Recent studies indicate that ‘foundational skills’ or ‘soft skills’ are what matter most for organizational and individual success. Plus, as our own research indicated, the foundational skills are also key elements for individual and organizational well-being. The skills inform the culture, and it is this culture of well-being that matters most!
A large-scale study analyzing data between 2005 to 2019, on over 1,000 occupations across many industries unearthed that foundational skills are what mattered the most across all roles and skill sets. Foundational skills include, for example,
- problem-solving,
- adaptability,
- collaboration,
- positive and effective communication
Another research project on the impact of character-based leadership in 2023 found benefits of character based leadership that are vital to develop these skill sets. The characters impact individuals, society, and organizations:
- Individuals (e.g., well-being, sense of meaning, job satisfaction, creativity and innovation),
- Organizations (e.g., ethical climate, organizational performance, team cohesion, interpersonal trust), and
- Society (e.g., corruption prevention, social justice, sustainability).
The authors suggest that cultivating character promotes a flourishing life, and leaders with these characters help build a flourishing society and workplace community.
The positive character qualities – virtues – that build these essential foundational skills for employees and leaders are at the heart of organization and stakeholder flourishing such as:
- Kindness
- Humility
- Gratitude
- Respect
- Generosity
- Justice
- Wisdom
- Courage
- Temperance
- Hope
These character qualities must be embedded in the culture and exemplified by leaders to ensure well-being – flourishing – for the organization and all stakeholders.
The interest in this space continues to grow it is more essential now than ever! In addition to the projects discussed above, and other project researching kindness and other virtues in the workplace found the lack of kindness in work interactions has significant consequences, including:
- Higher employee turnover and absenteeism,
- Eroded trust,
- Poor communication and information sharing, and
- Greater customer dissatisfaction.
Similar findings were published by Christine Pearson and Christine Porath in their book, The Cost of Bad Behavior. The cost estimates of turnover are staggering and exhausting, leading to employee and manager burnout. Both resources note that there is a significant negative impact when others witness incivility, not just those who are victims of incivility.
Not surprisingly, organizations that prioritize kindness see stronger relationships, collaboration, engagement, and retention. The advice is that kindness and other virtues that cultivate civility at work are NOT soft skills, nor are these optional. These are necessary skills for ,
- Collaboration,
- Positive and effective communication,
- Psychological safety,
- High performing teams, and
- Well-being.
The authors emphasize that kindness is not about being ‘nice.’ Instead, it means taking an approach of respect and curiosity when tough feedback is needed. As the authors emphasize, “Niceness is about avoiding discomfort, staying agreeable, sidestepping hard conversations, and letting things slide. Kindness means the opposite.”
Psychological Safety and Social Capital flounder without embedding character qualities in the culture. Both are essential to create safety and comfort and healthy group norms, as well as to strengthen relationships that lead to collaboration and information sharing. In fact, as we at Dimensions have said many times: wellness, occupational health, and safety can be the levers to foster this culture.
Of course, cultivating the organizational culture based on the foundational skills that foster kindness, civility, psychological safety, and social capital, begins with leadership. It’s not just a poster on the wall or lip service. These are meaningless without actions, and can lead to cynicism and increase a lack of engagement.
The actions require developing systems that set the expectations such as,
- Leadership development in character expectations for the entire organization
- Role modeling
- Mentoring
- Accountability
- Responsibility
The HBR article summarizes 3 key management levers for making kindness an organization-wide norm:
- Treat kindness – and all character qualities stash is hard skills. This must be learned, practiced, cultivated, and expected as part of how managers and co-workers interact in your organization.
- Establish clear expectations just as there are for safety, quality, and performance. Expectations are simple, it’s not easy such as:
- Actively listen and treat others with respect and curiosity
- Call each other by their names
- Demonstrate gratitude
- Hold all in the organization accountable to behave based on the desired characters
- Measure civility as you do other performance evaluations using observable measures. There are both internal and external survey tools available to help measure the desired qualities and behaviors. At Dimensions we adapt our safety culture surveys accordingly since these qualities are essential for psychological safety and well-being. Using survey tools before and after an initiative can serve as a measure of progress and accomplishments.
The keys to remember are that soft skills are essential for organizations and stakeholders to thrive, and that these skills are not optional! It is more important than ever to cultivate the qualities and skills in our workplaces!
Photo by Brooke Cagle on Unsplash