The hidden truth to success of climbing a corporate ladder

Apart from domain knowledge, the need for soft skills is growing at a rapid pace. Be it financial services, science & technology, healthcare or tourism, to name a few, the requirement of soft skills is at par with knowledge.

We are no longer dealing with people within our boundaries but on a global level and for that it is essential that one enhance their communication skills, business communication skills, interpersonal skills, english language skills, business & personal etiquette; along with grooming & hygeine.

After meeting so many key level managers, directors & managing directors in MNCs (multinational corporations ), one common problem has surfaced time & again. "They know what they are doing, they know how to do it; they simply don't know how to tell others how to do it or explain how they did it".



TRUTH: Technical or hard skills will get you the job, but effective soft skills will help you climb the corporate ladder.

A study done by Stanford research institute and Carnegie Mellon foundation involving fortune 500 CEOs, shows that 75% of long term job success depends on people skills & only 25% depends on technical knowledge.

APIIT's (Asia Pacific Institute of Information Technology) Dr. Parmjit Singh's research showed that the top three complaints were that graduates had 'poor communication skills', 'lack initiative' and 'lack creativity'.

For example - India is full of knowledgeable people but most of them, be it from tier I, II, III colleges, can't get their message across, have a hard time fitting in, and at times get intimidated by a fast talker. Being one of the largest harbinger of software outsourcing industry, this is an alarming gap which needs to be filled. It is important to have technical knowledge; however, it is equally important to effectively communicate with others, negotiate, mentor and deliver.