Sharpening Your Soft Skills for Employment. Sandye Cox Region 10 Education Service Center Transition Consultant

Transcription

1 Sharpening Your Soft Skills for Employment Sandye Cox Region 10 Education Service Center Transition Consultant

2 Introduction Overview of Soft Skills Explicit Instruction of Soft Skills What do Employers Say Ways to Strengthen Soft Skills Shifting Responsibility

3 What are Soft Skills? Soft skills refer to the cluster of personality traits, social graces, facility with language, personal habits, friendliness, and optimism that mark people to varying degrees Soft skills complement hard skills, which are the technical requirements of a job Soft skills are also an important part of the success of an organization

4 Soft Skills are like, because.

5 Examples of Soft Skills Communication Interpersonal Skills Problem-solving Professionalism

6 The Importance of Soft Skills To Handle Interpersonal Relations To Make Appropriate Decisions To Communicate Effectively

7 Communication Skills Verbal Communication Non-Verbal Communication Technical Communication Written Communication

8 Interpersonal Skills Teamwork Respecting Others Attitude

9 Problem-Solving Skills Ability to Use Creativity Reasoning Ability to Make Decisions Ability to Use Available Resources

10 Professionalism Customer Service Reliability Take initiative Good Hygiene and Appearance Accountability

11 Instruction

12 Goal Writing Ensure that Soft Skills are included in student s Individualized Education Programs (IEP) Include Soft Skills as part of the student s Summary of Performance (SOP)

13 How can we Teach these Skills? Model skills what do they look like Authentic opportunities to practice Mock Interviews Businesses speak to classes

14 How can we Teach these Skills? Watch Videos Role Play Create Videos Parent support

15 U.S. Department of Labor Office of Disability Employment Policy Synopsis of Skills to Pay the Bills Videos MTI9i8&index=4&list=PLG0im2- n6wdl16gaxtofpi6yh3mpijeqp

16 What Employers Say

17 Skills for the Job Soft Skills are in as much demand as degrees and credentials Many employers would hire a person with good soft skills and train on job tasks These universal skills cross all career fields

18 2015 Forbes Survey 260 employers completed survey Most respondents were large companies like Chevron and IBM College and Graduate Degrees Matter Employers want Employees with more than Technical Skills

19 Top Skills Employers Most Wanted in Graduates Ability to work on a team Make decisions Communicate verbally with people inside and outside of the organization Plan, organize, prioritize Process information

20 Shifting Responsibility

21 New Expectations Educational Advocacy Versus World of Work Advocacy School Work

22 What can families do to help? Talk about your work with your students. Encourage good hygiene. Assigning chores to develop a sense of responsibility. Look for opportunities to practice cooperative work and independence

23 What can families do to help? Practice following directions Enforce expectations of personal responsibility

24 Employability

25 Resources Adams, S. (2014, November 12). The 10 Skills Employer Most Want In 2015 Graduates. Retrieved June 1, 2015, from Dimmit, Elizabeth for Labor Market and Career Information and Texas Workforce Commission, Succeed at Work.

26 Resources (cont.) Kockhhar-Bryant, C., Bassett, D.S., Webb, K. W., (2009). Transition to Postsecondary Education for Students with Disabilities. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press The National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth Helping Youth Develop Soft Skills for Job Success: Tips for Parents and Families.

27 Resources (cont.) U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Disability Employment Policy Soft Skills to Pay the Bills Mastering Soft Skills for Workplace Success.