Article

Justyna Skowronska

Category: Expertise strategy

Soft skills and their role in future professions

Investing in soft skills can be particularly beneficial in future professions. Compared to hard skills, the capital is not education or professional knowledge. Soft skills will allow those who implement and master them to easily adapt to the changes that the job market will bring. What exactly are soft skills and how can they be developed?

Justyna Skowrońska, Warsaw, 12. may 2023

One consequence of the technological revolution is the focus on personal skills, known to us as soft skills. Although the nomenclature may raise doubts and even try to depreciate their role, soft competency is understood as interpersonal skills, flexibility, and conflict-free communication.

Soft skills in English are also defined as "core skills," which only confirms their significant role in work organization and can even be a key factor in professional success.

 

An underrated set of abilities

So far, soft skills have been wrongly attributed with little importance in the sales process, although they are actually the foundation of sales, which are now seen much more comprehensively.

Along with advanced product knowledge, creating attractive offers, collecting data, or routine transaction closing, soft skills were a poorly appreciated element. One of the difficulties in defining what soft skills are is the lack of tools for precisely defining the desired behaviors for a given position.

A salesperson talking to a client.

The development of both hard and soft skills is crucial. Essentially, knowledge and completed courses will allow salespeople to effectively master hard skills.

However, according to a report by McKinsey Global Institute Skill shift Automation and the future of the Workforce, the ability to read communications and understand the needs of others, as a manifestation of highly developed empathy, will be crucial in the process preceding closing the deal.

In contrast to the automatic skills that machines have largely taken over for us, experts in new technologies, including PFR, DELab UW, and Google, emphasize emotional intelligence, critical thinking, and leadership skills - emphasizing empathetic leadership - thereby recognizing the enormous potential that lies in soft skills.

 

  The ability to communicate and understand the needs of others, as a manifestation of highly developed empathy, will be crucial in the process preceding closing any business deal.

 

An interesting observation resulting from market research on new technologies is the important role given to so-called skill blending, which is the ability to combine different types of skills: hard with soft, and complement or modernize them in relation to digital skills.

The result of the interpenetration of individual skills is the blurring of differences between them, and the development of competency flexibility, allowing for satisfactory results and innovative outcomes. This can also be a competency category per se in professions focused on sales.

 

Persuasion and creativity

A lot has already been said about creativity in relation to sales techniques. Although we live in a high-consumption culture, our purchasing needs have taken a back seat in the face of such significant economic and business problems.

This poses a significant challenge, as weakening consumption and economic slowdown have a significant impact on purchasing choices and contribute to the revision of needs. Of course, creative and suggestive messaging influences effective sales. Our shopping habits and patterns, which we used to succumb to as consumers, are losing relevance in the realities of today's world. Especially valuable and sought-after by customers is an unconventional approach, imagination, or thinking that goes beyond the areas of the given topic.

The job market demands creativity, which can be an excellent driving force for the entire process. It is worth remembering that creative sales are built on details, which is also related to the next point, which recalls what constitutes the clue to the sales process - building a long-term relationship with the customer.

A salesperson talking to a client.

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Influencing, building trust, and long-distance relationships

The ability to tell a story is not only an attempt to convince the customer why they should make a particular choice, but above all, to adjust the narrative in such a way that it aims to develop the belief that this choice will benefit them in a key area. It is also a proactive attitude, proposing alternatives and seeking solutions tailored to their needs.

This skill is related to active listening, asking precise and thoughtful questions, and sometimes relinquishing initiative in order to fully understand and try to understand the customer's needs.

This is a particular type of perception, consisting of quickly assessing the situation and the art of adapting to changing external conditions, considered an asset of future professions. Neglecting the above techniques can result in the transaction not being finalized.

 

Time management, stress resistance

Working with clients, managing a team, meeting deadlines, and negotiating are processes that are burdened with a large dose of stress. It is difficult to avoid stressful situations, especially when closing a sale is involved. Investing in the development of soft skills will also allow you to better cope with work under time pressure.

 

  Quickly assessing the situation and the art of adapting to changing external conditions will be considered an asset of future professions.

 

It is definitely worth developing skills, such as trying to select information, which will allow you to better organize your work time. In this area, one should not overlook the practice of building mental resilience.

The ability to manage emotions and the correlated sense of self-worth, as well as working on strengthening courage, leadership, and readiness to face change, are definitely future competencies, the development of which increases the effectiveness of the sales process.

 

Keeping up with technological trends is crucial for salespeople 

The challenges posed by the digital reality call for the development of alternative skills. The impact of technical knowledge on practically every aspect of life is an excellent opportunity to use technology to expand sales opportunities.

For example, by trying out new communication channels, we can increase our chances of reaching potential customers, and process automation will allow us to allocate more time to building long-term relationships with customers. In short, the role of technology in understanding and accelerating the sales process is fundamental and can work perfectly with other competencies. 

Consultants having a discussion outside their office.

The skills I have outlined make up the toolkit of a salesperson. Active listening, information hierarchy, time planning, unconventional approaches to sales, and finally, psychological resilience, are just some of the skills whose full spectrum of application will have a decisive impact on results.

In a situation where the market is becoming increasingly technological, honing social and emotional skills seems to be particularly important. The way in which technology automates the sales process raises the question of whether it will ever be able to internalize the characteristics of social intelligence - communication skills, relationship-building abilities, and empathy.

However, it is impossible to resist the impression that the shift towards understanding the needs and expectations of others not only confirms their presence in today's job market realities but also shows the value of nurturing interpersonal relationships. 

 

  In a situation where the market is becoming increasingly technological, honing social and emotional skills seems to be particularly important.

 

I think that for salespeople, an equally important aspect is the opportunity that agreements between interested parties offer in reaching the sources of decision-making and understanding the motivations behind them.

And even if the motivation for developing soft skills is to improve professional qualifications, the ease of making contact and effective communication will certainly bring benefits -  also on a personal level. 

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