Remote Work Reimagined: The Power of Soft Skills in the Digital Age (#186)

Authors

Berlioz Pastor, José Guillermo

Guevara Montoya, Angie Dashel

Cano Pérez, Rocío Monserrat

Villanueva Hernández, Alexandra Lizzeth

Abstract

The rapid adoption of remote work, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, has underscored the critical role of soft skills in navigating digital work environments. As organizations transitioned to digital environments, workers encountered challenges such as increased levels of stress, low interpersonal interactions, and blurred work-life boundaries. These challenges revealed increasing needs for soft skills in the workplace. This research explores how emotional intelligence, assertive communication, and self-management predict productivity and well being among 131 remote workers, with a focus on digital natives. Using mixed methods (literature review and survey analysis), evidence suggests significant correlations: emotional intelligence explains 18.8% of productivity variance (R²=0.188), while assertive communication accounts for 28.7% (R²=0.287). The findings reveal that age and maturity are key determinants of soft skills proficiency, with professionals outperforming university students by 13.5% in self-management. However, despite technological fluency, digital natives show pronounced gaps in boundary-setting and emotional regulation. We propose actionable strategies for institutions and employers to bridge these gaps through structured training, mentorship, and policy reforms. The investigation confirms that in a digital-driven future, human-centric skills will differentiate organizational success, necessitating their integration into education and professional development.