There has been much discussion revolving around the issue of whether the applicant’s social skills are more important than their academic qualifications. In this essay, I will explain why social skills are more vital, in comparison to academic qualifications.
The merits of social skills are more apparent. Firstly, the majority of the jobs require human interaction at some levels with stakeholders. Therefore, having good communication skills will play a major role. Secondly, having good sales skills which comes naturally from having the ability to listen, to understand the customer needs and being generally likable all require strong social skills. As an example, customers always prefer to work with employees with whom they feel comfortable which comes to social skills. After all, as the saying goes “Who you work with is as important as what you do”. An enjoyable working environment require socially skilled employees.
In contrast, some others claim that having academic qualification is the pre-requisite to be hired for the organization. It is apparent that certain jobs needs to focus on the academic background such as doctors and engineers. But, it does not erase the importance of having the social skills.
Having considered both views, I strongly believe that social skills are overriding importance for the organization. I would like to suggest to consider the employee’s social skills prior to hiring to any role, since it will affect the performance of not only the individual, but the whole organization.