How can you evaluate soft skills during the resume screening process?

This is where your blank application questions comes in. It's a very useful tool to get more information from candidates which might not be highlighted in their resume. In turn, you'll get to see their thought process with what and how they answer your application questions. I also look for milestones or achievements per role listed, and how they have described that experience is helpful too.

Evaluating soft skills during the resume screening process can be challenging, as soft skills are often demonstrated through behaviors and experiences rather than explicit qualifications, here is how we can evaluate - 1.Review the Objective or Summary 2.Examine Work Experience Descriptions 3.Assess Achievements 4.Analyze Volunteer or Extracurricular Activities 5.Look for Keywords 6.Check for Professional Development 7.Assess Language Use 8.Consider Referees or Recommendations 9.Examine Personal Projects 10.Assess Formatting and Attention to Detail While these strategies can provide some insights into a candidate's soft skills, it's important to remember that a comprehensive evaluation often requires additional stages in the hiring process.

Certainly! When scanning resumes for soft skills, imagine you're on a treasure hunt for keywords like "collaborated," "innovated," or "led cross-functional teams." Look out for achievements that whisper, "I'm adaptable" or "I turned challenges into victories with a smile." If their resume were a song, you'd want a melody of teamwork and a chorus of communication. And remember, the best talent often has a sprinkle of creativity and a dash of humor – because who wouldn't want a colleague with a great sense of GIF-timing?

The technique that worked best for me is a simple call. Within 2 minutes of a call, I can understand if the communication skills of a candidate are at a level of my expectations. If I still want to gauge their proactiveness or their communication, I throw at them what I call is a "Curved ball". I will open up an entirely unrelated topic with them and start discussing on it. This is something that is generated instantly as the candidate thinks and speaks their mind. This is where I can actually know if they have what it takes to "Build" or "Hold" an unexpected conversation with the same wit, Confidence, or vocabulary as their "Practiced" conversations.

It’s very difficult to figure out soft skills skill of candidates through CV. However, we can look for soft competencies via what candidate declare in CV even they don’t put those skills. For example, we can identify their negotiation/collaboration skill based on achievement such as work with production and purchasing on material waste to save USD2,500/month.

I usually check for profiles which are crisp and clear. Formatted well without grammar and phrase errors. Also i used to check for profiles are written in chronological order. Which is best followed by the candidates and easily readable by recruiters.

Checking the format style will only tell us one thing: how good is this candidate at formatting their resume? This does not really tell us anything about their soft skills or their match with the job (unless the job is to write and format resumes of course). We might think formatting and styling can tell us a whole bunch about a person and how they will do certain things, but it can't. And we need to acknowledge this.

Evaluating soft skills during resume screening involves looking for evidence of communication, teamwork, and problem-solving. For example, a candidate listing experience as a "team lead" suggests leadership and collaboration skills. Additionally, descriptions of resolving conflicts or managing projects indicate critical thinking and interpersonal abilities. I focus on such cues to gauge a candidate's soft skills before the interview stage.

I always focus on the structure of the resume. Resumes that are well structured in terms of showcasing the important information head on are the ones to go for. Things like inconsistency in the font/font size/unnecessary use of different colours or Charts and graphs always put me off. So, a consistent and structured resume is what I always prefer because in my opinion, it somewhat reflects the personality of the candidate as well.

Focus on the accomplishments mentioned in the resume. Assess how candidates achieved their goals and the role soft skills played in those achievements. Examples of overcoming challenges, leading successful projects, or collaborating with diverse teams can indicate strong soft skills.

When I look at resumes, I focus on what candidates have achieved. I pay attention to things they've done that show their skills, like improving a process or solving a problem. For example, someone saying they "made a project faster by 30%" tells me they're good at fixing things and maybe good at explaining ideas too. I like reading about how candidates solved problems. Like, one person talked about how they fixed an argument between clients by listening well and understanding both sides. This showed they're good at getting along with people and solving problems calmly.

