The document introduces both hard skills like programming and design skills as well as soft skills needed by engineers, discussing categories of soft skills including corporate skills, employability skills, and life skills. It then provides details on developing key soft skills like communication, presentation, and language skills through practices like reading, writing, speaking, listening, and incorporating visual elements into presentations.

1. INTRODUCTION TO SOFT SKILLS
Prof(Dr) .K. P. Mohandas
Dean (Electrical Sciences)
Professor EEE
M E S College of Engineering, Kuttippuram
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2. Skills required
by an
Engineer
Hard Skills Soft fSkills
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3. Hard Skills
Analytical
Programming Skills Design Skills
Skills
System Analysis
Algorithm Design
Mathematical
Analysis Logical Design
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4. SOFT SKILLS
Communication Skills
Verbal /Oral Interpersonal
Written
Presentation Skills
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5. SOFT SKILL CATEGORIES
• Corporate Skills
• Employability skills
• Life Skills
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6. Corporate skills:
These are required at executive levels
Awareness of these helps in
helping your organization and
assist your bosses.
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7. Corporate Skills
• Political sensitivity
• Business and commercial awareness
• Strategic awareness
• Understanding funding sources and schemes
• Information Management
• Organization and Control
• Team building
• Communication and persuasion
• Networking and public relations
• Leading change
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8. Employability Skills
• Essential for those who seek employment
• To be mastered by every one who seeks
employment
• These can be mastered only by constant
practice and effort
• Mastering every new skill leads to another
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9. Employability skills
• Leadership qualities
• Cooperation with others
• Planning and organizing
• Making decisions
• Communication skills
• Verbal skills
• Writing skills
• Presentation skills
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10. Life Skills
Related to
head,
heart,
hands and
health,
These are highly personal and
Are also called behavioural skills
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11. Head related
Keeping records,
Making use of resources,
Planning and organizing,
Goal setting,
Service learning,
Problem solving,
Learning to learn
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12. Heart Related Skills
Related to people and caring,
How do we relate to people, relate people
by accepting differences,
Conflict resolutions,
Social skills,
Cooperation and
Communication and caring through nurturing relations,
Sharing,
Empathy and concern for others
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13. Hands related
Community service,
Volunteering,
Leadership,
Responsible citizenship,
Contribution to group
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14. Health related
Healthy life styles,
stress management,
disease prevention and
personal safety for better living :
self esteem,
self responsibility,
character,
managing emotions and self discipline
share well, care well, and fare well
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15. THINGS TO DO DAILY
• Greet your family members everyday
• Greet your peers, subordinates and colleagues when you
enter the office
• Greet your friends on the way, don’t ignore them
• Continuously reciprocate to breed communication
• Say ‘thanks’ when you get some help even if is trivial, make it
a habit even to subordinates
• Be a proactive listener – don’t simply ‘pretend’ to hear
• While talking to others your voice should be audible, clear
and soothing, never be aggressive or shout
• Dress well to suit the profession and occasion
• Avoid political comments at work place
• Do not talk ill of others
• Respect others, if you expect to be respected by others
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16. DEVELOPING LANGUAGE SKILLS

17. What is to be done to
MASTER A LANGUAGE
• READ
As much as possible
WRITE
In your own language
• SPEAK
Even if you make mistakes initially
HEAR carefully how others speak
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18. READ - HOW
Not just for time pass,
But to understand,
Learn new words,
Use them when you get a chance,
Summarize and
Make notes for later use
Reading an English newspaper everyday a
habit, preferably Hindu or Times of India
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19. SPEAK
• Try speaking the language
you want to be proficient in,
• Even if you make mistakes initially,
• Be willing to correct it when some one points
out it to you
• Be ever willing to learn
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20. WRITE
• Short and simple sentences,
• Style makes a man or woman.
• Use apt language for
Personal or Official write ups
Try your skill in translation from one language
to another
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21. Writing, the major tool for
communication
• writing has two major roles:
it clarifies –
for both writer and reader
it conveys
information

22. Remember the following
ethig follow this simple procedure:
1.Establish the AIM
2.Consider the READER
3.Devise the STRUCTURE
4.DRAFT the text
5.EDIT and REVISE

23. A document tells somebody
something
Three major considerations:
• What they already know affects what you can
leave out.
• What they need to know determines what
you include.
• What they want to know suggests the order
and emphasis of your writing.

