[NoName]

I am interested in hearing your perspective and personal experience in regards to hard skills (your IQ, inherent ability, and mastery of finance and accounting) versus your soft skills (EQ, leadership,communication skills, etc).

Here is what I have observed:

1. Large metro area – Much more focus on smart/capable people being promoted (70% people who are heavy on the hard/technical skills and 30% based on the soft skills)

2. Current situation (much smaller area) – I feel the scale is almost inverted. There seems to be too much focus (70%) on soft skills and not enough on the hard skills.

The most ironic thing is that none of the “leaders” I’ve known over the years here in the smaller area seem like exceptional leaders at all. They are average at best. I don’t see them investing in people or inspiring anyone with their innate abilities (laughing out loud).

Maybe I am biased but I am of the opinion the smart people should be in charge (at least below the executive level). Once it goes to VP and beyond now you have exceptional individuals that are highly talented at both aspects.

[NoName]

I should clarify, I am referring to leaders in mid management (supervisors, managers, directors, controllers, etc). There have been some good folks in the higher (executive) ranks even in this smaller area.

[fassopony]

If you aren't the one hiring or promoting leaders you don't get to choose what being a leader entails. Soft skills are important because that is a foundation for how you communicate with coworkers and clients. Being “smart” and scoring high on a test does not equal leadership ability.

For example, I work with a person who is excellent at her job and I see a lot of potential in her to move up but her soft skills are horrid. She is a finger pointer, she is resistant to change, and generally comes across as a 6 year old in many work settings. She huffs around and acts like a drama queen when she sees someone else make a mistake. She interrupts and bellows out her opinion unasked. I hate that I have to now treat her like a 6 year old when she is 48 and should be better.

If you are looking to get ahead you need to reassess your values. Knowledge and ability is a foundation for a job but unless you learn and grow in how to work with others and communicate you won't get far.

[NoName]

Hi Fassopony

I agree with nearly all of your post but I am not sure what to make of the very first part. Inhabiting a leadership position versus actually being a leader (and exhibiting those characteristics) are two completely separate things. Care to clarify?

I think you mean to say that leaders are often selected for subjective reasons (whether right or wrong) as it's based upon the company culture (interpretation) of what being a leader means.

The way you wrote it makes it come off as “you are not allowed to have an opinion of the leaders if you are not the one selecting the leaders and defining leadership”. That was my initial reaction when I read it.

[fassopony]

You read it correctly lol. In short, you aren't allowed to have an opinion, at least not officially. Of course we all have our opinions in private. What you are allowed is to work with the people who are placed in leadership positions regardless of what your opinion is. That can be an exercise in character building. The bad news is that the higher up the chain you go, the harder it can be.

We all have different ideas of what makes a leader but in the end, the one writing the paycheck gets to make the call.

Point being- soft skills are necessary for success in the majority of work situations.

[Biff Tannen]

Who cares about soft skills? This is a CPA exam forum. If you want to improve your soft skills, go read a Dale Carnegie book or attend a Tony Robbins seminar.

[NoName]

Biff…if you have nothing productive to say you could just avoid commenting on the thread rather than insulting the worth of the topic. Your post has added zero value other than mentioning a good book (which I have read by the way).

[NoName]

This forum is about discussing more than just the CPA exams. You obviously haven't spent much time around here or paid much attention to the various threads.

[NoName]

Fassopony….I get the sarcasm now :). My initial interpretation was correct. The situation you are describing was talked about in one of John Maxwell's books regarding how to lead when “your boss won't lead or is unable to lead”. I am paraphrasing of course but yes we have to accept it and it can often be hard to accept!

[fassopony]

There's that character LOL!!!

Biff could use a few pointers though…

[Biff Tannen]

@cpaguy all jokes aside, that dale carnegie book was a game changer for me

[jombe]

I like working w/ smarter folks in general. If I had to choose between a smart, but not personable professional and a personable, but not smart professional, I would choose the former every time.
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W/ that said, I expect professionals to behave like professionals. If you start throwing tantrums for whatever reason, that has nothing to do w/ your soft skills. You are just not a professional. We can all accomplish what we need to accomplish w/o the screaming/crying/throwing things and again, I don't believe that “good” soft skills is what stops people from doing such things. That's just the minimum I look for in a professional.

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[Lindsey_p87]

I don't have much of an opinion on the regionality (?) of the topic – I live in a smaller metro area and have seen both smart and not-so-smart people make it to the top. What I will say is, I don't think it's THAT hard to be a decent human being, which is a large part of being a leader. Have a little empathy for those under you and treat them how you would want to be treated. The sad reality is a lot of managers seem to be missing this basic human trait.

I do think there's a lot more nuance that goes into truly being a good leader, some of it can be taught, some of it can't. But being a decent human being goes a long way in my mind.

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[PC]

Depends on the business. If you face clients directly, soft skills matter more. In theory yes, high level execs should have both skillsets but I've found that to be rare. Typically, folks excel at one more than the other. The challenge is recognizing where improvement is needed – not enough introspection takes place at many companies, especially for those with the hard skills that are a nightmare to work with as people.

[12tang]

There definitely is no one size fits all. It's an executive level decision for what type of leaders they retain and hire. I have a boss who is smart, but he's also very antisocial. This has profound negative effects and many have expressed to me that they feel like they cannot talk to him. They feel the effects of the lack of leadership. The owners at my company see it too, but finding qualified individuals is very hard. You can't just replace a guy like my boss, it takes years to learn the company's processes, software, people, etc… So my boss retains his position. The guy who originally sat in my bosses position retired and had a more well rounded personality, but was more of a leader type and not as technical as his successor.. The retiree straight out told me that I had to help my boss to stand-firm.
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Regardless of how a company chooses to operate, it's my firm belief that a business professional who exhibits soft skills is an asset. It's much harder to teach soft skills, than it is to teach technical skills. I also know a kid I went to college with who is smart as they come. It's been 5 years and he still cannot hold an accounting position despite his high grades. Why? Because he's extremely awkward and lacks social skills. He works in a warehouse and is still looking for an accounting position at a company that will keep him longer than a few months… Soft skills are important, and are the one type of skill that permeates all industries and professions… There are plenty of smart people that I've come across in life that are very difficult to be around, and that's ALWAYS bad for business…
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The number one thing most accounting firms expressed to our university staff was that they wanted individuals with soft skills. Because what they were finding, was the exact opposite. It's kind of catch-22 because us accountants are often a certain personality-type, typically introverted. I did find it funny that HR at accounting firms weren't accountants, and demanded accountants who exhibited soft skills. Clear sign that the kind of accountants businesses want aren't the same types they wanted back in the day… We need to break out from our comfy shells if we want to remain relevant.

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