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5 Soft Skills Employees Need To Succeed In Hybrid Workplaces

Five Soft Skills Employees Need For Hybrid Workplaces

It’s no secret that the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way people work. While some companies have changed their workforce to permanent remote work, others have taken on a hybrid model. According to a survey of 1000 global business leaders from Ernst & Young, about 90% of employees “desire greater flexibility in where and how they work.” However, with hybrid work comes a new skillset to thrive in a workplace that straddles the home and the corporate office. New research from FlexJobs and PAIRIN identified the five most important “soft skills,” or interpersonal skills, that focus on communication, leadership and teamwork. Brie Reynolds, the career development manager and a career coach at FlexJobs, shared some insight to go along with each of these skills:

Supportiveness

Supportiveness means the drive to assist, protect and provide for others in emotional or physical need. This is especially important in a hybrid work environment because you’re likely to be working with people in a physical capacity and a virtual capacity, and showing that you’re willing to help out shows you’re kind and proative. “Check your schedule each morning and if you have a light day, reach out to the colleagues you work closest with and offer to help them out. Message them and say, ‘Hey, I have some extra space in my schedule, can I take something off of your plate?’ says Reynolds.

Assertiveness

Assertiveness means you express and interact with boldness, enthusiasm and confidence. Whether it’s an in-person meeting or a virtual meeting, being assertive shows that you’re interested and listening to what is being said. Reynolds says, “If a manager is seeking ideas or feedback during a meeting, raise your hand, offer your opinion or vocalize support/add to a co-worker’s idea. Even when you don’t have something new to contribute, you can say, ‘I really like this person’s idea, it makes the most sense to me.’”

Compliance

Compliance means to maintain self-discipline and conform to another’s plan, rules, will or direction. This doesn’t mean to let others take advantage of you though. Rather, being skilled in compliance means that you can show your supervisor that you’re aware and responsible when it comes to the job’s expectations. “Write out a to-list or develop a method for keeping track of the work you need to accomplish each day. But also show your manager or tell them how you’re organizing yourself so they can see that you’ve got self-discipline and can be responsible for meeting the job’s expectations without constant supervision,” explains Reynolds.

Conflict Management

Conflict management means the ability to effectively negotiate and resolve disagreements. Similar to being supportive, conflict management is a very important skill because a hybrid work model doesn’t make it easy to spot conflict. You can read body language much easier in person as opposed to over a video chat right? Reynolds says to “[a]ssume mistake over malice when something goes wrong. We can’t see physical cues that a co-worker is struggling over the computer like we might at the office, so it’s better to problem solve, and offer solutions, versus name calling and creating an unnecessary conflict.”

Relationship Management

Relationship management means the drive to draw close and remain loyal to another person or people — to truly connect and enjoyably engage with them. Many employees have learned that it can be hard to maintain relationships virtually, even though you could literally access the person at any time in any location. You need to be more mindful of actually reaching out and cultivating connections. Reynolds suggests, “Start a meeting with some small talk, like, ‘How was your weekend?’ or ‘What are you looking forward to this week?’ You should also plan 20 minute coffee chats with co-workers to learn more about them as a human outside of work and what their interests are to build a connection.”

Do you have more questions about incorporating these soft skills into your workplace? Check out our website and contact us with any questions.

Does Job Hopping Hurt Your Career?

There are some red flags for employers when looking at resumes. First the obvious; seeing someone was fired or finding someone lied about their job history. Then there is calling a reference and hearing negative things about the potential employee. However, there’s one thing potential hires may not realize is hurting their chances beyond the aforementioned. That critical item is hopping around from job to job.

How Does Job Hopping Hurt Your Employment Chances?

Job hopping doesn’t immediately mean you’ll be disregarded. It will ring some alarm bells for some hiring managers. Kevin O’Leary, a judge on CNBC’s Money Court and O’Shares ETFs chairman, said, “Companies don’t like it because they invest in you. If you’re going to leave them after a few months, that’s a total waste of money for them.” O’Leary cites that many companies have to spend money to train you and buy equipment or other necessary items for work. If someone is going to end up leaving after less than a year, there’s no point in spending money on them.

