Components of Soft Skills: The 6Ts

Summary

• Soft skills are emergent in nature.
• The components include the following 6Ts:
  • Tools
    • Tool
    • Technique
    • Thought
    • Tenet
  • Actions
    • Training
    • Test

Background

Soft Skills are Crucial Even in DevRel and DevEx

That's why I launched Soft Skills Engineering, abbreviated as SSE.

Just as software engineers propose optimal software and, if necessary, handle everything from current analysis to development and modifications, soft skills engineers also propose optimal soft skills, analyze the current state, improve what exists, and indeed, develop new ones.

What Exactly Are Soft Skills?

Yet, "soft skills" can be a vague concept. Therefore, I will provide a definition and its components.

Soft Skills are Emergent

First and foremost, soft skills (or rather, skills in general) are emergent.

Emergence refers to the property where "the whole is greater than the sum of its parts." It is sometimes called supermodularity. Emergent things cannot simply be described as consisting of A and B and C.

The same applies to soft skills. For example, consider the soft skill "communication". If you ask whether it is merely A + B + C + ... in terms of its components, the answer is No. Skills are far more complex, diverse, and ambiguous. As proof, if you ask ten people to talk about the components of communication, you are likely to get ten different answers.

Components of Soft Skills: The 6Ts

Although soft skills are emergent, there must be some components.

In SSE, we have categorized them into six Ts. Four are related to tools, and two are related to actions. Note that we are not addressing the levels of proficiency.

• Tools
  • 1: Tool
  • 2: Technique
  • 3: Thought
  • 4: Tenet
• Actions
  • 5: Training
  • 6: Test

Let's take a closer look.

1: Tool

Tool refers to anything you use, as the name suggests. While software and hardware are obvious examples, templates and checklists would also fall under this category.

Examples:

• Examples of Tools for the soft skill "communication":
  • Slack
  • Outlook or Google Calendar (tools for conducting meetings)
  • GitHub Issues (a tool for ticket management)

2: Technique

Technique refers to methodologies, methods, or processes. Consider these as collections of "linguistically described steps and hints." They are meant to be executed as described or used as references.

Examples:

• Examples of Techniques for the soft skill "communication":
  • Work methods like brainstorming or OST (Open Space Technology)
  • Text Based 1-on-1 (conducting 1-on-1 meetings through text communication)
  • Rapid Q&A (gathering hundreds or thousands of employees in one channel to establish Q&A through the power of numbers)

3: Thought

Thought encompasses interpretations and concepts. Consider these as linguistically described interpretations or concepts. Some are built as "components of some structure," like variable names or function names, while others are given names for convenience even if they don't have names yet. These are meant to be understood, discussed, and used in your way.

Examples:

• Examples of Thoughts for the soft skill "communication":
  • Psychological safety
  • QWINCS (a categorization of main types of communication tools: Q&A, Wiki, Issues, Notes, Chat, Sticky boards)
  • Dry Behavior (interacting with generative AI in a dry manner, applying this approach to humans as well)

In SSE, the most critical component is Thought.

I refer to it as concept hypothesis testing. In SSE, instead of creating “working software,” we focus on building “understandable concepts” and then testing them. Discussions are held around the created Thought, turning it into Techniques or Tools to try them out. This is indeed the third paradigm.

No.	Trend	Focus
1	Waterfall	Plan
2	Agile	Working software
3	Soft Skills Engineering	Understandable concepts

※ That said, understanding concepts is challenging, so there's a pressing need for software that assists in concept understanding. I'm considering whether generative AI could be used. I'll share any progress in due course.

4: Tenet

Tenet refers to cultures, dynamics, or beliefs. While it might be considered a type of Thought, it carries a nuance of being more fundamental and challenging to change than Thought. Tenets are things you understand by articulating them.

• Examples of Tenets in the context of the soft skill "communication":
  • A company culture that requires all employees to work in the office every day
  • A manager's belief that "1-on-1 meetings must be face-to-face"
  • Corporate cultures like “Starting with brainstorming, ending with brainstorming” or GitLab's all-remote company

5: Training

From here, we move on to the components related to "actions."

Training denotes practice. Here, practice refers to "acting it out" or "articulating your understanding and documenting it."

Notably, the action of articulation is included in training. This is intentional and quite essential. Just like writing code, configuration files, or documentation, it's about documenting soft skills (or their components) as well.

Just as non-engineers are often reluctant to code, engineers too may not be keen on writing about soft skills (or their components). And just as non-engineers may be hesitant to try out software, engineers too might be reluctant to experiment. But that won't get us forward. To advance in terms of soft skills, writing is necessary.

Training is practice, so you can do it alone, without showing anyone, as a personal endeavor. Alternatively, you can make it public for others to see. In any case, it is self-contained. The next step involves Test.

6: Test

Test means trial. It involves actually trying out the 4Ts developed in SSE. Specifically, it means using them yourself, showing them to others and observing their reactions, or getting others to try using them.

In SSE, we always adopt the mindset of constant trials. Personal, informal experimentation or officially adopting it in a team to see how it works—both are considered Test.

Re-examining Soft Skills Engineering

Here's what it entails:

• New Development: Developing new soft skills
  • For instance, I deal with task management (Task Engineering), creative thinking, exploration and crossover, such as Project vs Transject
• Wide Contribution: Sharing the developed 4Ts and 2Ts broadly, and offering support opportunities
  • For example, disseminating through blog posts to all employees, publishing documents, or offering study sessions and events
• Deep Contribution: Developing and supporting 4Ts and 2Ts for specific entities
  • For instance, creating soft skills or 6Ts tailored to the needs of individuals, teams, or organizations

I am eager to promote this emerging field as a soft skills engineer. I consider it urgent, especially in today's era of generative AI. If you need support or wish to hire me, please feel free to contact me.

Conclusion

How was it? I hope this article helped you get a sense of SSE.

This article first stated that soft skills are emergent. It then introduced the 6Ts as components. The tools aspect includes the four Ts: Tool, Technique, Thought, and Tenet. The action aspect includes Training and Test.