Transportation Project Management

11 PM Soft Skills

“Soft skills have more to do with who we are than what we know.”

– Marcel M. Robles

Soft skills drive business success. A study from Boston College, Harvard, and the University of Michigan determined that soft skill training delivers a 250% Return-On-Investment based on productivity and retention. Given the importance of these topics, perhaps Soft Skills would be better labeled Human Skills.

11.1 The Importance of Soft Skills

“It’s what you learn after you know it all that counts.”

– John Wooden

Engineering is the application of mathematic and scientific principles to improve and control our lives and the world around us. It is a noble profession with grand aspirations. Engineering is a strange combination of technical expertise, creativity, and stubborn determination. Most non-engineers have a stereotype image of engineers. Whether the profession attracts or amplifies the stereotypical personality is an interesting question. Regardless, there is something different about most engineers compared to other professions. A large part of this is because engineering is about more than solving problems; it is a mindset in how we define problems and pursue solutions.

Let’s start by looking at the college engineering education. While there are exceptions, most engineering students scored very high on their Math SAT/ACT, and perhaps less so on the English sections. Most took advanced science in high school, and did quite well. Most have an inherent interest and ...