Overview of the necessary soft skills for an IT specialist

A modern IT specialist must be multifunctional. Professionalism of an IT specialist consists not only in technical knowledge, but also in the presence of personal flexible qualities. Employers pay attention to them during employment, and their future career in IT depends on them.

What are soft skills

Soft skills are personal qualities of a person, not directly related to his/her specialisation, but indirectly intertwined with skills. Soft skills for a developer are the ability to interact effectively with a team, find non-standard solutions. 

Certain qualities are given to a person from birth and brought up in the family (politeness, hospitality). But for the most part, strong communication skills are not in the "factory settings" of an IT specialist. They are acquired with experience and training.

So you will still have to develop soft skills. After all, it is difficult to work in a team without the ability to listen, ask questions, calmly convey an idea and defend it.

Why does an IT guy need soft skills

Today, the IT sphere has undergone dramatic changes. Developers not only have to clearly fulfil technical tasks, but also constantly learn, because languages, frameworks, and tools change quite often.

But that's not all: you need to develop soft skills (communication skills, the ability to find an approach to colleagues and clients). So you can't just sit in a corner: IT specialists need to be able to work in a team.

Some developers will say: "Soft skills for a programmer is some unnecessary philosophy. I know a lot of languages and frameworks, I have English C2, I know maths as well as a university professor and I can do things that nobody else can do. Why do I need anything else? 

That thought is wrong, and here's why:

1. Good flexible skills help in employment. You may be perfect in your technical competences, but you have forgotten about your personal competences - the same soft skills. These are often the reason why many smart candidates are rejected for employment, explaining that the interviewee: 

• Didn't show any enthusiasm.
• Has not demonstrated leadership skills (Seniors and above).
• Doesn't know how to present himself.
• Answers too quickly but can't explain the train of thought.
• Doesn't know how to get the message across.
• Rude, constantly interrupting.
• Overconfident.

 If several candidates have equally strong hard skills, the employer will choose the one who can listen, communicate, take responsibility, etc.

2. Adaptation in a new team. Coming to a new project is like moving to a new country. There are different rules, culture, even the slang is different. A new job is stressful. And it is flexible skills that will help in adaptation. They make it easier to fit in and build relationships in the team, not to lose heart on the first day.
3. Effective communication in everyday work. Every day you will have to interact with the team: meetings, negotiations, calls. You need to be able to present a product, defend an opinion, explain logic. Somewhere to compromise, where to remain steadfast. Soft skills come to the rescue again.
4. Opportunity to be a speaker at an event or be a mentor. An employee with strong software skills is always given interesting tasks. If he or she has good presentation skills, he or she will be assigned to speak at prestigious IT conferences. If a programmer can share his experience, he can become a mentor.
5. Career advancement. Sooner or later you will want a raise or promotion. At least engineers in the majority and their own are eager to develop. And the higher you advance, the more soft skills come to the fore. Yes, hard skills need to be pumped up too. However, without leadership skills and an established emotional intelligence, you can hardly expect to get a position as a team leader or architect. The competition is fierce, so the best of the best get to the finish line.

Top 7 soft skills for an IT professional

What are soft skills soft skills? They are usually associated with communication skills. However, the ability to communicate is an important but not the only skill. There are 120 soft skills in total.

The list of soft skills includes social skills (this includes communication), intellectual skills (e.g. learning or diligence). Soft skills also include leadership skills (responsibility, mentoring, etc.).

Top 7 important soft skills:

1. Understanding the value for the customer. A product is created for people: customer, users, etc. A good developer should understand what he/she is doing, what problem he/she is solving, what is the value for the customer.
2. Communication and negotiation skills. Communication is a mast-key for a programmer: the ability to listen and hear, maintain relationships, convey thoughts without necessarily being an eloquent speaker. Communication skills are also important for sharing experience. The ability to share knowledge is one of the traits of a pro. 
3. Responsibilities. Every day developers have obligations - to the team, to the client. They are responsible for quality and meeting deadlines. Responsibility is reliability, and people will want to work with such a specialist because they can always rely on him.
4. Ability to prioritise. A person is not able to manage time, but it is in his power to set priorities, distribute tasks, find the right work-life balance. Time management skill helps in this. If you plan your work incorrectly, it becomes unproductive and exhausting. Therefore, you need to set priorities and have room for manoeuvre when force majeure occurs.
5. Teamwork. The successes of Facebook or Google are solely the result of teamwork. Alone in the digital world is not a warrior. Fortunately, today there is a growing realisation that the success of a project depends on teamwork.
6. Emotional Intelligence. It is the ability to master emotions and show empathy. People are different: some are calm, others are aggressive, some are funny, others don't like jokes. When you understand their feelings, you can understand your colleagues' motivations and interact with them accordingly. When we are annoyed by something, we often take impulsive actions that we regret. When we are aware of our emotions, we can make informed decisions.
7. Flexibility and creativity. IT attracts creative people who can think outside the box and find new non-standard solutions. It will be hard for those who can only work according to instructions. At least in a highly competitive environment.

So, to become a sought-after specialist, develop your hard and soft skills simultaneously and persistently. A harmonious combination of these skills makes a programmer a professional.