Author of the article: Katarína Miňová
“Soft skills are not just added value. They are a basic prerequisite for survival in the digital age.”
— Klaus Schwab, Founder of the World Economic Forum
In recent years, soft skills have been discussed more and more often. This is not some vague concept—they form a key aspect of success in the labour market, and in the digital age they are becoming an outright necessity. But what exactly are soft skills? Generally speaking, they are a combination of personal and social abilities that help us communicate effectively, collaborate, solve problems, and adapt quickly to change. While in the past we associated soft skills mainly with communication, cooperation, and conflict resolution, today the range of soft skills required by modern workplace dynamics is far broader.
Soft skills in the context of the digital age
The arrival of digital technologies, social networks, and artificial intelligence (AI) is fundamentally changing our understanding of what we consider soft skills. Today, common requirements include the ability to adapt to change, flexibility, resilience, active learning, and self-management. At the same time, the importance of soft skills as such is growing at rocket speed—according to an analysis by Randstad, demand for soft skills in job ads increased by as much as 51% between 2020 and 2021. In Slovakia, according to data from Alma Career (Profesia.sk portal), soft skills were listed as a decisive parameter in almost 200,000 job offers. The World Economic Forum even predicts that by 2027, 44% of workers’ core skills will be disrupted, increasing the need for continuous learning and adaptation to new trends.
Global trends and local specifics
Many employee requirements are shaped globally—digitalisation, automation, and ecological aspects of work influence the whole world—but every region also has its own local specifics. Eastern Slovakia is no exception. While the World Bank and the World Economic Forum point to growing demand for cognitive and behavioural skills (analytical thinking, critical thinking, resilience, active learning, problem-solving), specific regions add skills that reflect other important factors such as the outflow of labour or the arrival of new foreign investors.
Brain drain and its consequences for the region
One of the key challenges of Eastern Slovakia is so-called brain drain, i.e., the outflow of talent in search of better opportunities. About 20% of secondary-school graduates and 20% of university graduates leave the region; those who stay often find work in manufacturing plants with limited added value. As a result, the region lacks professionals and innovative talent, which causes problems for its competitiveness.
A new investor in the region – opportunity or challenge?
The arrival of the Swedish automotive giant Volvo Cars in eastern Slovakia brings thousands of new jobs. At the same time, however, it places high demands on workforce quality—Volvo embraces a corporate culture built on inclusion, collaboration, and work–life balance. Their production hall will focus on manufacturing electric vehicles and related technologies (battery systems, robotics, automation), and they have recently established their own training centre where technical skills will be developed for employees. Soft skills will therefore play a major role in recruitment. In a modern international environment, people need not only technical know-how, but also the ability to communicate, solve problems, and work in multicultural teams. Statistics show that as many as 60% of Swedish employers consider soft skills a key factor in an employee’s success. Moreover, it is expected that up to 25% of new positions at Volvo could be filled by foreign workers. That makes the ability to cooperate and adapt in a diverse, constantly evolving environment even more important.
Why does Slovakia lack soft skills?
Historically, our education system has placed emphasis mainly on academic knowledge and hard skills such as programming or mathematics. Part of the reason is the mistaken idea that soft skills are something “natural” and less demanding than hard skills. In reality, they need to be trained and developed just like reading, writing, or driving a car. Employers ultimately confirm the insufficient preparation of graduates, often reporting a mismatch between expectations and reality. Data from an analysis of transferable competences among graduates of Slovak universities point to a mismatch between employer expectations and graduates’ actual skills. Employers often state that graduates lack key soft skills such as cooperation, leadership skills, critical thinking, stress resilience, agility, and flexibility. On the other hand, only 35% of employees report that they have the opportunity to attend regular soft-skills training within their company.
Strategies and initiatives for developing soft skills
Slovakia is trying to catch up on this deficit through several initiatives—for example curriculum reform and projects financed by EU funds. A National Skills Strategy has also been created in cooperation with the OECD, highlighting the importance of integrating soft skills into education at all levels. Eastern Slovakia has even more motivation in this respect, given the expected enormous demand for labour in the coming years and the need to reverse brain drain.