24. Structure
• a development of the idea
• an explanation or analogy
• an illustration
• support with evidence
• contextual links to reinforce the structure

25. Draft, Revise and Edit
• Style
• The Beginning
• Punctuation
• Spelling
• Simple Errors -proof reading
• Sentence Length
• Word Length
• Jargon
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26. HEAR GOOD ENGLISH
• On Radio
• On Television
• BBC News , English channels like NDTV etc
• National Geographic
• Discovery channel
• History Channel
• Good English Movies on HBO,
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27. PRESENTATION SKILLS
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28. PRESENTATIONS
Oral Visual Written
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29. Only 30-40% of what is HEARD is
remembered
Just over 50%of what is READ is
remembered
More than 70% of what is SEEN is
remembered
VISUAL PRESENTATION IS
MOST EFFECTIVE
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30. REMEMBER
• Tell me I will forget
• Show me I will remember
• Involve me, I will learn
• This applies to teaching and even for
presentations
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31. Why Presentations
• Presentations and reports are ways of
communicating ideas and information to a
group
• Presentation carries the speakers personality
better and
• Allows immediate interaction between the
audience and speaker (presenter)
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32. A good presentation has
• Content : contains information that can be
absorbed by the audience in one sitting
• Structure: It has a logical beginning, middle and
end. Should be sequenced such that the audience
can understand
• Packaging: It must be well prepared. A report can
be read later, but the audience haring a
presentation is at the mercy of the presenter.
• Human element: a god presentation will be
remembered because a person is attached to it
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33. Check Availability of equipment
• Only Over head projectors(OHP) : prepare
transparencies on OHP films using OHP pens
• LCD Projectors and PC/Laptop available.
Use Power point slides
Save paper or slide films
Give handouts 6 slides per page,if necessary
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34. How Many slides?
• Difficult to say, as many as required
• But one slide on the average 2 minutes to 2.5
minutes.
• Figures and charts can take less time
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35. Slides when manually made
• Use big enough letters
• Use colour pens with deep colours
• Never use photocopies of printed pages as slides
directly
• Never overcrowd the slides with too much of
material – not more 7-8 lines per slide
• Use minimum number of equations – give qualitative
interpretations
• Never give complete derivations
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36. DO THESE
• Write neatly and legibly
• Use big enough letters
• Use dark colours not light
• Use a pointer to indicate
• Never read directly from the slides
• Number the films in the sequence order
• Do not be totally be dependent on the slides
• Use presentation software like Power point
wherever possible
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37. VOICE
• Four main items that define the voice quality
• Volume: How loud ? Enough to be heard by all
members in the audience
• Tone : A voice that carries fear can frighten the
audience and one that carries laughter can get the
audience into smile
• Pitch : How high or low a note is
• Pace: How long a sound lasts
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38. How to improve your voice?
• Listen to it! Practice listening to your
voice while at home, driving, walking,
working to see if you are using it the way
you want to
• To really listen to your voice, cup your
right hand around your right ear and
gently pull the ear forward. Next, cup your
left hand around your mouth and direct
the sound straight into your ear.
• Now practice moderating your voice.
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39. Body Language
• The posture and your movements can greatly
help in your presentation
• Displaying good posture tells your
audience that you know what you
are doing and you care deeply about
it.
• Also, a good posture helps you to
speak more clearly and effective.
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40. Throughout your display
o Eye contact:Speakers who make eye
contact open the flow of communication
and convey interest, concern, warmth,
and credibility.
o Facial Expressions: Smiling is a powerful
cue that transmits happiness, friendliness,
warmth, and liking favorably. The listeners
will be more comfortable around you and
will want to listen to you more.
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41. Body Language – continued
o Gestures: If you fail to gesture
while speaking, you may be
perceived as boring and stiff.
• Posture and body orientation: You
communicate numerous messages by the way
you talk and move. Standing erect and leaning
forward communicates that you are
approachable, receptive, and friendly.
Speaking with your back turned or looking at
the floor or ceiling should be avoided as it
communicates disinterest
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42. Body Language (continued)
Proximity: Cultural norms dictate a comfortable
distance for interaction with others. Increasing
the proximity enables you to make better eye
contact and increases the opportunities for others
to speak.
• Voice. One of the major criticisms of speakers is
that they speak in a monotone voice. Listeners
perceive this type of speaker as boring and dull.
People report that they learn less and lose
interest more quickly when listening to those who
have not learned to modulate their voices.
