A rise in soft skills alters the hiring landscape for Life Sciences
Oct 28, 2021
The Life Sciences world is ever-changing, so technical (or hard) skills often become outdated relatively quickly. Jen Azzolina with the Kelly® Life Sciences division confirms that, “While degrees have been valued in Life Sciences, one must continue learning to stay abreast of new developments in the industry. Therefore, hiring managers are having to change their way of thinking when looking for employees who will stand the test of time. With changes such as data modernization and an increase in remote work; the ability to adapt to change, communicate, and be forward thinking suddenly are becoming as important as industry-based degrees and certifications.”
Top 5 soft skills of 2021* :
Futuristic thinking
Courageous leadership
Emotional intelligence
Interpersonal communication
Cognitive flexibility
Top 3 staffing impacts:
Some skills can be taught.
Companies should consider investing in their entry-level employees that showcase hard-to-teach soft skills and upskill them with the hard skills they need to fulfill current openings. Empower them to be leaders of tomorrow and hire externally for entry-level opportunities.
Diversify your workforce.
Focusing on soft skills allows individuals who may not have met the degree requirements an opportunity to showcase their natural abilities. Companies should review current hiring processes to ensure they are not prematurely discounting their future workforce. Updating outdated criminal background policies, removing unnecessary degree requirements, as well as hiring a more diversified talent pool will give companies a greater chance at success. According to McKinsey, companies within the top quartile for diversity are 21% more likely to have good financial performance than companies in the bottom quartile.
Soft skills won’t save you money—pay rates and benefits remain important.
Employers must continuously analyze local market pay rates, benefit packages, and non-traditional benefits to win the war for talent; regardless whether hiring based on soft or hard skills.