This lines up with a 2018 survey by job site TalentWorks, which looked at a sample of 7,000 job applications in different U.S. industries and found that employees who held their previous job for less than 15 months were 43% less likely to be hired when applying for new jobs. This is because most hiring managers aren’t likely to give the applicant the benefit of the doubt or think “deeply” about each applicant. Even more worrying? The survey also found that having a short stint at your previous job was equivalent to wiping out about five years of experience from your resume.

How Long SHOULD You Be Staying At A Job?

According to the Harvard Business Review, it’s become very common to jump between jobs more often. As a result, employers are less likely to hold it against you. There are some guidelines to still keep in mind. As O’Leary still recommends that employees invest at least two years to a job.

“Have a mental commitment, whether you like [the job] or you don’t, to stay there for at least two years,” he said. “If you’re asking to become part of a team as an employee and represent that company, you’ve got to have a minimum of a 24-month commitment.”

Suzy Welch, the bestselling management author, said that there’s an exception though. If you’ve been at previous jobs for a longer period (e.g. you were at a company for five years), then there’s some forgiveness with hiring managers if you have some stints that are only six or eight months long.

Do you have a lot of job-hopping on your resume? Signature Source can help you turn your various jobs into a positive! We help people write resumes that will help them stand out as a potential hire. If you want to learn more, check out our website here.

How To Answer The Interview Question “Tell Me About Yourself”

executive job interview questions

The job interview process is by far one of the most nerve wracking parts of the job search. You aced the resume and found your dream job. Now you just have to get through the interview! No matter how much you prepare, job seekers tend to get stuck on one particular question: tell me about yourself. While it’s an innocuous question, it tends to trip people up, which is why Signature Source is here to give you some tips on how to answer this question.

What Hiring Managers Really Want To Learn From This Interview Question

The reason the question “tell me about yourself” seems so difficult is that it’s very broad. It’s hard to decide what should be highlighted and what you should be talking about? Do you need to mention the hobbies that you do in your free time? Is it important for them to know about that time you built a castle out of cardboard, which in turn kicked off your interest in architecture? Ultimately, the question is used to get a better sense of you in a professional setting. Career coach Phoebe Gavin says, “[T]hey’re trying to understand what your professional narrative is. How did you get to this point, and why does it make sense for you to be here talking to me about this job?”

How To Answer The Question “Tell Me About Yourself”

Talking about your professional narrative is easier said than done. Below are three tips to help you come up with an answer that will blow the hiring manager away:

Come up with a theme. A theme can help you stay on track and give you an outline to follow when answering the question. This theme can be a passion, a skill, a mission, that you’ve portrayed throughout your job history. For example, maybe your theme is “creating a sense of community” and you can talk about activities your third grade class did that encouraged teamwork and the work you did as an event organizer. Once you’re confident in your theme, use that to frame your work experience.

Follow this formula. Gavin says she often suggests clients use the following formula when answering “tell me about yourself”:

Introduction: take 2-3 sentences to summarize your career thus far
Resume highlights: pick a few experiences from your resume that strongly support your interest in the job you’re interviewing for. Take a few minutes to explain how these experiences have prepared you for the position
Conclusion: to conclude, take 2-3 sentences to summarize why the job, company, and/or team is of interest to you

Add some personal touches. While you don’t want to go off on a tangent about your porcelain teapot collection, adding some personal stories can actually make you stand out to a hiring manager or even point out specific skills. For example, Gavin often mentions that she comes from an impoverished background. This gives some context as to her work history and also weeds out employers who act turned off that she comes from an impoverished background. Gavin also notes that some hobbies can highlight skills, such as how being a marathon runner has helped someone break down bigger goals into smaller, achievable steps.

We hope you found this post helpful. If you have any questions about answering the interview question “tell me about yourself” or just job hunting in general, feel free to contact us.

Job Seeker Resources Everyone Should Have

job seeker resources executive recruiter

Whenever you go on a new adventure, it’s always good to be prepared. New to executive job searching? Or have you grown your career with several jobs? Regardless of your answer; t’s always important to have helpful resources on hand. Signature Source has compiled a list of four resources vital for any job seeker to have in their arsenal.

Resources For Successful Interviewing

Maybe you’re looking for a new role or you’re about to meet the hiring manager for your dream job. Having resources for having a successful interview will provide peace of mind before an interview. If you are re-entering the job searching phase after some time – this is a must to have handy.

