Skills
Social Worker Skills & Tools
The technical skills, people skills and tools employers look for in social workers, and how to build and show them.
What skills do social workers need?
Social Workers need technical skills such as case management, risk and safety assessment, and interviewing, plus people skills like empathy and boundaries. They also use tools such as Case management systems and Assessment tools.
Technical (hard) skills
- Case management
- Risk and safety assessment
- Interviewing
- Documentation
- Resource navigation
- Crisis intervention
People (soft) skills
- Empathy
- Boundaries
- Communication
- Resilience
Tools, equipment and technology
- Case management systems
- Assessment tools
- Phones and laptops
- Resource directories
- Court report templates
- Car for home visits
Skills in action: common tasks
These step-by-step guides show how social workers put their skills to work:
- How to conduct a child welfare home visit
- How to write clear case notes
- How to build a safety plan with a family
How to show these skills on a resume
- Lead your skills section with the technical skills from the job posting, for example, “Case management” and “Risk and safety assessment.”
- Prove soft skills with results: instead of listing “empathy,” describe a situation where you used it.
- List credentials such as Licensed Baccalaureate Social Worker (LBSW) near the top, with the issuing organization and date.
- Use the employer’s vocabulary. Our social worker glossary covers the terms hiring managers expect.
How to build these skills
Formal training, supervised practice and certification are the most direct routes. Our Social Worker training introduces each of these skills with plain-language lessons, procedures and a final knowledge check: a strong foundation before hands-on training or your first day.