Pages: 35-43
Introduction. This study looks at how HR training supports the development of soft skills and, through them, employees’ professional success in Turkish companies. Drawing on three semi-structured interviews with HR and Learning and Development professionals from the textile, manufacturing, and technology sectors, it examines how organisations identify soft-skill needs, design development programmes, support the transfer of learning to the workplace, and judge the results.
Aim of the study. Using Kirkpatrick’s framework and thematic analysis in NVivo 12, the findings suggest that soft skills are increasingly treated as strategic competencies tied to leadership, coordination, adaptability, and organisational effectiveness. Measuring their direct impact, though, remains hard: outcomes tend to be read through indirect signals such as performance reviews, promotion readiness, engagement, productivity, and innovation.