More is already happening than we think
- Employers in the region are beginning to invest in internal training and mentoring programs to retain talent.
- Local universities, in cooperation with companies, increasingly include practical activities and soft-skills training in study programmes.
- Chambers of commerce and clusters organise seminars and educational programmes connecting business with academia.
- Training centres and various educational initiatives at the local-government level (including programmes for pupils and students) emphasise critical thinking, digital literacy, and entrepreneurship.
What next?
Even if it may feel like change is slow, new projects aimed at improving soft-skills development keep emerging. Responsibility lies both with the education system and with employers, who in the coming years will need to create space for upskilling and broader reskilling of employees they do not want to lose, even if their current skills are no longer sufficient for today’s dynamics. In this context, the state should clearly support employers by increasing access to various support programmes for further education and employee upskilling.
What matters is not only whether we will develop soft skills, but also how. Using modern digital tools for targeted soft-skills development will be crucial. More and more online platforms—such as virtual simulators or apps focused on training communication and presentation—allow young people and experienced workers to improve their soft skills far more flexibly and effectively. Digitalisation and hybrid learning formats open doors even to those who previously had neither the time nor the opportunity for traditional training courses.
Despite technological possibilities, however, we should not forget that purely online learning does not always meet the need for real hands-on training. Especially in practical training simulations where participants try out methods, conflict-resolution tactics, or tools for improving team collaboration, personal contact is often essential. In-person training programmes can create an authentic atmosphere in which practising real situations is more effective and feedback from the trainer or peers is immediate. This balance between online and offline approaches helps leverage the strengths of both forms of education.
This shift in soft-skills development must be accompanied by open cooperation among local governments, companies, and educational institutions. Regional centres that provide not only technical but also methodological support for both online and in-person training can significantly accelerate the process. For Eastern Slovakia, this is a unique opportunity to use modern educational approaches to rapidly increase employability and competitiveness.
The sustainability of this approach then depends on long-term communication among all stakeholders. If employers clearly define what soft skills they need, and schools and universities can offer adequate learning formats, the whole process will naturally deepen. Moreover, as more examples of successful graduates and real case studies from practice accumulate, motivation will rise for more people to join education programmes and trainings.
And it is precisely effective cooperation between educational institutions and employers that can, in the long run, turn unfavourable brain drain into the trend known as “brain gain.” This concept is no longer just theory but a real solution—an example is Košice IT Valley, where investments by local and foreign companies have built a technological ecosystem linking universities, start-ups, and research centres. In this way, the region has not only retained university graduates but also attracted new specialists from Slovakia and abroad. Modern high–added-value jobs have been created, offering room for professional development and career growth—supported by shared know-how and intensive internal community cooperation.
Similar models applied on a larger scale could contribute even more strongly to turning long-term brain drain into brain gain. The cornerstone is attracting and retaining talented people—whether Slovaks returning from abroad or new experts coming to the region.
Brain gain – a way to kick-start the region
If there is one thing we know for sure about talent, it is that “talent attracts talent.” The more people with excellent abilities to communicate, create, innovate, and collaborate actively work in the region, the more attractive the region becomes for new investors, research teams, and start-up communities.
Eastern Slovakia has enormous potential. If we work together on developing soft skills, we will strengthen competitiveness and increase the region’s attractiveness.
As Slovakia succeeds, so will its regions. And the future of the labour market in the east of the country will largely depend on how regional authorities, businesses, and educational institutions approach soft-skills development.
So, how is Eastern Slovakia doing?
If it manages to develop its soft-skills potential and retain talent, major changes and a better outlook lie ahead. What we need most today is fast and systematic development of human capital. Times are changing—and the ability to adapt is, unsurprisingly, one of the most important soft skills.
The author of the article works as a programme trainer and team facilitator at SUVko, s.r.o. (SUVko Coaching) and also serves as an assistant professor at the Department of Public Policy and Theory of Public Administration, Faculty of Public Administration, UPJŠ in Košice.
The project is supported by the Interreg CENTRAL EUROPE programme and co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund.
