When I started as a freelance writer, I thought my craft mattered the most. Then, I read a LinkedIn post where a CEO said that the best writers don’t write the best content. They are decent writers who meet deadlines, listen to feedback, communicate clearly, and offer a seamless experience.

If you’re in the same bubble I was in, let me tell you: Technical skills are the bare minimum. And if you want to be irreplaceable in your workplace and career, you can’t just be a great coder, designer, or analyst, you have to be an exceptional employee. Workplace skills will make you one.

Such skills like communication, negotiation, leadership, and more are underestimated, but they’re key to workplace success and landing a job. Around 67% of employers say they value soft skills more than educational qualifications when hiring.

So here we are, with 11 courses that’ll help you build the workplace skills needed in 2025.

Shortcuts

• What are workplace skills?
• Why trust us and why these courses?
• The best workplace skills courses of 2025

The best workplace skills courses of 2025

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What are workplace skills?

Workplace skills also known as ‘power skills’, ‘professional skills’, ‘soft skills’, and ‘essential skills’, are general traits not specific to any job, but help you excel in any workplace.

They differentiate you from colleagues and turn you from an employee to an asset. A 2022 Pearson study also claims that the top five most in-demand skills are human skills.

Workplace skills (generally) include:

• Communication
• Negotiation
• Presentation
• Time management
• Problem-solving
• Emotional Intelligence
• Creativity
• Critical thinking
• Leadership
• Teamwork
• Adaptability

These skills, unlike technical skills, aren’t quantifiable. For instance, if you’re a copywriter, your employer will know you can write two landing pages, three blog posts, and one month’s Instagram captions in a week. But they can’t measure your communication or time management skills.

So, you have to consistently portray them in your workplace. And speaking from personal experience, they’re not (at all) easy to build. But they’re easy to learn.

These courses will help you master most of the important soft skills in 2025!

Why trust us and why these courses?

Class Central is the Tripadvisor for online education. Our catalog has 250,000 online courses and 250,000 user reviews. We bring you courses from trusted sources and renowned learning platforms—Coursera, Udemy, SkillShare, LinkedIn Learning, and more.

So, how have I chosen these courses?

First, I’ve gone through various “Top Soft Skills You Need In 2025” lists, checked what employers are looking for in their employees, and narrowed it down to 6-7 trending skills that employers are looking for in potential candidates. These are:

• Communication and interpersonal skills
• AI applications
• Creativity and problem-solving
• Emotional intelligence
• Leadership and people management
• Adaptability and resilience

The need for specific soft skills varies according to work trends. For instance, AI application skills weren’t in demand five years ago, but today, they’re crucial.

Instead of listing courses that teach overall professional or workplace skills, I’ve chosen courses that teach specific trending skills.

I’ve finalized the courses based on:

• Beginner-friendliness: Most of these courses are for beginner-level professionals and they will help you build strong foundations in any skill
• Price: Most of the courses are free to audit (or have a nominal fee) because these skills are best learned on the job
• Tool inclusions: Most of the chosen courses offer tools, frameworks, and resources that make applications of these skills easier
• Reviews: I’ve read overall reviews and selected courses that learners claim have helped them in their careers
• Instructor experience: I’ve picked courses that have experienced instructors and whose learning style is well-liked

Let’s get skill-building with these courses!

Communication and Interpersonal Skills

Business Communication Skills: Business Writing & Grammar (Udemy)

• Level: Beginner
• Rating: 4.6 (25,709 ratings)
• Duration: 18 hours 4 minutes
• Cost: Paid
• Certificate: Paid

Never underestimate the power of a well-written email! I know people who got hired because managers loved the email they wrote to them.

So if you stress about getting your grammar right in emails and want more support and vocabulary knowledge to communicate well, this course is for you. Writing emails, reports, or pitches can be overwhelming, but this course guides you through the grammar and etiquette of it.

It shows you how to sound formal and sophisticated while crafting emails, blog posts, presentations, and more.

What sets it apart?

• It teaches underrated parts of workplace communication like active listening, presentation skills, minutes of the meetings, etc
• It isn’t limited to email conversations, it takes you through investor pitches, resume writing, feedback taking, and negotiations
• It also has a section on using AI to write great emails!
• The instructor, Alex Genadinik is a 3-time bestselling Amazon author with 20 years of successful entrepreneurship experience and professional communication

Who is it for?

