Today's employers expect young people to enter the workforce with both hard and soft skills. Hard skills—such as technical knowledge and hands-on abilities—help employees to perform their jobs well. Soft skills—such as communication, teamwork, and leadership—help them work effectively with others and adapt to change.

Research shows this need is growing:

• Schislyaeva and Saychenko (2022) found that soft skills are increasingly important in hiring decisions. Many new hires fail not because they lack technical knowledge, but because they lack essential skills such as communication, teamwork, and leadership.
• Deloitte Access Economics (2017) predicts that by 2030, two-thirds of all jobs will require soft skills.
• McKinsey & Company (2019) found that employers reward hard skills more in terms of salary, but soft skills remain essential for long-term success. Despite their importance, soft skills often receive less investment and training.

Laurel County 4-H helps youth build both hard and soft skills to prepare for future careers in their areas of interest, or “sparks.” While ongoing 4-H clubs provide leadership and project work, a strong focus was placed on non-club opportunities to give youth new experiences and chances to build skills progressively.

In the 2024–2025 program year, Laurel County 4-H offered 74 non-club opportunities:

1. 48 workshops, where youth practiced hands-on skills.
2. 26 trips and special activities, where youth explored careers and developed life skills.

Selected programs included:

1. Salato Wildlife Education Center Experience
2. Historic Shaker Village Experience
3. Cultural Arts and Capitol Experience
4. Exploring Nature Series (8 workshops focused on natural resources careers and skills)
5. Discovery Trek Series (8 workshops covering technical skills across all 4-H program areas)
6. Simply Homemade Series (8 workshops on homemade bread, soup, and crocheting chunky blankets, etc.)
7. Leadership, Communications, and Emergency Preparedness Workshops
8. SET, Candy Making, Tie-Dyeing, and Cloverbud Workshops

Each workshop and activity provided youth with an opportunity to practice technical skills while developing their leadership, communication, and problem-solving skills. By offering a wide variety of experiences, Laurel County 4-H helped youth take the next step toward their career interests.

A total of 914 youth were recorded across all workshops, trips, and activities, representing 152 unique youth. This shows that many youth participated in multiple opportunities, returning to explore their sparks and build new skills over time.

Evaluation data was collected at the end of workshops and experiences, as well as a cumulative end-of-the-year survey. Youth evaluations showed strong growth in both hard and soft skills.

• 100% of participants learned a new skill.
• 85% explored a career interest.
• 82% improved their overall communication skills across all categories, with 91% reporting growth in public speaking.
• 73% tried something new outside their comfort zone.

These results demonstrate that Laurel County 4-H opportunities provided an avenue for youth to gain confidence, develop skills, and take steps toward future careers.

Deloitte Access Economics. (2017). Soft skills for business success. DeakinCo. https://www2.deloitte.com/au/en/pages/economics/articles/soft-skills-business-success.htm

McKinsey & Company. (2019, November 4). Are hard and soft skills rewarded equally? https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/the-organization-blog/are-hard-and-soft-skills-rewarded-equally

Schislyaeva, E. R., & Saychenko, O. A. (2022). Labor Market Soft Skills in the Context of Digitalization of the Economy. Social Sciences, 11(3), 91. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci11030091