Soft skills statistics in the UK in 2022

Soft skills are absolutely essential in the workplace, whether you’re at the bottom of the corporate ladder or you’re a CEO. High levels of social and emotional intelligence make a big difference when it comes to workplace performance. This is true for those who manage teams of employees, work as part of a team, and even those who work independently.

But which soft skills are the most important in the eyes of the British workforce? And which skills are we most eager to learn? To find out, we conducted a survey of UK adults alongside an analysis of online search volumes conducted over the last five years on the topic of soft skills.

Key findings: list of soft skills in the workplace – what’s in demand?

An overview of our key soft skills facts and figures:

• Leadership soft skills are considered the most important soft skill for managers in the workplace to possess, followed by verbal communication and teamwork skills
• Young people aged 16-24 value written communication more than any other age group
• Nearly a third of UK adults believe empathy is the most important soft skill their manager could possess
• More men than women feel that leadership is the most important managerial skill
• Online searches for communication skills have increased year on year since the start of the Coronavirus pandemic

Read our findings to discover more compelling soft skills statistics, including:

• Leadership soft skills: which soft skills do UK adults most want their managers to possess?
• Do men and women prioritise soft skills differently?
• Scope of soft skills preference – men vs women
• What do different age groups believe are the most important soft skills?
• How do various age groups regard workplace soft skills?
• Which different types of soft skills do we want to learn most?