How To Evaluate Soft Skills: 5 Strategies That Work

When you’re hiring for leadership or critical roles, technical abilities may get a candidate through the door, but soft skills determine whether they’ll stay, and more importantly, whether they’ll thrive. The problem is that soft skills are difficult to measure: you can’t plug them into a spreadsheet or tick them off a checklist.

Hiring managers often default to gut instinct, which is unreliable and prone to bias. And yet, in roles where communication, adaptability, and leadership matter most, ignoring soft skills is like hiring in the dark.

Here are five clear, actionable ways to evaluate soft skills before making your next hire.

1. Ask for Stories, Not Hypotheticals

Past behavior is still the best predictor of future performance. Hypothetical questions (“What would you do if…”) invite candidates to theorize. But behavioral questions (“Tell me about a time when…”) reveal how they’ve actually responded.

What to listen for:

• Clarity of communication

• Emotional intelligence

• Decision-making under pressure

• How they frame mistakes or conflict

Yes, candidates may rehearse responses. Probe deeper: “What was your initial reaction?” or “What would you do differently now?”

2. Use Role-Based Simulations

Talk is cheap. Simulations are where you can see abilities in action. These can range from mock team presentations to handling a simulated client crisis, tailored to the role’s demands.

What you'll learn:

• How they manage ambiguity

• Conflict resolution skills

• Team dynamics in real-time

• Communication under stress

Simulations can be resource-intensive. But the insights you gain often outweigh the time invested.

3. Listen to the Questions They Ask

Questions reflect mindset. They reveal curiosity, critical thinking, empathy, and emotional intelligence far better than prepared answers.

Red flags:

• Questions focused solely on compensation or hierarchy

• Lack of curiosity

Green flags:

• “How does this team handle setbacks?”

• “What does success look like in the first 6 months?”

Pro tip: After answering their question, pause. Do they ask smart follow ups? That’s where the real insight lies.

4. Check for Consistency Across Touchpoints

Soft skills aren’t just for the interview room. They show up in how candidates interact with coordinators, respond to calendar changes, or follow up with thank-you emails.

What to observe:

• Are they respectful and responsive to junior staff?

• Do they adapt gracefully to last-minute changes?

• Do they show appreciation and professionalism?

5. Partner with an Executive Search Firm That Knows the Terrain

The right search firm goes beyond resumes and references. They know how to dig beneath the surface, often through psychometric tools and reference triangulation.

Benefits include:

• Objective insights from a third-party perspective

• Customized evaluation frameworks

• Broader access to top-tier, passive candidates

• Risk mitigation: they’ve seen what works (and fails) across dozens of similar roles

Not all firms are created equal. Look for ones that invest in getting to know your leadership culture and talent strategy. Soft skills are context-dependent; a great communicator in one environment may flounder in another.

Wrapping Up

Hiring for soft skills isn’t soft. It’s nuanced, deliberate, and often the difference between high performance and high turnover. Here’s a quick recap of how to sharpen your evaluation lens:

• Ask for real stories to see behavior in action.

• Simulate the role to watch skills unfold under pressure.

• Listen to their questions—they’re windows into mindset.

• Evaluate every touchpoint, not just the interview.

• Bring in an executive search partner to go deeper and reduce risk.

Done right, these strategies give you more than just confidence in your hire. They give you cultural alignment, leadership potential, and the kind of talent that elevates your entire team. If you're ready to hire or just need help with your talent strategy, we can help! Get in touch with Paul, Brent, Troy, or Tara, or call us at 519-673-3463 or 416-847-0036.