When looking to hire a team and employees, there are a few things managers should look for. Thus, when interviewing for positions, managers should always look for some fundamental soft skills. Soft skills are a combination of people skills, communication skills, attitudes, character traits, career abilities, social intelligence, emotional intelligence, and more. The following are a few soft skills for employers and interviewers to consider when choosing exemplary employees/colleagues:
Critical Thinking
A fair amount of skepticism is healthy for everyone to have. A business doesn’t need another ‘yes-man’ to enable every decision whether it be good or bad. A person who thinks critically uses their logic to discern the validity of things. People with this soft skill don’t just believe what they are told and aren’t afraid to ask questions to get a better understanding. Critical thinkers allow employers to see an angle that might have been previously overlooked. If a manager is not available, employees should have the ability to think critically and come up with logical solutions.
Leadership
Leadership is a soft skill that the applicant should be interviewed for as well. No one is excluded from having leadership qualities. Being a leader is more than just the position one holds or the salary they make. It’s about believing in a mission and being able to inspire others through taking initiative. The following is a prompt that interviewers can ask their applicants to see what kind of leadership experience they have:
“Tell me about the last time something significant didn’t go according to plan at work. What was your role? What was the outcome?”
Empathy
Empathy is the ability of a person to put themselves in other peoples’ shoes and understand things from different perspectives. Having empathy allows employees to get along better with their coworkers and also form better interpersonal relationships.
Humility
When interviewing, employers should seek employees who display a level of humility. Humility allows people to not succumb to their egos. Humility absolves traits like selfishness, egotism, and arrogance. Those who are humble have no problems taking direction from other people. They trust in the process and they trust in the guidance being given to them by their employers.