that might be hard for non-technical individuals to understand. Communication skills are therefore vital to express technical information clearly and succinctly to stakeholders from other departments.
But strong communication involves more than explaining complicated ideas in layman’s terms. Strong communicators are active listeners, empathetic, understand non-verbal communication cues and aware of their tone of voice.
Explore communication skills courses with Hays Learning.
But strong communication involves more than explaining complicated ideas in layman’s terms. Strong communicators are active listeners, empathetic, understand non-verbal communication cues and aware of their tone of voice.
Explore communication skills courses with Hays Learning.
3. Teamwork
Most IT and technology roles are team-based, so employers highly prize teamwork skills. No matter your position, you’ll need to cooperate with others to get the job done.
Being an effective team member requires more than being able to work well with others though. It also requires you to take direction, give and receive constructive feedback, understand your individual responsibilities, remain positive and keep the team’s objectives in mind.
Explore teamwork skills courses with Hays Learning.
Being an effective team member requires more than being able to work well with others though. It also requires you to take direction, give and receive constructive feedback, understand your individual responsibilities, remain positive and keep the team’s objectives in mind.
Explore teamwork skills courses with Hays Learning.
4. Adaptability
The tech industry is in constant flux, so adaptability is an essential skill. IT and tech professionals need to be able to quickly learn and master new technologies as they emerge and absorb new knowledge with ease.
Adaptability also entails being open to change and willing to experiment with new methods. Someone who isn’t adaptable won’t keep up with the evolving demands of their role and will end up with an outdated skillset.
Explore adaptability skills courses with Hays Learning.
Adaptability also entails being open to change and willing to experiment with new methods. Someone who isn’t adaptable won’t keep up with the evolving demands of their role and will end up with an outdated skillset.
Explore adaptability skills courses with Hays Learning.
5. Critical thinking
Critical thinking is essential for anyone working in the tech industry to evaluate information and make sound decisions.
When evaluating data, it’s important to rationally analyse information, identify bias, assess different perspectives and weigh the pros and cons of each option. Critical thinking skills also come in handy when you need to troubleshoot technical problems for which there could be multiple solutions.
Explore critical thinking skills courses with Hays Learning.
When evaluating data, it’s important to rationally analyse information, identify bias, assess different perspectives and weigh the pros and cons of each option. Critical thinking skills also come in handy when you need to troubleshoot technical problems for which there could be multiple solutions.
Explore critical thinking skills courses with Hays Learning.
6. Work ethic
A strong work ethic is essential for anyone working in tech. Employers want to see that you’re willing to put in the effort to get the job done and are reliable.
Some of the qualities that make up a strong work ethic include being punctual, taking the initiative, following through on commitments and being fully accountable for your actions.
Explore work ethic skills courses with Hays Learning.
Some of the qualities that make up a strong work ethic include being punctual, taking the initiative, following through on commitments and being fully accountable for your actions.
Explore work ethic skills courses with Hays Learning.
7. Attention to detail
The tech industry is all about details. Small mistakes can have big consequences, so it’s crucial to pay attention to the particulars of your work.
Attention to detail requires you to understand the requirements of a task before commencing it, focusing on the task at hand and double-checking your work before moving on. Attention to detail also requires good organisational skills so you keep track of all moving parts in a project.
Explore attention to detail skills courses with Hays Learning.
Attention to detail requires you to understand the requirements of a task before commencing it, focusing on the task at hand and double-checking your work before moving on. Attention to detail also requires good organisational skills so you keep track of all moving parts in a project.
Explore attention to detail skills courses with Hays Learning.
Get job-ready and develop strong soft skills
Demonstrating the right soft skills will help you stand out during the interview and selection process in IT. There are plenty of tech-savvy people competing for the same jobs, but not everyone complements their technical skills with the soft skills employers prioritise. And since soft skills are transferrable between jobs, they'll future proof you for the rest of your career.
How to develop your tech soft skills
Once you’ve identified the top soft skills required, create a plan for learning and improving them. Start with self-reflection and identifying where you have room to grow.
After that, determine how to upskill. There are a variety of options, including attending workshops and classes, reading books and articles, listening to podcasts, or simply practising in your everyday life.
Mentoring is another excellent method to improve your soft skills. A reliable mentor can offer honest feedback on where you need improvement while helping you recognise your talents and boosting your confidence.
Of course, to truly expand your soft skills, you must put them into practice in the real world. Look for chances to demonstrate what you’ve learnt and assess how successful you were. Finally, get feedback from your boss or a colleague you trust to assess how far you’ve progressed. Don’t be discouraged if you’re not making as much progress as you’d like; it takes time to learn soft skills, but they’ll be indispensable once you have them.
When you’ve substantially enhanced a soft skill, update your resume, LinkedIn profile and cover letter. Discuss how you improved your soft skills and give examples of when they were useful at job interviews.
After that, determine how to upskill. There are a variety of options, including attending workshops and classes, reading books and articles, listening to podcasts, or simply practising in your everyday life.
Mentoring is another excellent method to improve your soft skills. A reliable mentor can offer honest feedback on where you need improvement while helping you recognise your talents and boosting your confidence.
Of course, to truly expand your soft skills, you must put them into practice in the real world. Look for chances to demonstrate what you’ve learnt and assess how successful you were. Finally, get feedback from your boss or a colleague you trust to assess how far you’ve progressed. Don’t be discouraged if you’re not making as much progress as you’d like; it takes time to learn soft skills, but they’ll be indispensable once you have them.
When you’ve substantially enhanced a soft skill, update your resume, LinkedIn profile and cover letter. Discuss how you improved your soft skills and give examples of when they were useful at job interviews.
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