Corporate Culture 101: Applying Personal Brand with Social Skills

Sign saying People Skills. Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.

The series started with a look at the importance of creating a strong professional image online and developing self-management skills. However, adapting to corporate culture involves another important element related to self-management and social media: people skills. Social skills might seem irrelevant to a position that doesn’t explicitly require a lot of interaction with others; however, studies have shown that hiring managers are more inclined to weigh social skills and likability with other factors like education and professional accomplishments.

Likeability and the Hiring Process

So, there’s good news and bad news. The good news is that hiring managers will often hire people who they like and want to spend time with, and not necessarily the most professionally qualified applicant. Of course, credentials are important, but likability in the hiring process matters more than you might think.

Ready for the bad news? Sometimes hiring managers just might not like candidates for arbitrary reasons, and this could cost them the job. Sometimes people click in a matter of seconds and other times they just clash for whatever reason. There isn’t a whole lot candidates can do about these fundamental connections and clashes, but there are some ways to express oneself more effectively and sharpen social skills.

How to Improve People Skills

Hiring managers will look favorably on a business management degree and some experience in the field. But they also want to see a candidate who is influential, confident and just overall fun to be around. Remember: employees and employers spend five days a week together, so choosing someone that is fun to be around is a practical decision.

A candidate’s personality may not be what’s holding them back from a job, but rather, the way this personality comes across in a social situation. Job seekers can improve social skills by, first and foremost, being more social. Be friendly and outgoing, but always maintain professionalism no matter what. Positivity is also important in social scenarios, since people tend to prefer being around positive individuals to maintain a positive attitude themselves.

Social Skills and Self-Management: Inseparable Halves of a Personal Brand

Social skills go hand-in-hand with self-management skills, and no personal brand is complete without both of these traits. In an age where unemployment is relatively high, having these marketable skills is what separates the hired from the perpetually searching. In the beginning of the series, the importance of developing a professional image was discussed. Starting with this personal development will give professionals a more focused personal brand and an idea of how to market this brand in an effective way.

This personal brand would be nothing without its social application in the professional world, which is why developing social skills is the most effective way to complete this brand. With a combination of the two, the job search becomes more manageable and (hopefully) more rewarding in the end.