1. Soft Skills : From
Classrooms to Career
A Sound
Basics
Initiatives
2. Moments of Truth
• There is no point in giving any suggestion to
my manager as he always sticks to his own
decision.
• I feel there is a glass wall between me and my
manager.
• My colleagues do not cooperate with me
• I should stick to my decision, otherwise I may
appear weak
4. Young India Lacks Soft Skill
Business Today April 2011
• The Young Indian is in danger of becoming a liability.
• More than one-third of the millions that graduate each
year are unemployable.
• A survey of 303 employers across the country by the
Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and
Industry (FICCI)
• majority of graduates lacked adequate "soft skills" to be
employed in the industry.
• Only about one-third employers were satisfied with the
communication ability of their employees and about 26
per cent with their employees' writing ability.
9. What are Soft Skills ?
Desirable qualities for certain forms of
employment that do not depend on acquired
knowledge: they include common sense, the
ability to deal with people, and a positive
flexible attitude
11. Taking a Hard Line on Soft Skills
Why Soft Skills are important for F&A
professionals?
12. There was a recent survey conducted
of 500 senior finance executives at companies
across many different industries.
23%
55% CFOs
13. Scenario I Little Soft Auditing
Disinterested/Insensitive
Focuses on reviewing documentation, not
on people or process
Client is defensive , vanilla auditing
Tactless
Asks Basic Questions Does not get cooperation
Impersonal/Indifferent
Focuses on the basic audit/accounting work
steps
Client is frustrated
14. Scenario II Soft Skills Auditing
Presents with Enthusiasm
Asks intelligent questions Gains insight, audit adds value
Uses Tact
Prepares for meeting Reduced follow up
Exhibits Interest
Engages in conversation Gets Information
15. Soft Skills F&A
• Advanced written and oral communication
• Detail oriented and meticulous
• Common sense
• Problem solving
• Ability to work in a constantly changing dynamic
environment
• Quick earner
• Deadline driven
• Ability to prioritize
• Delivery driven
• Technology savvy
• Ability to analyze data
17. Methodology
12 modules of 2hours each
Interactive learning
Role plays
Simulated exercises
Videos
Case discussions
Activities
Moments of Truth
18. Challenges …
Busy
Multi-taskers
Attention deficit
Get bored quickly
Language
Attendance
Does not see value
19. Measuring Soft Skills
“Hard skills” are technical or
administrative procedures related
to an organization’s core business.
“Soft skills” (also called
“people skills”) are typically
hard to observe, quantify and
measure.
21. Pat Sample
Self 6 Others
Strength
Development
Needed
Getting information, Making sense of it; Problem identification
1. Seeks information energetically.
2. Probes, digs beneath the surface, tests the
validity of information.
3. Creates order out of large quantities of information.
4. Keen observer of people, events, things.
5. Defines problems effectively; gets to the heart of
a problem.
6. Spots problems, opportunities, threats, trends early.
7. Logical, data-based, rational.
Communicating information, ideas
8. Adept at disseminating information to others.
9. Crisp, clear, articulate.
10.Good public speaker; skilled at performing, being
11. Makes his or her point effectively to a resistant audience.
communicator on paper; good writing skills.
SYMBOL KEY
= Strength
= Development Needed
= Boss’s Response
= Number of Additional Responses
or
( )
IMPORTANCE: Self: Others: 3 Boss: 1
SKILLSCOPE
for Managers
®
IMPORTANCE: Self: 1 Others: 1 Boss:
22. It ‘s the hard skills that get you the interview
but it’s the soft skills that get you the job
26. The Pain Points
The average owner of a small business spends
between 20 percent and 40 percent of his or her
time on human resources, benefits employment
concerns, and government compliance
27. Average Salary
Human Resource Manager:
Rs 197,722 to Rs 1,207,546
Human Resource Generalist: Rs 99, 939 to Rs
467, 927
28. HR Tasks Frequency Skills Required
Manpower planning Once a year MBA HR
Policy development Once in 3-5 years MBA HR
Recruitment Daily/weekly/monthly SB Graduate
Performance Management Once a year MBA HR
Employee Joining and
Induction
Regularly SB Graduate
Exit Interviews Regularly/periodically SB Graduate/MBA
Training and Development Regularly SB Graduate/MBA(non
management)
Grievance handling Regularly SB Graduate
Disciplinary Action Periodically Personnel
Employee Relations Periodically SB Graduate
Statutory Regularly/Periodically SB Graduate
Payroll processing Regularly SB Graduate
Sources: Peter Saflund, Saflund Institute (Boeing and other workplace studies)
Presented in November 2007 at one of Cengage conferences in Las Vegas
“How Should Colleges Prepare Students to Succeed in Today’s Global Economy?” Association of American Colleges and Universities, 2006. Research by Petere D. Hart Research Associates, Inc.