What Soft Skills Do Recruiters Look For?

Given the fast-paced changes happening around us, it now is more important than ever to pay attention to the nuts and bolts of recruiting. Understanding the soft skills that recruiters look for in candidates can go a long way in helping you land your dream job.

Stay glued to this article to read what catches the employer’s attention and how you can create a great first impression with your exceptional soft skills. We will also guide you on how you can foster the desirable characteristics that recruiters look for!

1. Clarity of thoughts on future career progression

Recruiters want to hire people who can continuously make a positive contribution to the organization. One way to show your proclivity to do so is to convince them that you have a clear idea about your future career prospects for yourself. 

In his book "What's Your Moonshot?'' John Sanei urges you to ask the bigger bolder question that will help you thrive rather than merely survive in exponentially changing times. Therefore, channelizing the chance of asking questions to the interviewer can go a long way.

2. Adaptability to learn new things

As change is the only constant, recruiters want their employees to be flexible to learn new things. It can be done by bracing for the future in terms of the in-demand skills you might want to learn. While hard skills can be learned, attitude is a deciding factor.

With education being more democratic with platforms like SWAYAM, Udemy, Coursera etc, it is high time to upskill to get future-ready. A recent study from interviewing.io finds that interviewees who took online courses performed better in interviews than peers.

3. Leadership skills

People skills are extremely important with leadership being a desirable trait. Even at lower-level hiring, such skills are important to show the ability to work in teams and the knack to lead them onto career progression.

Technical skills and impressive experience are desirable traits in a candidate, however, they alone are never enough in group settings. The mastery of soft skills is indeed a trait that recruiters look for and is needed to create a vision for the team to inspire. 

4. Enthusiasm and vibrance

Enthusiasm is one of the most underrated characteristics among interviewees. Little do they know that it can go a long way in forming long-run impressions. Skills can be learned, but not passion. 

If the interviewee is well-read about the company and the position being applied for, recruiters fairly estimate the person to be well motivated to perform well. Therefore, it is a must to research well about the organization to set yourself apart from the crowd of applicants. 

5. Cultural alignment to the organization

One of the most important factors setting the hired candidate apart from others is how the person aligns to the company’s values. Cultural fit is extremely crucial, so much so that they even consider having separate interview rounds to check the same.

The best way to convey your values is to be honest, and not bluff. It’s a great idea to understand the culture of the organization in advance and then substantiate how your soft skills would align well. 

As you must have observed, small efforts can go a long way in your recruiting journey. The soft skills that we discussed are as important as your technical acumen and recruiters most definitely look for candidates that possess good soft skills. These are our two cents on helping you in your recruiting process. D2C wishes you the best!