Discover Great Interpersonal Skills That Kenyan Employers Look For In A CV

I am yet to see a job advertisement that does not require a candidate to have good communication skills.
Let’s break this down a bit…
People skills, are related to the way you communicate and interact with people. They go by different names including employability skills and soft and social skills.
Even if are the best of the best at the technical aspects of your job, if you’re a disaster to work with, your presence in the office will not be well received.
As a result, it’s important to emphasize your interpersonal skills in your cover letter and CV and most importantly, back up those claims with your behaviour during job interviews because they shall be looking for exactly that.
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Here are some of the skills you can include in your CV.
1. Excellent active Listening Skills
When you hear of active listening what comes to your mind immediately?
Looking as a person without blinking? Nodding and showing you understand or asking questions?
Simply put…
Active listening is a soft skill that is held in high regard by employers. So including it in your CV and backing it up with more information is a good Plus plus for you.
It involves blocking out any judgement and focusing all attention on what is being said for productive results.
Now when you attend the interview, make sure that you use those active listening techniques to show the interviewer the interpersonal skills you have in drawing people out.
2. Conflict Management Skills
This is well displayed or explained at the interview stage but including it in your CV in between your skills and achievements draw the employer’s attention.
Strong conflict management skills will be an advantage for you in many positions.
This is because employers know that a job candidate with such skills will cause less conflict and will come handy in offering solutions at work rather than problems.
3. Ability to interact well with technology
In this day and age, technology is a life skill that you should never lack as a professional.
Every employer or recruitment firm in Kenya is now looking for an employee who can navigate well through technology to make work much easier and reduce amount of time used to do tasks.
So if you are still in the darkness when it comes to IT skills, you’d better up your game.
You should be able to use common computer programs like Microsoft Word and Excel. Any additional IT experience typically makes you an even stronger candidate.
Carefully highlight your IT skills on your CV to show the employer that you are a competent person for the job who can even learn more skills as they come.
4. Good Decision Making Skills
There are countless times in your life when you will have to make important decisions.
This is true in the workplace too. So, employers want job candidates who can carefully analyse situations, weigh options, and then make decisions on important matters.
They do not want candidates who waffle and can’t make clear choices.
Clearly indicate this on your CV and back it up with necessary examples.
5. High affinity to lead
Even if you are a senior or junior employee or straight out of campus, leadership skills are desirable for any profession.
You don’t have to lead a full team of 20 people to say that you can easily lead a team. NO.
Bear in mind that when companies hire for any position in their companies, they look for people with good leadership qualities that will allow them to successfully interact with colleagues, clients, and others in the workplace and beyond.
So make sure you clearly bring this out in your CV.
This said,
Having a professional CV that every employer can relate with is key to standing out during the shortlisting process.
Rebecca Nyawira,  a CV writing expert at Corporate Staffing services says that, “As a job seeker, you should strive to ensure that your CV is updated with the necessary skills for the job you are applying for, while keeping in mind that In CVs, less is more’’
You can also consult a CV writing expert in case you need help in developing a more comprehensive CV for that new Job you just saw!
Judith Moraa works for Corporate Staffing Services, a leading HR firm that offers recruitment and FREE job placement. For more information visit their website on www.corporatestaffing.co.ke