Differences between "soft skills" and "hard skills".

These characteristics of workers can validate them for highly sophisticated jobs.

During a personnel selection processDuring a recruitment process, the professionals in charge of choosing the right person for the job perform a complete evaluation of this person. This is based on resume analysis and an interview with the job candidate.

But this evaluation is not limited only to his or her training or professional experience; the skills that differentiate this person from the rest are becoming increasingly important. These are known as "hard skills" and "soft skills". But what are these skills and how do they differ?

Soft skills" and "hard skills" in the working world

Although both "hard skills" and "soft skills" are acquired throughout life and not only in educational or formal training environments, they are highlighted in the world of work, specifically in personnel selection processes and in the development of work tasks.

1. "Hard skills" or hard skills

By "hard skills" we mean all the knowledge acquired through formal educational training, as well as through professional experience. These skills can be taught in academic settings.

Generally, a person learns hard skills in the classroom, through the use of books or other materials, or on the job through repetition and repetition.or on the job through constant repetition of the task. We can say that hard skills are all those concrete skills that allow to carry out a certain task or work.

Finally, these skills are easy to quantify, so they are the ones that tend to stand out in resumes and cover letters. In addition, they are easily recognizable by recruiters.

Among the "hard skills" we find:

• Academic degrees or certificates
• Foreign language skills
• Typing skills
• Computer programming
• Handling of industrial machinery

2. Soft skills

On the other hand, soft skills" are much more difficult to quantify and refer to the interpersonal and social skills that the job applicant possesses. and social skills possessed by the person applying for the job. These soft skills are manifested in the different ways in which someone relates and interacts with others.

These competencies are not learned in the academic environment, but are acquired throughout a person's life, on a day-to-day basis. In addition, they are directly related to the concept of emotional intelligence and are conditioned by the personality of the person and by the development of his or her social skills.

Some examples of soft skills are:

• Communication skills
• Flexibility
• Leadership capacity
• Motivation
• Patience
• Persuasiveness
• Problem solving skills
• Teamwork
• Time management
• Work ethic

Key differences between them

Although just by describing them we can get an idea of the main differences between soft skills and hard skills, there are three key differences between them that make them more or less important depending to a large extent on the position for which you are applying, there are three key differences between them that make them more or less important depending to a large extent on the position for which you are applying for and the type of career you want to develop.

1. Each of them requires different intelligences.

Traditionally, being good at hard skills is associated with the level of general intelligence or intelligence quotient (IQ), while being good at soft skills requires more training or emotional intelligence.

2. Hard skills are considered the same in all companies.

Hard skills are skills for which the rules or consideration tend to be the same in most companies that require them.. In contrast, soft skills are abilities or skills that are considered differently depending on the culture of the company and the people with whom they work.

3. They require different learning processes

As we have already mentioned, hard skills can be learned in schools, academies and universities. In other words, they are based on formal training and there are different levels of competence, as well as a pre-established path to learn each of them.

In comparison, there is no standardized path or procedure for acquiring the interpersonal skills of soft skills. soft skills. Most soft skills must be learned in contexts of human interaction and almost always by trial and error.

However, there are a large number of books and guides that allow people to learn and practice the basic aspects of soft skills, although they will always be conditioned by the personality of the subject.

Which are the most important?

The answer to this question will depend, to a great extent, on the job position to which one aspires and the working career one intends to develop.

There are three different types of careers that can be classified into the following categories:

1. careers that require high "hard skills" and few "soft skills"; 2. careers that require high "hard skills" and few "soft skills"; 3. careers that require low "soft skills".

Such as, for example, careers in theoretical research. In this environment usually fit those with brilliant knowledge but who may not work well in a team or with other people..

2. Careers that require both skills

Most jobs fall into this category.. In these careers, workers must possess knowledge related to their field, but also possess the soft skills that allow them to perform their job effectively. Examples of these careers are law, clinical psychology or business administration.

3. Careers that require more "soft skills" than "hard skills".

Within this group we can find jobs such as salespeople, salespersons or customer service.The job depends more on the ability to communicate and connect with people, as well as persuasive and quick problem-solving skills.