Importance of Soft Skills in the Technical Field

While applying for a job, there may be terms such as communication skills, adaptability, and problem-solving abilities. These requirements are no different for an HVAC Tech position. Qualifications like these are soft skills, which every good technician has. You may be wondering why employers are adamant about hiring for many of this expertise. It’s since soft qualities are usually more complex to teach than technical skills. Most training schools focus on hard skills, which is the technical component.

Soft skills are interpersonal attributes that impact your performance in the workplace. Some examples are social speaking, professionalism, communication styles, and empathy. These experiences differ from person to person, meaning someone may have higher people skills than another person. Specific technical traits can be taught on the job if needed. The common issue is that most candidates come in with the same entry-level knowledge, and it is a lot more time-consuming to teach soft skills after getting hired, which is why job applications include these skills when hiring.

Value of Soft Skills within a Technical Career

Soft skills are an essential part of personal communication while working. Having these abilities will help you understand others more, build empathy, and get rehired. Customers want you to fix their problem, and as a technician, it is imperative to know that you are the solution. Being professional includes being on time, having a clean look, and communicating with the client. If you put yourself in their shoe, you will understand the customer much better.

To illustrate this idea here is a scenario. Your HVAC united needs replacement, and you need to find a company to repair it.  You find an HVAC company that will be able to go to your house at a specific time, so you book the appointment. Therefore, you expect them to be on time, that way you’re not late for work. The repair person arrives late to your home, forgets to bring the right tools to do the job, and tells you that you will still have to pay a service fee. This scenario shows that unprofessionalism matters to all customers. The person should have been ready to work on time and have the right tools to do the job. Furthermore, the customer feels like the repair person is not empathic to their time. This person is not someone to hire in the future.

How to Be a Better Technician

Customers hire desirable technicians that are on time, be professional, exhibit preparedness and empathy. These are all traits that will guarantee you a loyal customer base. To satisfy the customer, the repair person in the above scenario could have done things differently. By calling ahead to say you’re running late, so that way the customer would have time to reschedule. The repair person should have made sure the tools were the right ones for the job before heading to the worksite, and this would have shown preparedness. Not billing the customer for the work not done is a way to show empathy that you care about their time.

How to Develop Your Soft Skills

Ayers will help you work on your soft skills in the classroom. We teach the technical credentials you need and the soft skills that will make you an excellent technician. Remember that active listening, professionalism, and displaying empathy are some of the top soft skills technicians need.

Ready to start a new career in HVAC? Ayers has a great program in Shreveport, LA, that can get you started today. Our goal is to help you succeed in the HVAC workplace. Enroll today and gain the technical and career-specific training you’ll need to start your career as an HVAC-R Technician! Learn more today by calling 1-800-317-0131.