Soft Skills vs Hard Skills: Differences and Examples

You need to demonstrate mastery of both soft skills and hard skills to show employers you’re qualified. We’ll go over what soft and hard skills are and then provide industry-specific examples of skills you can put on your CV.

What are hard skills?

Hard skills are the learnt abilities and specialised knowledge you use to perform specific job-related tasks. They’re usually acquired through education, training programs, qualifications, or on-the-job experience, and are often quantifiable and easily demonstrated.

Proficiency in a foreign language or expertise in Adobe Photoshop are good examples of hard skills.

Employers always look for hard skills on a CV to ensure candidates have the technical expertise required for the role they’re hiring for, so make sure your skills section includes the hard skills requested in the job advertisement.

What are soft skills?

Soft skills include personal traits and relational skills and are often developed through experience. They’re crucial for working on a team, managing others, and adapting to new situations and environments. For example, if you’re tasked with onboarding new hires, you’ll need soft skills like patience, clear communication, and organisation.

In contrast to hard skills, soft skills are more subjective and are often assessed through observation. While hard skills can get you an interview, your soft skills often determine whether you get the job.

Industry-specific soft and hard skills examples

Not sure what skills to include on your CV? Here’s a selection of the most relevant hard and soft skills for some of the largest industries in the UK.

For each industry we also provide two examples of how to best include these skills in your CV.

Retail and wholesale skills

Working in retail and wholesale in the UK involves engaging directly with customers or businesses to meet their product needs. In this industry, you need to demonstrate exceptional customer service, sales, and inventory management skills.

This experience section from a customer success manager’s CV showcases their Zendesk proficiency:

Here’s an example of a CV bullet point from a sales assistant’s CV demonstrating the candidate’s interpersonal skills:

Health and social care skills

If you work in health and social care, you’re responsible for providing essential support and services to people in all stages of life. You need to know and adhere to established standards of care to ensure the well-being and quality of life of your patients.

Here are some relevant hard and soft skills to add to your health care CV:

This nursing CV does an excellent job of showcasing the applicant’s skills in handling health care management software:

This is a good example from a carer CV demonstrating the candidate’s relevant soft skills:

Business administration and support skills

If you work in business administration and support, you need to show employers that you can thrive in the office environment by highlighting your tech, analytical, and interpersonal skills.

Here are some hard and soft skills to add to your administrator CV:

Here’s an example from a receptionist CV of how to show employers you can multitask with ease:

Here’s an example of how to demonstrate software proficiency on an operations manager CV:

Education skills

As an educator or administrator, you need to show employers that you can stay organised and support your students.

Here are some skills to highlight on your education CV:

In this teaching assistant CV example, the candidate shows employers that they’re up-to-date with classroom technology:

Here’s an example of how an educator can demonstrate soft skills on a teacher CV:

Accommodation and food service skills

Employers hiring for roles in accommodation and food service want to know that you can deliver an exceptional customer experience. Here are some skills to highlight on your CV to show hiring managers you have what it takes:

Check out this bullet point from the work experience section of a restaurant manager CV that highlights the candidate’s collaboration skills:

You can make your hard skills in your hospitality CV stand out, like how this candidate shows their ability to effectively use hospitality management systems:

Frequently asked questions about hard skills vs soft skills

Looking for more answers? Check out some of these commonly asked questions about hard and soft skills.

How do I add hard and soft skills to my CV?

Here’s how you can write your CV, adding hard and soft skills to it:

• List your most important hard skills for the position you are applying for in a dedicated skills section, mentioning relevant qualifications and proficiencies.
• Use bullet points to detail your technical abilities and achievements.
• Instead of listing soft skills in the skills section of your CV, show employers how you’ve put them to use with examples in your work experience section (and show tangible results where possible).

Here’s an example of a skills section on a psychologist CV that includes hard and soft skills:

Here’s an example from a hairdresser CV showing how to demonstrate communication skills in your work experience section:

How are hard and soft skills measured?

Hard and soft skills are measured very differently. Qualifications, standardised tests, and practical assessments are common tools for measuring hard skills. Employers may also use technical interviews or job simulations to evaluate these abilities.

Soft skills are much more subjective and challenging to assess. Employers often use behavioural interviews and psychometric tests to get a sense of a candidate’s strengths.

How can I develop hard and soft skills?

You can develop hard skills through formal education, training programmes, qualifications, and practical experience. Online courses, workshops, and hands-on projects are effective ways to hone technical skills.

You can learn and develop soft skills by participating in group activities and finding opportunities for collaboration, taking on leadership roles, working with a mentor, or asking for feedback.

How can I highlight hard and soft skills in the job interview?

The job interview is where your soft skills should shine. Share stories that highlight your soft skills, like the complex conflict you resolved or a challenging project you led your team to success on. Use the STAR method to structure your responses for maximum impact.

You can also share evidence of your hard skills, such as certificates or portfolios. Be prepared to discuss specific examples and technical details during the interview.

Build My CV Now

Skip the writer’s block and make a CV in minutes with our AI software.