Strategic Soft Skills Institute

What Strategic Soft Skills Institute does

Strategic Soft Skills Institute, operating as Strategic Soft Skills, LLC, is a private professional services firm founded in 1974 and headquartered in Milford, New Hampshire, that delivers research-based soft skills training, leadership development, and organizational improvement services. Its core intellectual property is the Situational Influence Model and associated Social Intelligence frameworks, derived from Harvard psychologist David C. McClelland's power-motive research and developed under President Dr. Sherri Malouf. The product catalog centers on the flagship Positive Power and Influence® program, the Fast Track to Leadership Intensive, negotiation programs, Organizational Street Smarts, the Organizational Improvement Model, executive coaching, the Implicit Social Elements (ISE) assessment instrument, and a five-level Social Intelligence Strategist Certification pathway. Programs are delivered in-person, virtually, or in blended formats either as customized in-company engagements or as scheduled public virtual offerings, with delivery supported by a global partner network of approximately 24 Institute Members across 30+ countries and 15+ languages. The company monetizes through per-program fees (public programs priced $999–$2,395, with the 15-hour executive-intensive priced at $15,000), quote-based customized enterprise engagements, executive coaching, and certification fees, targeting enterprise organizations with stalled strategic initiatives, senior and high-potential leaders, and internal training functions seeking to build in-house capability.

Name

Strategic Soft Skills Institute

Legal name

Strategic Soft Skills, LLC

Website

https://strategicsoftskillsinstitute.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Strategic Soft Skills Institute is a U.S.-based professional services firm that delivers research-based soft skills, influence, leadership, negotiation, and organizational development training to enterprise organizations, senior leaders, and internal training functions globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Development Training

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (611430), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Sales, Customer Service & Soft Skills Training (BPACANAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Interpersonal & Relationship Skills (EDABAMAB), Operational Excellence (OPEX) & Performance Management (KPI/OKR) (EDABAKAH)

Keywords

• Soft skills training
• Leadership development programs
• Executive coaching services
• Influence and negotiation training
• Organizational development consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Milford

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Training Programs: Professional development training programs delivered in-person, virtually, or blended. Programs include Positive Power and Influence, Fast Track to Leadership, Negotiation Programs, and Organizational Street Smarts.
2. Certification Programs: Social Intelligence Strategist Certification with five levels: Influence Trainer, Coaching Specialist, Lead Practitioner, Master Trainer, and Master Certifying Trainer. Includes live supervision and certification for internal trainers.
3. Executive Coaching: 1:1 executive coaching for senior leaders stuck politically, relationally, or strategically. 15-hour intensive engagements.
4. Customized Interventions: Organizational analysis and targeted intervention services addressing specific business initiatives at risk due to people-side challenges.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Strategic Soft Skills Institute delivers research-based soft skills training, leadership development, and organizational effectiveness programs built on its proprietary Situational Influence Model. The company's core offerings include the Positive Power and Influence® flagship program, Fast Track to Leadership Intensive, Negotiation Programs, Organizational Street Smarts, and the Organizational Improvement Model, delivered in-person, virtually, or in blended formats to enterprise clients and individual leaders. Programs are sold as customized in-company engagements, public virtual programs, and a five-level Social Intelligence Strategist Certification pathway.

Product overview

Strategic Soft Skills Institute offers a portfolio of training and development programs centered on social intelligence, influence, leadership, and negotiation skills. The core offerings include the Positive Power and Influence® (PPI) flagship program, the Fast Track to Leadership Intensive for executive development, and Negotiation Programs. These are complemented by Organizational Street Smarts and the Organizational Improvement Model for organizational effectiveness work. The Institute also provides a Social Intelligence Strategist Certification pathway with five levels, an Implicit Social Elements (ISE) assessment instrument, Executive Coaching services, and specialized programs including Influencing Change, The Art and Neuroscience of Intuitive Selling, and Team Training. Programs are delivered in-person, virtually, or in blended formats, and can be customized for in-company delivery or public offerings. The company operates a 360 feedback platform hosted on AWS for assessment delivery.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Positive Power and Influence®: Flagship influence program providing professionals with a practical toolkit of push and pull behaviors to increase influence effectiveness.
• Fast Track to Leadership Intensive
• Organizational Street Smarts
• Organizational Improvement Model
• Implicit Social Elements (ISE) Instrument
• Social Intelligence Strategist Certification

