I generally agree but at least at the top schools there is massive correlation between good GPA and skill match. Most coverted firms ask for GPA +/- SAT data in their apps and they even pre-define which list of schools to show in the school picklist. You neither want to be in the “Other” school nor in the GPA group that’s below the top category (most cases its 3.7+).
Once you clear these filters, then yes the softeer skills make a big difference assuming technical skills are comparable. I know of many firms both in tech and high finance that place significant emphasis on behaviorial interviewing. Success in the Google team match process is very much focused on your marketability but getting to that stage significantly depends on your school and hard skills although GPA is less important.
Similarly Citadel tech interviews are 45-min long but you get only 20-minutes for coding/problem solving and the rest of the time is focused on behavioral interrogation.
Soft skills are always important but particularly in CS hard skills are the biggest driver of employment outcomes. At the same time there are always situations where GPA is not the same as hard skills.