Soft skills are important for Boston jobs

Posted on April 30, 2014

Soft skills are equally important for Boston jobs as the hard skills, employers say, according to a recent CareerBuilder press release.

About 77 percent believe that soft skills (less tangible skills associated with one’s personality, such as a positive attitude) are just as important as hard skills (skills that are learned to perform a specific job function and can be measured, such as operating a computer program).

The top ten most popular soft skills companies say they look for when hiring include:

1) Candidate has a strong work ethic – 73 percent

2) Candidate is dependable – 73 percent

3) Candidate has a positive attitude – 72 percent

4) Candidate is self-motivated – 66 percent

5) Candidate is team-oriented – 60 percent

6) Candidate is organized, can manage multiple priorities – 57 percent

7) Candidate works well under pressure – 57 percent

8) Candidate is an effective communicator – 56 percent

9) Candidate is flexible – 51 percent

10) Candidate is confident – 46 percent

“When companies are assessing job candidates, they’re looking for the best of both worlds: someone who is not only proficient in a particular function, but also has the right personality,” said Rosemary Haefner, Vice President of Human Resources at CareerBuilder. “Along with responsibilities, it’s important to highlight soft skills that can give employers an idea of how quickly you can adapt and solve problems, whether you can be relied on to follow through and how effectively you can lead and motivate others.”