* Books to read, people to talk to and circles to expand
Earlier this month we discussed how techies can broaden their soft skills and received some advice from the author of ‘The IT Careers Builder’s Toolkit’. Today, we bring you a Q&A with Jeremy W. Hill, senior national accounts manager at national staffing company Sapphire, in which we discuss how employers weigh interpersonal skills vs. technical skills, the options for improving soft skills, whether we can improve soft skills by going to training courses or reading books, and if vendors are putting more emphasis on soft skills in their certification training curriculum.
Linda Leung: All indications (job survey results etc) point to the fact that employers want soft skills and business knowledge as much or even more than technical certifications. What exactly is meant by soft skills/business knowledge, from a tech pro’s point of view? Are you seeing employers asking for such skills?
Jeremy W. Hill: Soft skills are also called “people skills” or “client-facing skills.” They refer to an individual’s ability to work well with others. There are various components that comprise soft skills. Some are innate such as optimism, friendliness and whether or not someone has an outgoing nature, while others are skills that can be taught or improved upon, such as developing effective communication, organization, and social graces.
Soft skills complement a tech professional’s hard skills and are becoming increasingly important in the job market as the technical side of business is becoming more collaborative. Gone are the days when the technical departments are secluded in back room of the company; IT is now an essential, strategic component to today’s businesses. CIOs, IT managers, and even desk-level resources are often bought in to corporate planning initiatives and therefore need to work well in team environments and be adept at sharing information on their projects with different departments within the company.
We are seeing more and more requests from our clients who need IT consultants not only with technical expertise, but general business knowledge and soft skills as well. In year’s past, it was more common to have requirements for just a “heads-down techie” with X skill set. Though our clients still do request specific certifications and skills, we are seeing an increase in requests for individuals with multiple proficiencies.
LL: It’s pretty straightforward to know where to go to get tech certification training but where is the first place to look for training on soft skills/business knowledge? Would you recommend going on training courses or reading books, or just broaden your horizons/networks in your private life with more social interactions?
JWH: To some, these skills come naturally, the same way some are comfortable speaking in public or meeting others for the first time. However, to those looking to improve in this area, I would recommend a combination of multiple resources – books and articles can definitely help (don’t ignore classics like Stephen R. Covey’s “Seven Habits of Highly Effective People”), as can joining networking or social groups, as well as utilizing training programs.
Many employers, including staffing agencies such as Sapphire, offer discounted and free training offerings as an incentive to retain their quality IT professionals. Sapphire offers all of its employees, internal and its consultant base, discounts on training at Kaplan University and New Horizons Learning Centers. Both offer a mix of technical class offerings as well as business, communication, and management classes.
Gaining experience in a wide range of work settings can also help. Working on a contract basis, IT professionals are constantly being exposed to new methodologies and a variety of vertical industries, as well as many different types of work environments, managers and colleagues. This not only allows the contractors to broaden their IT skill sets, but also provides the opportunity to make professional connections with many people of different backgrounds and cultures.
LL: Do you see a trend for vendor certifications adding business knowledge/soft skills into their curriculum?
JHW: As far as the vendors themselves, I don’t believe that entities such as Cisco or Microsoft, will be adding business knowledge or soft skill requirements to their certifications as they are focused on the technical expertise itself. However, Sapphire has seen a huge increase in the number of consultants taking advantage of our discounted training offerings through New Horizons. In 2006, there was an increase of over 50% with the majority of the classes taken being for Project Management Certification.
We reached out to one of our training providers for insight on this. Bill Mote, senior account executive with New Horizons Learning Centers noted that in his client pool, he has seen a 20% increase in demand to train their IT staff on business and soft skills. He believes this is because companies are increasingly demanding that their IT groups are able to effectively communicate with the entire organization, not just the IT group. This is being done most often by hiring new employees and consultants or training current employees to become both business analysts as well as project managers.
LL: Should techies in ’08 concentrate more on gaining these skills as opposed to more technical certs?
JHW: Those individuals with a combination of both will be the big winners. Certifications can really help candidates in the first phase of the job search. Many companies list specific certification requirements as a means of sifting through and ranking applicants then will look to experience and performance to narrow down those in consideration. Once in the door, individuals with proficient soft skills will almost assuredly tilt the scale in terms of the interview process. They will have the confidence and ability to present themselves as the “right solution” compared to someone who can only speak in code.
Soft skills are becoming just as important as technical skills, though they likely will never replace them entirely. However, the ability to portray both, regardless of certifications, is the more important issue for hiring managers.
For professionals who know they are qualified technically but are worried about soft skills….take the time to improve your ability to communicate with others and understand the larger picture of what’s happening around you. Confidence and competence are big “pluses” when it comes to being perceived as a valuable employee.
