3. “Able to receive detailed information through oral communications; express or exchange ideas by verbal communications.” Your team will be paging, calling, and knocking on your door whenever they want to immediately address their latest irritation. Responding to irritation with email is a mistake.
4. “Excellent written and verbal communications, listening, and social skills.” You will write email more than you can possibly imagine, with each one precisely worded and politically correct. When you inevitably screw up one of these communications, often because you responded to someone else’s irritation, you will accept the criticism, apologize to the offended party, and correct the error without being defensive.
5. “Able to interact effectively with people of varied educational, socioeconomic, and ethnic backgrounds, skill levels, and value systems.” You will work with people who do not share your worldview, have problems you cannot begin to fathom, display behavior you cannot understand, and expect you to remember their names.
6. “Performs in a tactful and professional manner.” No matter how much someone angers you, you cannot be a jerk like the last chairperson.