Career Advancement: It’s the Soft Stuff That’s Really the Hard Stuff

Job seekers who focus on selling their experience or technical skills may be missing out in today’s job market, according to new research by Right Management. Organizations are looking for people with a good motivational fit with the team and the organization’s culture.

A recent Right Management study of close to nearly 900 senior leaders and Human Resource professionals revealed surprising insights into just what factors lead most frequently to on-the-job success. Respondents overwhelmingly pointed not to employees’ technical skills, expertise or experience, but to other, very different qualities: organizational culture and motivational fit, as well as savvy, appropriate interpersonal skills. For example, the number of respondents who felt that “organizational culture/motivational fit” contributes most to accelerated performance was more than 2 ½ times greater than those who pointed to “technical skills” or “relevant experience” as the most significant factor.

These findings have implications for both job seekers and for leadership development.

Full Story: http://www.greatleadershipbydan.com/2010/05/its-soft-stuff-thats-really-hard-stuff.html