Technology has changed the way we live and work. Instead
of meeting with someone in-person, we Google Hangout or conference call; instead
of calling on the phone, we e-mail or text. Communicating is easier than it’s
ever been, but less human interaction has produced people who don’t know how to
communicate and who don’t know how to interact with others.
LATROBE’s Career Readiness portfolio, as the name
suggests, ensures you have the skills you need to get started in your
profession or to advance in your profession. Whether you’re an individual
interested in career growth or a leader of managers or directors, your success
will depend, in large part, on how well you communicate and interact with
others.
Technology is also changing the workplace as automation is slowly
phasing-out workers. As robots are programmed to have technical skills (i.e.
hard skills), they lack the ability to communicate, lead, or work with people.
As a result—and this is true based on what I’ve seen—communication skills
and social skills have become important again.
According to a January 6, 2017, article in Forbes, in which 100 CEO’s, human-resource managers, and job
recruiters were polled, nearly all of them said they value soft skills more
than they value hard skills. Why? The reasoning was, if an employee can collaborate,
communicate, and lead, they can be taught how to do the job.
How are your social skills—are you at ease interacting with co-workers
and superiors? It’s important you answer this question honestly because having poor
social skills will impede your ability to advance at work. If you’re not sure how
good your social skills are, you can always ask someone, but with so much at
stake, I recommend an in-depth, scientific, knowledge-based approach.
LATROBE knows the value of personal and
professional growth, so if you’re interested in finding out how effective your
communication and social skills are, we offer the Human Asset Imaging®
Inventory, a 128-question assessment that measures communication and social
skills, indicating where you are strong and where you are weak. Our assessment
is unique because in addition to measuring aptitudes, attitudes, perceptions,
and skills, it also evaluates knowledge and understanding of what is required to
successfully work alone or as part of a team.
If you’re in charge of managers or directors, our
assessment can help you too. It will quantify interpersonal knowledge and
learning progress and allow you to gauge and manage monetary and time
investments. By using the assessment to measure knowledge and identify gaps, you’ll
be able to target training dollars and build sustainable development plans. We
also provide group reports to help identify training needs.
The Digital Age has produced increased convenience
and deteriorating social skills. Don’t let social awkwardness or poor
communication skills keep you from realizing your potential. Get started today by purchasing an interpersonal skills assessment at http://hai-institute.com/product/hai-inventory-feedback/.
