Soft skills training: 7 reasons to invest

In the world of work, developing and implementing soft skills training is not only exciting, but also strategic for an organization.

If you’re not yet convinced, here are 7 good reasons to look into it!

Reason #1: Boosting team performance

Prioritizing soft skills training helps the organization improve its productivity.

With the right tools, soft skills and knowledge, employees and managers can perform their daily tasks faster and more efficiently. In addition, the more skillful employees feel, the more they are able to step back and analyze a situation with a better perspective. This helps them to see things more accurately, make better decisions and think outside the box.

Finally, the ease with which a task is performed has a direct impact on psychological health and wellbeing at work. And happy teams are often synonymous with performance.

Reason #2: Improving employee engagement with the organization

To better mobilize or remobilize employees and managers, nothing is more valuable helping them develop their soft skills. Working for an employer who invests in you, your personal development and your career is extremely rewarding and motivating. Moreover, according to the theory of self-determination (Deci & Ryan, 2002), the feeling of competence is one of the three fundamental needs of motivation at work.

In addition, if the skill to be developed is related to an immediate need of the organization in addition to being an employee’s choice, then the commitment is tenfold. So, why not consult your employees regularly about their development needs?

Reason #3: Boosting team spirit

When soft skills training include team learning or focus on key collaborative skills, better team cohesion can emerge. Learning together brings people together: we know each other better and we can apply good feedback and recognition practices. Indeed, when we learn together, we are more likely to be sensitive to the efforts of our colleagues and we feel invested with a mission to help them achieve their development goals.

Reason #4: Retaining employees and preparing for succession

Preparing for the next generation is not a last-minute thing. It has to be planned in advance! And when there is internal talent, it would be a shame not to take advantage of it as soon as possible!

Moreover, encouraging internal promotion is also a motivating factor for all the troops. Offering the possibility to evolve within the organization is a great way to retain employees, especially in a context where it is increasingly easy to change positions.

With a good skills development plan, employees are encouraged to build on their strengths, but also to step out of their comfort zone in order to gradually become the leaders that the organization needs.

Reason #5: Attracting new talents

As you probably know, recruitment is a real issue for many organizations. Perhaps you encounter it regularly?

Opportunities for personal growth and advancement within a company are often factors that lead new generations to join an organization.

The work environment and life balance are of primary importance to millennials, among others. In an organization where people are continuously developing their skills, they challenge each other and want to grow and evolve together. They are always ready to question themselves and explore other avenues, and that can be really stimulating!

Reason #6: Being able to adapt to change

Encouraging employees and managers to develop their skills allows them to better grasp future changes, such as a digital transformation for example. The organization thus becomes more agile, better able to bounce back and seize opportunities.

Indeed, when you are used to developing, challenging yourself, and finding solutions, you are better able to react quickly to unforeseen events and to make room for innovation. After all, the muscles are already developed: you know how to welcome change and how to explore new solutions, and that is a very successful mindset for an organization!

Reason #7: Complying with the law

If you are an employer with an annual payroll of more than two million Canadian dollars, you are obliged to invest, during the same calendar year, the equivalent of at least 1% of this payroll in training activities aimed at developing the skills of your personnel.

Thus, focusing on soft skills training is a good way to take the organization further, while complying with the rules.

Don’t wait until the last minute to start a learning process with your teams. Developing the right soft skills takes time, so you have to take it one bite at a time and keep it going so that one day you reap what you sow. But once the seed is sown, the beautiful and magnificent flowers that will embellish your garden will undoubtedly surprise you.