Abstract
Soft skills development has come with the intention of an all-rounded development of individual personality and entrepreneurship can be taught or not has been an argument until today. Therefore, this study was designed to explore the importance of soft skills to enhance entrepreneurial capacity. The three key soft skills that researchers examined were communication, leadership, and critical and problem-solving skills while the entrepreneurial capacity was the dependent variable of this study. A total of five successful entrepreneurs were purposively selected to be the informants of this study. Researchers employed a qualitative method using interview protocol as an instrument to conduct in-depth interviews. Data were analyzed using content analysis. The results revealed that critical thinking and problem-solving skills is the most significant soft skills to assist entrepreneurs to improve their competitiveness and productivity. Moreover, all the informants came to the consensus that higher education should teach the students the three required soft skills to be successful entrepreneurs. They emphasized the importance of soft skills that can assist entrepreneurs not only to compete in the formal labor market but also has the potential to reduce youth unemployment, drive economic growth, and reduce poverty. The overall results are successfully contributed to a growing body of research by suggesting that soft skills, namely communication, leadership, and critical thinking and problem-solving skills associated with entrepreneurial success are malleable and can be trained through higher education institutions.
Highlights
Soft skills refer to all aspects of generic skills that include both cognitive elements and non-academic skills
Past researchers (Tan & Tang, 2015; Tang, 2018; Tang, 2019a; Tang 2019b; Tang, Mohamed, Somprach, 2015a; Tang, Tan, & Vetriveilmany, 2015b) found that there are three important soft skills namely leadership, critical thinking and problem-solving, and communication skills needed for higher education students who are studying in business studies programs either in diploma or bachelor degree
Researchers focused on qualitative data collected from interviews of five young and successful entrepreneurs who voluntarily agreed to participate in our preliminary study
Summary
Soft skills refer to all aspects of generic skills that include both cognitive elements and non-academic skills. Past researchers (Tan & Tang, 2015; Tang, 2018; Tang, 2019a; Tang 2019b; Tang, Mohamed, Somprach, 2015a; Tang, Tan, & Vetriveilmany, 2015b) found that there are three important soft skills namely leadership, critical thinking and problem-solving, and communication skills needed for higher education students who are studying in business studies programs either in diploma or bachelor degree. They concluded that future entrepreneurs need these three soft skills more than other soft skills to assist them in dealing with business activities and being more competitive
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
