Categorizing Soft Skills into 5Cs

Summary

I’ve created a categorization of soft skills that’s interesting and useful for engineers.
Additionally, I’ve introduced past articles (soft skills and concepts developed over time) that fit into each category.
In today’s world, soft skills are crucial for everyone. Make use of them!

Background

I initiated Soft Skills Engineering.
There is no definitive answer to categorizing soft skills.
While generative AI can create countless categories, they are neither particularly useful nor interesting.

Therefore, I’ve developed categories that are both interesting and useful for engineers.

5C

The 5C classification of soft skills (5C) refers to the following five categories:

Communication
…

Summary

I’ve created a categorization of soft skills that’s interesting and useful for engineers.
Additionally, I’ve introduced past articles (soft skills and concepts developed over time) that fit into each category.
In today’s world, soft skills are crucial for everyone. Make use of them!

Background

I initiated Soft Skills Engineering.
There is no definitive answer to categorizing soft skills.
While generative AI can create countless categories, they are neither particularly useful nor interesting.

Therefore, I’ve developed categories that are both interesting and useful for engineers.

5C

The 5C classification of soft skills (5C) refers to the following five categories:

Communication
Interaction between A and B (A <-> B. Direct interaction between two parties)
Collaboration
Interaction through output (A <-> Output <-> B. Indirect interaction)
Consolidation
Creating a high-density experience
Examples: Pair programming, mob programming, communication time, retreats, and other events
Culture
Related to the culture of individuals, teams, and organizations
Examples: Vision, work style, roles and hierarchy, organizational paradigm, tools used, etc.
Care
How to take care of, control, and effectively maintain oneself as a human being
Examples: Personal task management, well-being, and other elements encompassed by self-management

Key Points of 5C

These are organized into three key points.

Point 1: Excludes Management and Leadership

Many may think of "management" or "leadership" when hearing soft skills, but these are not included in the 5C.

The focus of 5C is on how to approach things.

For example, whether to focus on Communication (direct interaction between two parties), Collaboration (fostering output), or Consolidation (creating high-density experiences to enhance satisfaction). We suggest considering the balance of these three. Let’s call it the 3C Balance.

Unfortunately, there are too many managers and leaders who impose a single approach. If it happens to work out, that’s fine, but if it becomes coercive, it’s the worst. It’s nothing short of exploitation. The concept of DEI aims to mitigate this, but what’s important is a more concrete discussion. In 5C, it’s seen through the lens of Communication, Collaboration, and Consolidation.

Common patterns include those who only know "Communication" and those who constantly impose "Consolidation". It’s possible to just terminate those who don’t fit with these imposed approaches and wait for compatible personnel, but at the very least, it incurs personnel costs, and the team becomes exhausted. In the long run, competitiveness also declines.

Since we’re human, how we approach things is vital. Please be mindful of the 3C Balance—although you might not know how to achieve it. That’s where soft skills come in handy.

Point 2: Includes the Perspective of Care for Self-Maintenance

When it comes to soft skills, especially self-management, it might seem like something only some freelancers or senior engineers start to delve into.

I don’t think that’s the case. I believe it’s a perspective and aptitude all engineers should develop. This is because engineering is inherently creative and lacks definitive answers. Therefore, developing one’s own way of spending time comfortably, by oneself, for oneself, is the shortcut to achieving the most comfort and high performance.

Related Article: Beyond Productivity: Embracing Experiencity - DEV Community

However, managing yourself requires quite a bit of skill. This is precisely where soft skills can help.

Point 3: The Emphasis on Culture

Culture is indeed essential.

This era can be described as the age of teams, as teams are valued because moving forward together yields the highest performance. A group is just a gathering, but a team is "a group that has united together", as I see it.

The challenge lies in "how to unite", but the answer is culture. If a culture C1 is installed, the team can unite based on C1. It doesn’t necessarily have to be C2, C3, or even C1, but changes are possible over the long term.

There is a term called SSoT (Single Source of Truth), and similarly, culture can be seen as SSoV—Single Source of Values.

Of course, there are challenges in creating this culture and ensuring everyone follows it. This is genuinely difficult. Many even say that "culture is a result", highlighting just how challenging it is.

There are hints. Soft skills are the key. How much you know and can try out and iterate on soft skills is crucial. For instance, the difference between someone who knows and doesn’t know the concept of psychological safety will affect how well they can create a culture suitable for their team. There are many such "concepts", and it’s even possible to create new ones.

Categorizing Past Articles Based on 5C

As a Soft Skills Engineer, I’ve developed various soft skills and concepts. Some of these have been posted on this DEV blog.

Here, I’ll categorize past articles based on the 5C. Let’s make use of generative AI. I’ll have it categorize about three articles each, which means a collection of 15 article links. Also, let’s compare outputs from multiple models.

Please take a look. I hope you find soft skills or concepts that might be useful!