Bridging the Soft Skills Gap: How to Teach the Missing Basics to the New Hybrid Workforce - Hardcover

by Bruce Tulgan (Author)

Nurture and develop well-rounded team players by focusing on soft skills development

People entering the professional world are better educated than ever before. Their technical skills are often off-the-charts, helping them make short work of even the most challenging tasks. At the same time, however, many of these very same people lack soft skills we've often taken for granted.

In the newly revised second edition of Bridging the Soft Skills Gap: How to Teach the Missing Basics to the New Hybrid Workforce, veteran business advisor, speaker, and consultant Bruce Tulgan delivers a practical and incisive roadmap to developing crucial professionalism, critical thinking, and teamwork skills. You'll also find:

• A collection of 92 instructive lesson plans designed to break soft skills down into their component parts and teach them one manageable piece at a time
• An exploration of the soft skills gap, including what it means and how its impact on your organization will be felt
• Explanations of why you can't hire your way around a soft skills gap

An essential leadership handbook for executives, managers, and other business leaders, Bridging the Soft Skills Gap is a must-read resource for human resources professionals, team leaders, and front-line employees who deal with promising, but unpolished, talent.

Front Jacket

New entrants to the professional arena are better educated and more highly skilled than ever before. Their technical abilities are frequently off-the-charts, allowing them to make short work of even the most challenging tasks. Simultaneously, however, many of these very same people often lack the soft skills many of us take for granted.

In the newly updated Second Edition of Bridging the Soft Skills Gap: How to Teach the Missing Basics to the New Hybrid Workforce, renowned business advisor and management strategist Bruce Tulgan delivers a hands-on and insightful blueprint for helping young professionals develop essential critical thinking, teamwork, and interpersonal skills. In the book, you'll explore a collection of 92 instructive lesson plans that break down soft skills into bite-sized, digestible parts and walk you through how to teach them to new hires and existing employees.

You'll discover what the "soft skills gap" means for your employees, your leaders, and your business, and learn how it impacts your company's growth and success in the marketplace. You'll also find out why you can't hire your way out of a soft skills deficiency and why the only concrete and lasting solution lies in making changes to the way you onboard, train, and develop your people.

A can't-miss leadership resource for executives, managers, and other professionals, Bridging the Soft Skills Gap is also an essential handbook for human resources professionals, team leaders, and front-line employees who deal with promising, but unpolished, talent. The book will also earn a place on the bookshelves of young professionals seeking a managerial perspective on their own generation and strategies to develop their skillset.

Back Jacket

PRAISE FOR THE PREVIOUS EDITION OF BRIDGING THE SOFT SKILLS GAP

"Tulgan takes understanding and addressing challenges with 'generational diversity AND inclusion' to the next level. This book is chock-full of meaningful and effective strategies for getting the most out of this critical talent component."
--SUE UNVARSKY, Senior Vice President, U.S. Customer Service, Prudential Retirement

"As you read this book, as well as his others, you can't help but think of real people and real situations in your organization that you are dealing with every day.... We look forward to embracing and incorporating his lessons on how to teach the missing basics in our leadership development program."
--STEVE BELL, Vice President, Human Resources, Glen-Gery Corporation

"Bridging the Soft Skills Gap is an essential tool for developing today's talent. Tulgan's book offers an easy, no-nonsense approach to building greater soft skills critical for success."
--TANI BIALEK, PHD, Director, Training and Development, TransPerfect

"Bruce Tulgan offers down-to-earth, practicable and actionable answers. Tulgan again identifies a critical issue plaguing many of today's companies, and provides clear step-by-step instruction for teaching professionalism, critical thinking, and followership."
--GREGG EDWARDS, Chief People Officer, Asante Health System

"In the restaurant business, our brand is primarily delivered to every guest every time through our hourly teams, the Millennial workforce. We've incorporated Bruce's concepts and practices into our training materials and daily management practices."
--ALAN PALMIERI, Executive Leadership and Operational Development, Synergy Restaurant

"This book offers immediately transferable ideas and guidance for a leader to enable your employees to bridge the gap in basic skills."
--SYLVIA B. VOGT, (Ret.) President, Carnegie Bosch Institute for International Management at Carnegie Mellon University (2008-2022)

"Bruce's methods for training young talent in soft skills are not only effective but help bridge the generation gap in the workplace and prepare future leaders for success."
--RAY KOTCHER, Non-Executive Chairman, Ketchum, Inc.; Professor of the Practice, Public Relations, Boston University College of Communication

"Professionalism, critical thinking and followership are critical skills for today's law enforcement professionals. Bruce provides commonsense solutions for managers to develop these skills in themselves and their employees."
--COLONEL CRAIG PRICE, Cabinet Secretary, SD Department of Public Safety; Superintendent, South Dakota Highway Patrol (2011-2019)

Author Biography

BRUCE TULGAN is a sought-after speaker, leader, and advisor to businesses and executives around the world. He is the Founder of RainmakerThinking, Inc., which works with top companies on improving their management practices, as well as the bestselling author of It's Okay to be the Boss, Managing Generation X, and Not Everyone Gets a Trophy.