It’s not that people lack soft skills

The conversation about Filipino job seekers lacking soft skills is real, but my experience tells me these skills are not missing. They are built through exposure, responsibility, and real-world experience.

I saw this early on.

As President of our class (1989-1990) at the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Faculty of Arts and Letters - Economics, I learned that leadership is not about authority, it’s about listening, aligning people, and making decisions when it matters most.

That foundation deepened as President (1990-1991) of the UST Artlets Economics Society, where collaboration and navigating diverse perspectives became part of everyday practice.

At the same time, being entrusted with responsibilities in our family business, Villa Trinidad Resort, grounded everything. Real customers, real operations, real consequences - this is where accountability, adaptability, and problem-solving were truly shaped.

My Economics' academic training then provided the structure, the discipline to think critically and understand the “why” behind decisions. I learned the principles on how to think about tradeoffs, how to work with data to test those thoughts, and how markets work in the real world.

Today, in a world shaped by AI and a growing focus on ESG, these experiences matter even more.

AI is accelerating how we work but it is also demanding better judgment, clearer communication, and stronger ethical grounding. ESG is reshaping how businesses operate, requiring leaders who can balance profit with purpose, and decisions with impact.

These are not technical skills. These are deeply human skills.

Which brings us back to the real issue:

It’s not that people lack soft skills. It’s that we need to create more environments where people can lead, take ownership, and make meaningful decisions early on.

Because in the age of AI, and in a world guided by ESG principles, success will not be defined by what we know alone but by how we think, how we lead, and how responsibly we act.