• Students who are starting new jobs or are finding one
• New employees who want to communicate more clearly and confidently
• Managers and employees who want to navigate difficult conversations with their teams
• Leaders and managers who converse with stakeholders and clients

Communication and Interpersonal Skills

Effective Communication in the Workplace by The Open University (OpenLearn)

• Level: Beginner
• Rating: 4.5 (128 ratings)
• Duration: 24 hours
• Cost: Free
• Certificate: Free

If you’re a new employee, navigating the world of formal communication, speaking to colleagues, and formally presenting your thoughts, sign up for this course. It’s engaging, and immersive and gets you to look within and fill in communication gaps.

You also get the chance to set communication goals for yourself!

The course goes beyond verbal and textual communication and helps you understand and implement non-verbal cues. It also tackles the topic of difficult conversations and enables you to be understanding and collaborative in your workplace.

What sets it apart?

• It has a section on inclusive communication!
• It is holistic, filled with regular practice quizzes and the personal development sections
• It discusses communication as an experience for the speaker and listener, making you match your intent with your words well
• The instructor, Lynne Johnson, also takes you through understanding the future of workplace communication

Who is it for?

• New employees who don’t know how to communicate well
• Employees who fear having difficult conversations with colleagues
• Managers and employees who want to instill open communication
• For newly appointed HR managers in an inclusive and diverse organization

AI Applications

ChatGPT Complete Guide: Learn Generative AI, ChatGPT & More (Udemy)

• Level: Beginner
• Rating: 4.5 (44,081 ratings)
• Duration: 30 hours 43 minutes
• Cost: Paid
• Certificate: Paid

For this skill, I wanted a hands-on course that leaves no stone unturned. This teaches you everything—ChatGPT, Midjourney, DALL-E, and more! It’s designed to make you more productive and efficient by automating time-consuming tasks.

The course is vast (31 hours) allowing you to check which tasks are draining your energy and time and can be delegated to AI.

Created by Leap Year Learning, a cutting-edge online school, this course is designed to make you productive. It teaches you how to make AI a valuable partner and excel in your workplace.

What sets it apart?

• It’s a buffet of AI software and tools made to make your work simple and less overwhelming
• There’s something for every professional—video editing, writing, researching, podcast editing, designing, and more
• It teaches ChatGPT in detail with 150+ prompting ideas and a custom 17-page prompting guide
• It also has sections on Microsoft Copilot, Bing, Google Bard, Make.com, and more software tools to create and edit content
• It features two amazing instructors—Julian, a full-time teacher, and bestselling instructor, and Benza Maman, an AI, tech, and music educator whose AI course is #1 on Udemy.

Who is it for?

• Professionals who want to create more time and space in their schedules
• Managers who want to automate tasks and work on more important tasks
• Founders and CEOs who run social media marketing agencies
• Professionals who want to focus on strategizing instead of managing operations

Creativity and Problem-solving

Creative Thinking: Techniques and Tools for Success by Imperial College of London (Coursera)

• Level: Beginner
• Rating: 4.7 (4,667 ratings)
• Duration: 19 hours 41 minutes
• Cost: Free to audit
• Certificate: Paid

From creating content for the organization to solving operational problems, creativity is the need of the hour. This course offers you a creative toolkit that’ll shape your mindset to think of novel ideas. It offers you a holistic learning experience with activities, practical tools, and theory.

These tools are created to make you curious and innovative, not just in your workplace but otherwise too. The course gives you a systematic approach to solving challenges in a new way.

With several resources at your disposal, you have a chance to choose which problem-solving techniques work best for you.

What sets it apart?

• It focuses on solving issues alone and during group brainstorming sessions
• It teaches you how to come up with ideas and solutions and learn innovative problem-solving
• With an engaging learning experience, it gets you into the habit of solving problems with ready-to-use tools
• The instructor, Peter Childs, is the Head of the Dyson School of Design Engineering and the Professorial Lead in Engineering Design at Imperial College London

Who is it for?

• Managers who brainstorm with their team
• Aspiring and current leaders who want a systematic way of problem-solving
• Employees who want to excel in their teams and become future managers

Design Thinking by University of Virginia (Coursera)

• Level: Beginner
• Rating: 4.7 (8,964 ratings)
• Duration: 6 hours
• Cost: Free to audit
• Certificate: Paid

If you’re starting out in a start-up or a small business, you will need design thinking to navigate problems. Design thinking ignites an innovative spark in you that helps strategize keeping your focus on the customer.