In my experience, I often evaluate the context in which achievements are presented and look for instances where the stated soft skills on the resume played a pivotal role. That way I am able to create a correlation between their skills and what they are able to achieve

Reviewing achievements in resumes is informative, but coupling this with competency models offers a fuller picture of soft skills. These models outline key skills and behaviors needed for specific roles, helping to contextualize a candidate's accomplishments. While achievements like improved performance or revenue growth highlight certain competencies, they might not fully reveal skills like teamwork or adaptability. Competency models allow us to see beyond the numbers and understand how a candidate's skills align with job requirements, ensuring a more comprehensive assessment of their potential fit and impact in the role.

I strongly believe there is a strong correlation between soft skills and measurable achievements. I always look for individuals who not only describe their soft talents but also provide actual examples of how such skills positively impacted their former employers. An advice here would be to analyse the circumstances in which the use of soft skills took place. For example, a candidate who displays a practical application of the skill by mentioning excellent communication abilities in the context of managing a cross-functional team or resolving disagreements is demonstrating that they have practised the competence.

Analyze how candidates describe their roles and responsibilities. Look for evidence of effective communication, collaboration, and teamwork. Consider how candidates interacted with colleagues, clients, or other stakeholders in their previous roles.

Once I go through everything with my candidates, I really love asking: “?Is there anything yo believe is important for the process we didn’t discuss or that I didn’t ask?”. This also empowers them to go through other valuable hard and soft skills and have them engaged on the process.

References and Recommendations: Look for references or recommendations from previous employers, colleagues, or mentors. These can offer insights into a candidate's soft skills from the perspective of others who have worked with them. Cover Letter Analysis: Analyze the cover letter for writing style, clarity, and persuasion. These aspects can reflect a candidate's communication and interpersonal skills. Social Media Presence: If the candidate provides links to professional profiles (e.g., LinkedIn), check for endorsements or recommendations related to soft skills. Reviewing social media profiles can provide additional context, though it's important to balance this with ethical considerations.

Extend your assessment beyond the resume. Explore candidates' LinkedIn profiles or personal websites if available. These platforms might offer additional details about their experiences and endorsements from peers, shedding more light on their soft skills.

Implementing a multi-reviewer approach can add depth to the evaluation process. Having different perspectives helps in mitigating bias and ensures a more comprehensive assessment of candidates' soft skills. Provide training to the evaluators on using the rating system. This ensures consistency in assessment methodologies and interpretation of the established criteria.

A thorough screening of the resume layout, language and verbosity. gives a an idea of the behavioral dimension of the candidate - identify soft skills that are relevant to the requirements of the role - look out for any projects that required critical thinking, leadership, conceptualization and communication skills as well as for collaborations outside of professional work like university projects, internships. Evaluate when the candidate has run that extra mile and performed beyond expectations.

I used to advise my clients to add achievement in every company they worked with because it not only show you have done a good job but also your value. Recruiter or hiring manager will find your competencies matched with their requirement.

- If available, you should think about looking at professional endorsements or recommendations on websites such as LinkedIn. These can offer different points of view from a third party on the soft skills of a candidate. - When reviewing the resume, pay close attention to any behavioural signs that are stated. As an illustration, a candidate who asserts that they take pleasure in tackling novel difficulties may be able to demonstrate a certain degree of adaptability. - Evaluate the degree to which the experience of a candidate is relevant to the soft talents that you are looking for. Strong interpersonal and communication skills may be possessed by an individual who has previous experience working in customer-facing roles.

Nowadays a lot of firms use AI softwares to get a % ranking of profile matches to JDs, personalising your CV instead of mass applications definitely increases your chances. In addition to this, make sure you use the correct skills and verbiage required for the job. Add in a section of transferable skills, achievements and a personalised note (cover letter) as to why you are suitable for the role and things that may not essentially be on your CV.

-If available, read the cover letter. It might offer additional context or examples of how the candidate's soft skills align with the job requirements. -Sometimes, candidates include a section specifically for soft skills. While this may lack detailed context, it can still offer some insight into how the candidate perceives their own strengths.

Nothing will demonstrate a Candidate's soft skills like a short intro call! Apart from the communication skills level, you'll get a feel of character of the Candidate, Manners and humility in the personality. Of'Course, you'd have to be a good judge of character too but the tone of voice, the manner in which someone responds to a cold call providing him a career opportunity, asking questions about their profile and resume tells me all about their soft skills.