Organizational Longevity

When markets, the economy, technology and fads change, what's the best way to ensure continued relevance for your organization?  We tend to focus on what we're good at from a technical perspective, emphasizing "hard skills" and ignoring soft skills.

When the inevitable changes come that challenge our organizations, sometimes shaking them to their core, what kinds of skills will matter most?

The point here is that the "soft" skills strengths that team members bring to the table are far more important than whether they can operate a machine, manage a budget, or improve a process.  Often these things become irrelevant when organizations find themselves needing to re-invent, re-engineer, or recover from a bad year.

The ability to collaborate, communicate effectively, build consensus and inspire are far more important attributes to ensure success in an ever changing business world. Succinctly, would you rather have someone working for you who was technically competent, or someone who you knew you could count on to make things happen, focus on the team before self, and inspire others to do the same?

Dale Carnegie celebrated the 97th year of our being in business yesterday.  Our focus on people skills, leadership, communication skills, and the ability to control stress and worry has carried us through economic times worse than what has happened in 2009.

Where is your organization's focus?  Where should it be?