This five-module course is your door to creativity and openness, that will change your mindset and keep it in an experimentative mode. It changes your perspective toward problems and shows you ways to solve them in a never-thought-of-before way.

Please note: This course is part of a specialization program, so when you click on “Enroll for Free”, you will see the program window along with payment options. To audit this course for free, click on “Audit this course”, at the bottom of that window.

What sets it apart?

• It uses case studies to teach you the applications of design thinking
• It also offers tools like visualization and storytelling to strengthen your problem-solving mindset
• It gets your attention to customer satisfaction which is key to any business
• It’s taught by Jeanne M. Liedtka, an author and a faculty member at the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business

Who is it for?

• Leaders who have to solve complex problems regularly
• Managers who brainstorm solutions with the team
• Students who want a competitive edge before joining the workforce
• Project managers working with teams

Emotional Intelligence

Empathy and Emotional Intelligence at Work by University of California, Berkeley (edX)

• Level: Beginner
• Rating: 4.5 (63 ratings)
• Duration: 4-8 hours
• Cost: Free to audit (limited time access)
• Certificate: Paid

Emotional intelligence is a hardcore skill because of the micro-skills within it—-awareness, empathy, interpersonal skills, self-regulation, and motivation.

This course teaches you to build better relationships at work, foster trust, and look out for your and your colleagues’ emotional journey. It teaches you empathy and the importance of tapping into your emotional needs and potential to become a better employee.

If you learn better through real-world case studies and research-based tools, this course is perfect. It aims to make you more compassionate and drive positivity in your workplace, even during conflicts.

What sets it apart?

• It’s a practical approach to emotional intelligence in the workplace
• It teaches through case studies and research
• It covers the biological and social aspects of emotional intelligence
• It can help with conflict resolution and collaboration
• Dacher Keltner, Ph.D., and Emiliana Simon-Thomas, Ph.D., are from UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center, whose edX course, The Science of Happiness, has been a global phenomenon

Who is it for?

• Employees who find it difficult to work in teams
• Team leaders who want better results from their team
• Professionals who are in sales or want to network better

Inspiring Leadership through Emotional Intelligence by Case Western Reserve University (Coursera)

• Level: Beginner
• Rating: 4.7 (1,637 ratings)
• Duration: 19 hours
• Cost: Free to audit
• Certificate: Paid

According to the World Economic Forum, emotional intelligence was the most important leadership skill in 2024. Leaders have to be emotionally aware and receptive to the other’s emotions.

If you’re a leader or an aspiring leader, this course will help you develop emotional intelligence and use it to connect with your team.

It will also show you how to recognize your goals and make them a shared vision. Some modules teach you how to create a culture of learning and development while reflecting your organizational values.

What sets it apart?

• The instructors! Learners love how Suzanne Healy and Richard Boyatzis have filled the course with examples and wisdom. One of the learners said, “Felt more like personal coaching than class. I loved every minute of it.”
• While it’s helpful for leaders, you can also take the course to practice emotional intelligence in your personal life
• It covers the neuroscience and biology of leadership to help you understand it deeper

Who is it for?

• Entrepreneurs and founders who have onboarded a new team
• Managers and leaders who have a diverse team
• Anyone who wants to learn emotional intelligence in detail
• Trainers and coaches who work with leaders

Leadership and Management

Improve Your People Management and Build Employee Engagement (Udemy)

• Level: Beginner
• Rating: 4.7 (2,024 ratings)
• Duration: 3.5 hours
• Cost: Paid
• Certificate: Paid

A Gallup survey claims that 17% of employees are actively disengaged at work. This means they are not just unhappy with their jobs, they are also communicating this frustration openly.

If you want to solve this problem of motivating your team, keeping them engaged, and reducing turnover (saving your company’s money), take this course. It offers tools and practices to improve your leadership skills and add a human aspect to management.

You can become a better coach, collaborator, and achiever, this course will teach you how to get there.

What sets it apart?