Arguably two of the most important aspects of the interview are your resume and your presentation. You resume shows employers your work history in a succinct and organized way; your presentation basically means how you present yourself (clothing, posture, etc.). Once you have your resume and appearance nailed down, you should think about how to prepare for the interview. There are several resources on this, including on the Signature Source website.

Resources For Networking

Networking is beneficial for both employed and unemployed people. You never know what kind of connections you can make and where it can lead in your professional career. Three of the biggest sites to network on professionally are LinkedIn, Facebook, and Meetup. All of them offer groups and events for specific industries so you can meet people that can give you insight in your current or future field.

Resources For Salary Calculation And Cost Of Living

Not many people think about their budgets when it comes to changing careers. Having resources on how to best manage your salary and other life expenses can be essential. Sure, it might be exciting to have a steady incoming flowing in, but if you’re mismanaging your money, then you’ll end up struggling. Check out some cost of living calendars to get a sense of what you need to do to maintain your current standard of living and look at sites like Salary.com and Payscale.com to see what people with your skill set typically earn in your industry. This way, you can make sure you’re making the most of your income and utilizing it in the best possible way depending on where you live.

Resources About Your Industry

Finally, all job seekers and employees should be on the lookout for resources about your specific industry, especially if you have no experience with it before. You might have rose-tinted glasses on when it comes to certain industries (working at a remote tech start-up should be fun, right?), but do some research. Employee review sites like Glassdoor can give you a sense of what the company, work ethic, and benefits are like, and googling the company can bring up any recent articles on search results. There are also likely to be specific groups for your industry that you can join via Slack or by subscribing to certain podcasts. This is an easy way to get a bunch of resources and talk to people who can give you more insight.

Signature Source offers employee resources, but we can also help with resume building and connecting potential employees with their perfect company. Check out our website or contact us here. If you want to see more resources, go here.

Should Your LinkedIn Profile and Resume be the Same?

Before the internet, job seekers would only have a paper resume and cover letter to send to a potential company. It was an easy way to get a sense of someone’s work history at a glance and it provided people a way to highlight their greatest career achievements. Fast forward a few decades and resumes are still a must for any job seeker, but now they can be seen in a variety of formats. One of the most popular ways to share your work history is through the career website LinkedIn. While the website essentially acts as a digital resume, there has been some confusion about sending a LinkedIn profile and sending a resume. So what’s the difference (if there is one)? Should your LinkedIn profile and your resume highlight the same things?

Should Your LinkedIn Profile And Resume Be The Same?

The short answer: NO. According to Erin Kennedy, a professional resume services founder, your LinkedIn profile should be written in a more informal way. Your LinkedIn profile should also be more detailed than a resume. We’ll go into more detail below:

What Should The Content On My LinkedIn Profile Be Like?

Writing in an informal way doesn’t mean you’ll come off as unprofessional. In fact, having an informally written LinkedIn profile can make it stand out and let some of your personality shine through. You don’t want to sound stiff and boring!

In addition, you want to make sure that you’re striking a nice balance between general skills and more focused specialties. With resumes, you need to tailor it to the specific job you’re applying to, but with LinkedIn, it’s important to not get to niche, otherwise you’re missing out on potential opportunities. Some good advice is to include some highlights that will appeal to a wider audience and then some points that show your more detailed interests.

How Detailed Should I Get?

Many career coaches are always saying to keep your resume to one page. “Cut out the irrelevant experiences. Don’t include anything that’s older than 15 years.” While this can be good for resumes, LinkedIn profiles are actually better when they’re more detailed and include a lot about your past work experiences. LinkedIn allows you to really go into details regarding each experience and talk about the job in a way that resumes limit.

Another benefit to LinkedIn is that you can also include attachments. Think about projects that you were proud of or some documents from your portfolio. While it has no place in your resume, it will definitely make your LinkedIn profile stand out. Having a media rich LinkedIn profile can help recruiters get a sense of you and your skill set.

We hope that you found this post helpful. If you have other questions about your career, building a resume, or finding a job, check out Signature Source. We’re your premiere partner for recruiting in the global mobility industry so that both employers and professionals feel fulfilled and valued in their work.