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Information Technology Soft Skills Training

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.58593/cjar.v1i1.13

Keywords:

soft skills, information technology, organizational performance, training, qualitative inquiry

Abstract

Information technology (IT) professionals’ deficiencies in soft skills lead to decreased organizational performance. This qualitative inquiry project explored the perspectives of leaders and IT employees about effective soft-skills training practices. A conceptual framework was built on previous models (e-Leadership and soft-skills educational games design and CareerEDGE employability development), including workplace efficiency, elevated hiring expenses, training opportunities, employability, removal of traditional approaches, and customized training. The framework guided the creation of an interview protocol, and open-ended interviews of 10 IT professionals provided data. Thematic analysis led to six themes: organizational effects, hiring concerns, training concerns, IT challenges, training types, and designing soft-skills training. Effectively training IT professionals on soft skills may lead to higher productivity, customer and colleague satisfaction rates, and increased efficiencies.

Author Biographies

  • Dr. Kristy Stewart, The Institute for Functional Medicine

    Kristy Rae Stewart (Primary), DBA, is the Director of Information Technology for the Institute for Functional Medicine. She collaborates with multiple departments to direct IFM’s technology infrastructure, computer systems, policy, processes, and project management initiatives while directing the strategic planning for IFM’s future emerging technology requirements. South Dakota

  • Dr. Michelle K. Preiksaitis, Coastal Organizational Research and Learning Strategies LLC

    Michelle K. Preiksaitis (Secondary), JD, PhD, is the President of Coastal Organization Research and Learning Strategies, LLC, a business consulting firm, where she assists small businesses and universities with research to increase organizational and student learning, and she assists doctoral students with dissertations and capstones, including conversions from thesis to publishable articles. She is a licensed attorney and an online professor of strategy, entrepreneurship, innovation, business law, and talent management; she has chaired over 50 doctoral research projects. She is the Editor-in-Chief of C’JAR, a peer-reviewed, scholarly journal. Florida.

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Published

15-01-2023

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Vol. 1 No. 1 (2023): CORALS' Journal of Applied Research

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Copyright (c) 2023 Dr. Kristy Stewart, Dr. Michelle K. Preiksaitis

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How to Cite

Information Technology Soft Skills Training. (2023). CORALS’ Journal of Applied Research, 1(1). https://doi.org/10.58593/cjar.v1i1.13

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