• It offers practical solutions to create a successful team
• It has 17 tools to improve your team’s motivation and engagement
• It focuses on creating an atmosphere and systems that your team can thrive in
• It has a self-assessment that helps you understand where you need to improve as a manager
• The instructor is Dr. Roger Kay Allen, an author, psychologist, management consultant, and executive coach with over 30 years of experience

Who is it for?

• Employees who want to be promoted to managerial roles
• New leaders and managers who want a high-performing team
• Managers and leaders in an organization with high a turnover
• Freelance project managers working with new teams

Organizational Leadership Specialization by Northwestern University (Coursera)

• Level: Intermediate
• Rating: 4.7 (2,768 ratings)
• Duration: 40 hours
• Cost: Free to audit
• Certificate: Paid

A friend of mine is a senior designer in a product design firm. Once, he called to inform me he was promoted to the team lead. One month later, he told me he was demoted. While he was an excellent employee, he couldn’t lead a team to excellence.

A leader needs to have interpersonal skills, influencing skills, negotiation skills, problem-solving skills, and many other abilities to guide their team. This 40-hour program, with six courses, can help you build those skills.

It focuses on high-performance communication and collaboration, influence, leadership through design principles and storytelling, data analysis, and more to train your team.

What sets it apart?

• The program is designed to build successful teams and maximize performance
• It teaches essential skills in leadership such as emotional intelligence, negotiation, storytelling, etc
• The last course is a capstone project where you can apply your learning to a case study
• It’s taught by 14 Northwestern professors including Pam Daniels, a Clinical Assistant Professor and Design Innovator in Residence at The Segal Design Institute, and Greg Carpenter, an award-winning researcher and author.

Who is it for?

• Aspiring entrepreneurs who aim to build a team
• Students who are stepping into a new role and want to become future leaders
• Managers who want to lead instead of managing
• Entrepreneurs who are hiring a team for their product
• Leaders who want to guide their teams better

Adaptability and Resilience

Professional Resilience: Building Skills to Thrive at Work by Deakin University (FutureLearn)

• Level: Beginner
• Rating: 4.8 (700 ratings)
• Duration: 6 hours
• Cost: Free to audit (limited time access)
• Certificate: Paid

We love comfort zones, but at work, embracing them and adapting to new realities is crucial. As the market, the workforce, and technology change every few weeks, this course teaches you to manage your discomfort with change and thrive in uncertainty.

This two-week course defines resilience and then proceeds to develop the capabilities, skills, and self-care practices to build it.

It introduces you to resilience frameworks that will help you look at challenges from a growth perspective. And it lets you create your personal resilience plan so you can be quicker to adapt.

What sets it apart?

• It covers both theoretical aspects of resilience and practical strategies for building resilient capabilities
• It helps you create a personalized resilience plan to implement in real-world situations
• It’s tailored to modern work environments, where everything changes but not many can adapt to them

Who is it for?

• Professionals facing high stress in their roles
• Managers and leaders who want to guide their teams through changes
• Career changers and job seekers who can manage their emotions during these turbulent times
• Aspiring leaders and managers who want to prepare for rapid changes

Adaptability and Resiliency by University of California, Davis (Coursera)

• Level: Beginner
• Rating: 4.8 (700 ratings)
• Duration: 8 hours 39 minutes
• Cost: Free to audit
• Certificate: Paid

Adaptability ranked one of Forbes ‘Skills Employees Will Need In The Next Five Years’. It helps you ground yourself in new situations and solve problems without getting caught up in negative emotions.

This course is a simple approach to being adaptable in an uncertain world. It pushes you to have a flexible mindset with an unshakeable spirit. It shows you why adaptability and resilience are important in your workplace and helps you become aware of your behaviors during transitions.

It also introduces you to different models and frameworks that will be your go-to during changes. The last module also helps you create a personal adaptability plan!

What sets it apart?

• It helps you move from panic to productivity with simple frameworks
• It helps you look within to understand what areas you need to improve
• The instructor, Laurie Cozart, is the founder of Brain Squared Solutions and is an expert in leadership training, coaching, and organizational consulting.

Who is it for?

• Students who want to work in startups or small businesses in the future
• Aspiring leaders and founders who want to build a startup
• Professionals who want to adapt to changes at work without getting stressed

While we’ve mentioned workplace skills that’ll help you perform better in the workplace, remember that practicing them in your personal life will also strengthen them. So if you’re looking to grow in any phase of life, start with these courses.