Communication, collaboration, agile-thinking, problem-solving, adaptability, creativity: these are the buzzwords we tend to hear nowadays in relation to the “soft” skills that employers look for when hiring for leadership roles.
Of course, good qualifications and experience are very important. But for leadership roles in schools, the “softer” skills are just as important - if not more so, because it’s all about being able to drive things forward not being telling people what they have to do, but empowering them.
But how do you prove you have these skills, beyond just parroting the buzzwords you think hiring teams want to hear?
1. ‘Soft’ skills evidenced by behaviours
When hiring, most schools and trusts will be looking for those “softer” skills and qualities to shine throughout the whole selection process and want to see evidence of these.
A good way to do this is to ensure you are clear about any projects you have done, the issues you faced and how you resolved them, and, crucially, how you went about this - how you brought people along with you.
So, for example, if you are talking about how you successfully brought in a new curriculum as a head of department, don’t just talk about the details of said curriculum. Instead, tell me about how you involved subject teachers in making these changes and how you kept them on side - demonstrating collaboration, teamwork and adaptability.
Also, it’s important not to wait for a specific question on “soft” skills - work examples of these abilities into every answer.
For example, I was interviewing for a headship, and we asked about improving the quality of education and outcomes for children. Most candidates were able to pick out the fundamentals in terms of interrogating the data, but some also followed on with how they would improve outcomes by being in the class, correcting practice and managing poorly performing staff.
Now this acutely misses the point that there is a quality of education team underneath the head, and to approach it in this way would not just undermine the deputy and head of department, but is also unrealistic in terms of capacity.
The successful candidate clearly articulated how they would direct and empower the middle and senior leaders responsible for the quality of education to drive improvements and - crucially - how they would hold them to account.
This answer clearly demonstrated the difference between their “leadership” style and the other candidates’ “management” style.
2. Don’t suck all the oxygen out
On our selection day, we bring all the candidates together and give them each a topic and we get them to discuss it as a group; then the candidates have to give a presentation.
In reality, though, I’m not interested in the outcome of those discussions, I’m interested in the interactions beforehand. How does each candidate handle their competitors?
Some say nothing, some scramble over others, but the best are those who demonstrate their leadership skills in guiding the debate, the one who says: “We’ve not heard from X - X how would you approach this situation?” or “Thank you Y, now let’s hear from Z.”
We find this exercise really throws those “soft” leadership skills into sharp focus; those who are desperate to speak and dominate, who take all the oxygen out of the room, are showing us that they don’t lead well.
Even if an interview you attend doesn’t have this specific element, people will be watching your interactions, so it’s a great chance to prove your capabilities.
3. No martyrs, please
We’re not looking for martyrs in our leaders. A candidate once told me that theirs was always the last car in the car park, as though this were a badge of honour.
Obviously, this person wanted to demonstrate they were a hard worker, but for a leadership role, this would be a red flag: how are you utilising the staff who support you and what sort of behaviour are you modelling to them?
We need leaders who set a good example in terms of work/life balance; if you’re doing six people’s jobs, you can’t be a good leader.
The best leaders should be doing little, but leading lots, and that’s where the “soft” skills come into their own.
Craig Fawcett is director of HR for Consilium Academies
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