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43. Active Listening
Listening can be one of our most powerful tools, Be
sure to use it
o Spend more time listening than talking (but of course, as a
presenter, you will be doing most of the talking).
o Do not finish the sentence of others.
o Do not answer questions with questions.
o Aware of biases. We all have them. We need to control
them.
o Never daydream or become preoccupied with their own
thoughts when others talk.
o Let the other speaker talk. Do not dominate the
conversation.
• Plan responses after others have finished speaking...NOT
while they are speaking. Their full concentration is on what
others are saying, not on what they are going to respond
with.
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44. GETTING FEED BACK
1. Evaluative: Makes a judgment about the worth,
goodness, or appropriateness of the other
person's statement.
2. Interpretive: Paraphrasing - attempt to explain
what the other persons statement mean.
3. Supportive: Attempt to assist or bolster the
other communicator
4. Probing: Attempt to gain additional information,
continue the discussion, or clarify a point.
5. Understanding: Attempt to discover completely
what the other communicator means by her
statements.
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45. Feedback (continued)
o Provide feedback but do not interrupt
incessantly.
o Analyze by looking at all the relevant
factors and asking open-ended questions.
Walk the person through analysis
(summarize).
o Keep the conversation on what the
speaker says...NOT on what interest them.
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46. Are you nervous?
• Tension can be reduced by performing
some relaxation exercises.
o Before the presentation: Lie on the floor. Your back should be flat
on the floor. Pull your feet towards you so that your knees are up
in the air. Relax. Close your eyes. Fell your back spreading out
and supporting your weight. Feel your neck lengthening. Work
your way through your body, relaxing one section at a time - your
toes, feet, legs, torso, etc. When finished, stand up slowly and try
to maintain the relaxed feeling in a standing position.
o clockwise, and then counter-clockwise.
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47. Technique to reduce tension -
• If you cannot lie down: Stand with you feet about
6 inches apart, arms hanging by your sides, and
fingers unclenched. Gently shake each part of
your body, starting with your hands, then arms,
shoulders, torso, and legs. Concentrate on
shaking out the tension. Then slowly rotate your
shoulders forwards and the backwards. Move on
to your head. Rotate it slowly
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48. Are you nervous?
o Mental Visualization: Before the presentation,
visualize the room, audience, and you giving the
presentation. Mentally go over what you are
going to do from the moment you start to the
end of the presentation.
o During the presentation: Take a moment to
yourself by getting a drink of water, take a deep
breath, concentrate on relaxing the most tense
part of your body, and then return to the
presentation saying to your self, "I can do it!"
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49. At least pretend not to be nervous
o You do NOT need to get rid of anxiety and
tension! Channel the energy into concentration
and expressiveness.
o Know that anxiety and tension is not as
noticeable to the audience as it is to you.
o Know that even the best presenters make
mistakes. The key is to continue on after the
mistake. If you pick up and continue, so will the
audience. Winners continue! Losers stop!
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50. Questions
• Keep cool if a questioner disagrees with you. You are
a professional! No matter how hard you try, not
everyone in the world will agree with you!
• Although some people get a perverse pleasure from putting
others on the spot, and some try to look good in front of
the boss, most people ask questions from a genuine
interest. Questions do not mean you did not explain the
topic good enough, but that their interest is deeper than
the average audience.
• .
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51. Questions – troubles??
• Always allow time at the end of the presentation for
questions. After inviting questions, do not rush ahead if no
one asks a question. Pause for about 6 seconds to allow the
audience to gather their thoughts. When a question is
asked, repeat the question to ensure that everyone heard it
(and that you heard it correctly). When answering, direct
your remarks to the entire audience. That way, you keep
everyone focused, not just the questioner. To reinforce
your presentation, try to relate the question back to the
main points.
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52. Listen carefully to Questions
• Make sure you listen to the question being asked.
If you do not understand it, ask them to clarify.
Pause to think about the question as the answer
you give may be correct, but ignore the main
issue. If you do not know the answer, be honest,
do not waffle. Tell them you will get back to
them...and make sure you do!
• Answers that last 10 to 40 seconds work best. If
they are too short, they seem abrupt; while
longer answers appear too elaborate. Also, be
sure to keep on track. Do not let off-the-wall
questions sidetrack you into areas that are not
relevant to the presentation.
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53. REMEMBER
• SOFT SKILLS
• LANGUAGE SKILLS &
• PRESENTATION SKILLS
• CAN BE ACQUIRED AND MASTERED
• ONLY BY CNSTANT PRACTICE
• SO
• PRACTICE !!! PRACTICE !!! PRACTICE !!!
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54. Thank you
You can contact me by email at :
kpmdas@ieee.org
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