The Top 10 Soft Skills in Business Today Compared to 2012

Abstract

The work environment has drastically changed in the last 10 years, necessitating a new look at which soft skills are most relevant in today’s workplace. Because of COVID-19, organizations had to rapidly adjust where and how they work. According to the Pew Research Center, 71% of adults, who can perform their work responsibilities from home, are now working remotely. Then, the workplace shifted again during the “Great Resignation” where an all-time record of 24 million employees left their jobs between April and September 2021. This shift is ever more important as research in the last decade indicates that soft skills are being valued more compared to hard skills during the hiring process. The current study replicated Robles’s (2012) study of soft skills to find which soft skills are most relevant to a thriving work environment in 2022. Results indicate that soft skills emphasizing employee initiative and including others in processes are most relevant today, including Adaptable, Agency, Conscientious, Contextual Awareness, Create Clarity, Curiosity, Engage the Mess, Genuine Care, Integrity, Partnership, Play, Positive Energy, Social Skills, and Suppress the Noise.