Overwhelming Majority of Companies Say Soft Skills Are Just as Important as Hard Skills, According to a New CareerBuilder Survey

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CHICAGO – April 10, 2014 – Don’t skimp on soft skills when writing your resume. The vast majority of employers - 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). Sixteen percent of employers said soft skills are more important than hard skills when evaluating candidates for a job.
The national survey was conducted online by Harris Poll on behalf of CareerBuilder from February 10 to March 4, 2014, and included a representative sample of 2,138 hiring managers and human resource professionals across industries and company sizes.
“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.”
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
Haefner warns that it’s not sufficient to just list soft skills when communicating with a potential employer. “Saying that you’re a team player is not enough; you have to show it,” Haefner added. “Provide an example of how you worked on a team to accomplish a particular goal. Provide an example of a high-pressure situation that you handled with ease. Try to make the intangible tangible.”
Survey Methodology
This survey was conducted online within the U.S. by Harris Poll on behalf of CareerBuilder among 2,138 hiring managers and human resource professionals ages 18 and over (employed full-time, not self-employed, non-government) between February 10 and March 4, 2014 (percentages for some questions are based on a subset, based on their responses to certain questions). With a pure probability sample of 2,138, one could say with a 95 percent probability that the overall results have a sampling error of +/- 2.12 percentage points. Sampling error for data from sub-samples is higher and varies.
About CareerBuilder®
CareerBuilder is the global leader in human capital solutions, helping companies target and attract great talent. Its online career site, CareerBuilder.com®, is the largest in the United States with more than 24 million unique visitors and 1 million jobs. CareerBuilder works with the world’s top employers, providing everything from labor market intelligence to talent management software and other recruitment solutions. Owned by Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE:GCI), Tribune Company and The McClatchy Company (NYSE:MNI), CareerBuilder and its subsidiaries operate in the United States, Europe, South America, Canada and Asia. For more information, visit www.careerbuilder.com.
Media Contact
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jennifer.grasz@careerbuilder.com
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