Competencies and values training

One of my colleagues once said to me, “my boss does not believe in soft skills training, Francis. But we know that this is what we need in the company.”

This is not unusual.

Even more so if the chief of organization cannot get a justified return of investment for the money spent on the training. But I do not blame them. I knew that they were not instructed to look deeper at the realities within the organization.

Many business organizations are huge on technical competencies, but short on soft-skills and values-based trainings. Some business owners deem their employees as skills providers, and because of this, they fail to recognize the considerable and untapped values contained in each of their employees.

Famous business consultant Mike Myatt said: “It’s the cumulative power of a person’s soft skills, the sum of the parts that creates real value. It’s not what a person knows so much as it is how they’re able to use said knowledge to inspire and create brilliance in others that really matters. We live in a time that has moved well beyond competency-driven models, yet organizations still primarily use competency-based interviews, competency-based development, competency-based performance reviews, and competency-based rewards as their framework for doing business.”

Many business companies pay lip service to things like character, trust, passion, integrity, innovation and team work. You can find these corporate buzzwords neatly presented in their corporate web sites or hung as polished plaques on their walls, yet they don’t practice what they preach. They don’t put utmost value on guiding their employees.

What most companies do to implement these corporate buzzwords is to print pretty words behind corporate ID’s, reproduce them on coffee mugs, carve them on pencil cases and require employees to memorize corporate values. Though admittedly economical, petty memorization do not make the employees appreciate these soft skills.  Sincere guidance and training help employees internalize these values and live them out. What many people do not understand is that corporate values, life values and leadership skills are life skills. The challenge is how to make everyone in the organization see this.

You can easily measure competency, but not soft skills. The real challenge here is to understand that just because something is hard to measure, does not mean it is unimportant. Look at the common problems that arise in the workplace, don’t they usually involve ‘soft skills’?

Another reason for the creeping shortage of soft-skills in the workplace is the finding of qualified, able and credible coach to do the guidance. The truth of the matter is that most employees behave like children. They refuse to listen to what their parents say but they believe teachers that say the same. I find this humorous because every time I do ‘Values-trainings’ and engage the participants in active talk, I can see the senior executives or even the CEOs shaking their heads as if saying, “but this is what I have always been telling them...”

You see, soft skills training are vital. Mike Myatt said: “The value organizations should be cultivating and curating in people is their ability to align purpose, vision, values, character, and commitment with demonstrated competency. Competency isn’t the entirety of a person’s worth, and it certainly shouldn’t be the gold standard of their measurement. It’s a small part of the equation, but in many cases, corporations treat it as if it’s the only thing that matters.

Here’s the thing – you can possess the greatest technical wizard, but that doesn’t make you a great leader. If you don’t care, aren’t collaborative, can’t communicate, refuse to take input and feedback, or you even allow your hubris to overshadow your humility, then you might be intelligent, but you’re not very bright. The really sad part of the story is how often a person is rewarded in a competency-based system.

Don’t just let corporate values be buzzwords, but do some serious training and create a company culture that is based on these points. You’d be surprised at how much more your business can achieve when your people do not only perform well, but behave well.

(Spend two inspiring days with Francis Kong learning leadership and life skills as he presents Level Up Leadership June 24-25 at the EDSA Shangri-La Hotel. For further inquiries contact Inspire at 09158055910 or call 632-6310912 for details.)