Products and services

• Positive Power and Influence® (PPI) The flagship influence program that provides professionals with a practical toolkit of push and pull behaviors to increase influence effectiveness, developing social intelligence to read situations and use influence styles that move work forward while preserving trust. Delivered in-person, virtually, or blended to enterprise clients and individual participants.
• Influence Effectiveness (IE) An introductory influence program that develops self-leadership capabilities and foundational soft skills to achieve personal objectives while maintaining work relationships.
• Fast Track to Leadership Intensive An intensive 15-hour executive social intelligence lab for high-stakes leaders, typically completed within six weeks, providing 1:1 focused work on real decisions and relationships to accelerate leadership impact. Priced at $15,000 for 15 hours of focused 1:1 executive coaching.
• Positive Negotiation Program Scenario-based negotiation training that strengthens social intelligence to read dynamics at the table, handle resistance, and reach agreements that protect relationships and results. Priced at $2,395 for virtual program spanning 5 sessions over 3 days.
• Negotiation Strategy and Tactics Program Advanced negotiation training that teaches strategic soft skills of negotiation including listening, finding common ground, stating expectations, and disengaging effectively.
• Organizational Street Smarts Training program that builds practical ability to read how work truly gets done — formal and informal power, unwritten rules, and key influencers — to achieve important goals ethically and effectively. Priced at $999 for virtual program spanning 3 sessions over 3 days.
• Organizational Improvement Model A structured systems roadmap that gives leaders a helicopter view of their organization to diagnose what drives current results and redesign systems, culture, and strategy for sustainable performance improvements.
• Social Intelligence Strategist Certification An intensive, practice-based certification pathway with five levels (Influence Trainer, Coaching Specialist, Lead Practitioner, Master Trainer, Master Certifying Trainer) for professionals to become certified trainers in the methodology, including live supervision.
• Executive Coaching Confidential 1:1 coaching for senior leaders stuck politically, relationally, or strategically, anchored in live cases and real decisions to produce leaders who move faster and influence more effectively.
• Influencing Change Specialized program that addresses change management through the lens of strategic soft skills and influence.
• Team Training Customized team development programs aligned with organizational goals.
• Creating Results Program focused on achieving tangible business outcomes through strategic soft skills application.
• The Art and Neuroscience of Intuitive Selling Specialized program applying social intelligence principles to sales contexts.

Quantifiable outcome

• Initiative stalled for 8 months moved within weeks
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

24 partnerships are on record, tiered regional.

• APRENDA (Kris Piña)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDomestic Institute Member providing Strategic Soft Skills programs in the US market under APRENDA brand.
• Erdelyi HR (Marianne Erdelyi)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDomestic Institute Member providing HR consulting and soft skills training services.
• AM Consulting (China and Hong Kong)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering China and Hong Kong markets.
• Zuidema (Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering Benelux and Scandinavian markets.
• Bright Concept Consulting (Portugal)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering Portugal market.
• Synergy Efficient (Spain, Poland)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering Spain and Poland markets.
• Chartwell Learning (United Kingdom)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering United Kingdom market.
• Clarity Consulting (Poland)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering Poland market.
• Sofia Calheiros (Spain)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering Spain market.
• ESSN International (Singapore, Southeast Asia)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering Singapore and Southeast Asia markets.
• Gentinex (Germany)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering Germany market.
• Diversophy (France)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering France market.
• Grupo AnderE (Mexico)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering Mexico market.
• Grupo QNR (Spain)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering Spain market.
• Ascend Development (Pakistan, Dubai, UAE)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering Middle East market.
• Humanis (Greece)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering Greece market.
• ING Marketing (Brazil)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering Brazil market.
• Interaction XXI (Venezuela)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering Venezuela market.
• MTools (Costa Rica)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering Costa Rica and Central America market.
• OnTarget (Hungary)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering Hungary market.
• Positively (Sweden)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering Sweden market.
• Illume Consulting (India)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering India market.
• PSI (South Korea)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering South Korea market.
• John H. James (Switzerland)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Institute Member covering Switzerland market.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• BTS: Global executive development and business simulation firm serving enterprise strategy, sales, and leadership audiences. Comparable in enterprise sales-led motion and executive development focus, though broader in delivery methods.
• Korn Ferry: Global organizational consulting firm with substantial leadership development, executive coaching, and talent management practices serving enterprise clients. Overlapping in executive coaching and influence/leadership development offerings.
• Development Dimensions International (DDI): Enterprise leadership development provider offering research-based programs, assessments, and certification for managers and high-potentials. Comparable audience (enterprise L&D) and delivery model but at significantly larger scale.
• Center for Creative Leadership (CCL): Research-driven leadership development organization offering assessments, executive programs, and custom enterprise solutions. Comparable in evidence-based methodology and enterprise target market, though larger and more institutionally focused.
• FranklinCovey: Larger established player offering enterprise leadership and professional development programs including The 7 Habits, leadership frameworks, and execution training. Comparable in audience and delivery model but operates at broader portfolio scale.

Direct peers

• Ken Blanchard Companies: Direct peer in leadership and situational leadership training. Both deliver research-based frameworks for managers and organizations with global licensee delivery and enterprise sales motion.
• Dale Carnegie & Associates: Iconic soft skills training company offering courses in leadership, communication, interpersonal skills, and confidence-building. Highly comparable in product category, target market (enterprise), and delivery model (in-person, virtual, global licensee network).
• The Humphrey Group: Boutique executive presence and communication training firm serving enterprise leaders. Comparable in niche focus on influence/presence for senior leaders, premium pricing, and small specialist delivery model.
• VitalSmarts / Crucial Learning: Direct competitor in influence, dialogue, and behavioral skills training for organizations. Both target enterprise buyers with research-grounded methodologies focused on interpersonal effectiveness and behavior change.

Emerging players

• Behavioral Science Technologies: Behavioral science-based training provider focused on sales, leadership, and influence skills grounded in McClelland-tradition competency research. Comparable in methodology roots and influence/sales training niche.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/SoftSkillStrats
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@strategicsoftskillsinstitu7945
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/strategic-soft-skills-institute

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Strategic Soft Skills Institute