Its nice to be nice at work: role of interpersonal skills for career success

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to highlight the role of interpersonal skills in getting ahead in one’s career.

Design/methodology/approach

The inferences have been drawn on the basis of available literature as well as author’s experiences and observations spread over two decades.

Findings

With the changing workplace from traditional to virtual office and now to work-from-home, the role of interpersonal skills has become even more critical. Across sectors, if you want to have a successful career, interpersonal skills are vital for getting ahead. The author emphasizes the need for continuous upskilling and reskilling of employees with respect to soft skills.

Originality/value

This paper intends to provide a viewpoint on a subject that is sometimes not taken as seriously as it should be. Often employees focus more on learning and upskilling their technical skills while neglecting their people skills. The author offers some valuable insights for business leaders to lay emphasis on employee’s communication and interpersonal skills so as to allow the firm to run smoothly and to make day-to-day functions effective and efficient. This would be a win-win situation for organizations as well as the employees.

Citation

Priyadarshini, S. (2022), "Its nice to be nice at work: role of interpersonal skills for career success", Strategic HR Review, Vol. 21 No. 3, pp. 92-95. https://doi.org/10.1108/SHR-03-2022-0013