Soft skills: the new strategic challenge for HR

To begin with, could you please introduce yourself and tell us about Éclos&Co’s mission?

My name is Clara Khoury, I am a co-founder of’Éclos&Co with Zoe Rollin, my business partner. Before that, I spent several years in demanding commercial environments, particularly in B2B SaaS, where I very quickly realised that what set an individual or a team apart – enabling them to perform consistently over the long term – was never technical expertise. It was always down to attitude, the ability to adapt, to listen and to collaborate under pressure. What are known as ‘soft skills’.

Éclos&Co was born out of this conviction. Our mission is to create learning experiences that enable professionals and organisations to develop these soft skills – not in a meeting room with slides, but in vibrant environments, often in the heart of nature. Every programme we design draws on what we call the Mind–Heart–Body approach: we engage the intellect, the emotions and the body. Because the lessons that last are those that involve all three.

In practical terms, we support HR professionals, teams and female leaders through programmes ranging from a single immersive day to courses lasting several months. What matters most to us in all of this is that people walk away with something tangible. Not just a notebook. A transformation.

In your view, what are the main human and organisational challenges facing HR today?

What strikes me when I speak to HR professionals is the growing gap between what they are expected to achieve and the human, time and emotional resources made available to them to do so.
HR are on the front line when it comes to just about every difficult issue within an organisation: restructuring, conflicts, absenteeism, talent retention, purpose at work, wellbeing… And often, they have to deal with it all on their own, with no breathing space and no peers to really talk to.
There is a kind of paradoxical demand: they are asked to look after others, but nobody looks after them. Added to this is a profound shift in employees’ expectations. The younger generations no longer want just a salary and a job description. They want purpose, alignment and recognition. And HR finds itself having to reinvent management practices, corporate culture and the employee experience, often without a clear mandate or sufficient budget.
The third challenge is speed. Organisations are changing faster than individuals can adapt. HR must keep pace with this acceleration whilst maintaining a minimum level of human cohesion. It is a constant balancing act. What I take away from all this is that HR professionals, too, need space to recharge, rethink their approach and rediscover a sense of purpose in their role. That is exactly why we co-created the REGEN HR programme.

Why have soft skills become a strategic priority for businesses?

For a long time, soft skills were seen as a «nice to have» – something that was good to mention in a job advert, but which people didn’t really know how to measure or develop. Those days are long gone.
What has changed is the complexity of the world in which organisations operate. In an uncertain environment that is constantly changing, technical skills alone are no longer enough.
An excellent expert who cannot work as part of a team, who cannot manage their stress, and who cannot adapt to change, quickly becomes a hindrance rather than an asset. What companies need today are people who can navigate ambiguity, bring others together, give and receive feedback, and maintain their commitment over the long term.
The figures speak for themselves: according to the LinkedIn Global Talent Trends 2023 report, 92 % of recruiters believe that soft skills are just as important as – or even more important than – technical skills. This is no longer just an HR trend. It is an economic reality.
But what I’d really like to add is that soft skills aren’t innate qualities that you either have or don’t have. They can be developed. They can be cultivated! That, in fact, is the very essence of our tagline at Éclos&Co. And to truly develop them, you need to move beyond traditional formats. You need experience, role-play and shared experiences. This is what traditional training doesn’t do enough of, and that is precisely where we come in.

What are the behavioural skills that are currently most in demand and the most difficult to develop?

If I had to name three that consistently come up in my discussions with HR departments and managers, they would be emotional intelligence, the ability to give and receive feedback, and what I call «adaptive resilience» – that is, not just ‘weathering the storm’, but to keep learning and adapting in the midst of the storm.
What is interesting is that these three skills are also the most difficult to develop. And for one common reason: they require a process of self-reflection that most traditional training formats do not really allow for. You can spend two hours explaining to someone what emotional intelligence is. But unless the person has experienced it first-hand or in an uncomfortable situation, when faced with real tension, the learning remains theoretical. It doesn’t take root.
Feedback is the same. Everyone knows you have to give it. Very few people know how to do so without triggering a defensive reaction in the other person or in themselves. Because giving honest feedback means taking a risk in the relationship. And that’s not something you can learn from an e-learning module.
That’s why the experiential approach we champion at Éclos&Co is a real game-changer. When we place participants in an unusual setting in the heart of nature, face to face with a horse or on a poetic journey inspired by *The Little Prince®*, people let their guard down more quickly. Learning takes root in a different way. Because the body and emotions are part of the process, not just the mind.

What advice would you give to an HR manager who wants to strengthen their teams’ engagement and cohesion in the long term?

The first piece of advice I’d give is to stop looking for a quick fix. Commitment isn’t something you can simply decree with a two-day seminar and a pizza party. It’s the result of thorough, ongoing work that takes time and consistency.
What really fosters a sense of cohesion is the feeling of being seen, understood and valued. Not benefits in kind or talk about the company’s vision. People commit themselves when they feel they have a genuine place within the team and that their whole being – not just their work – is recognised and valued.
My second piece of advice is to invest in moments outside the daily routine. Not to escape from everyday life, but to create spaces where people can come together in a different way to the pressure of deadlines. It is in these moments that genuine bonds are formed. That unspoken issues are resolved. That teams learn to trust one another. A well-planned day away from the office can unlock interpersonal dynamics that no team meeting could ever achieve.
And the third, perhaps the most important, is to start with yourself. An HR manager who does not look after their own energy, their own mindset and their own inner clarity cannot look after others in the long term. This is not selfishness. It is a prerequisite for making an impact. You cannot give what you do not have.
That’s also why we conceived REGEN HR as a space for HR professionals themselves. Not for training, but for rejuvenation.


Photo credit: Adèle Renauldon – R&B Presse