Watch out, hard skills and technical know-how, you’ve got competition.  According to a new CareerBuilder survey, 77% of employers consider soft skills just as important as hard skills when it comes to evaluating candidates for a job, and 16% even say they’re more important.

What are soft skills?  A colleague pointed out that soft skills include:

> Communication

> Leadership

> Critical thinking

> Creativity

> Collaboration

> Team skills

> Relationship management

> And a long list of other so-called intangible traits.

Though they may be hard to measure quantitatively, soft skills remain a sought after trait and a recognized-business differentiator among employers.  Perhaps the heavy focus on soft skills has to do with employers struggling to find candidates with the hard skills they need, particularly when it comes to technology skills and big-data expertise.  Many employers report they focus on cultural fit and potential soft skills, figuring they can train them on-the-job with the necessary hard skills.

According to a survey of more than 2,000 hiring managers nationwide, the top ten most-popular soft skills they look for when hiring include:

> Strong work ethic

> Dependability

> Positive attitude

> Self-motivation

> Team-oriented attitude

> Organization; ability to manage multiple priorities

> Ability to work well under pressure

> Effective communication skills

> Flexibility

> Confidence

For details, go to thehiringsite.careerbuilder.com/2014/04/10/skilling-softly-evaluate-candidates-soft-skills/

Via you, the instructor, Lesson-Up.net provides instruction and certification of soft technical skills prior to the learner's job interview.