Even computer programmers who spent the majority of their working output working alone can benefit a lot from having good connections when it comes to finding good jobs.
Finding jobs isn't the only thing were social connection helps. If you have an health issue than it can help a lot if you have a friend who knows a good doctor. If the friend has a personal relationship to the doctor it might mean that you get an immediate appointment instead of having to wait weeks.
I personally don't do social events like board game nights that are basically superficial fun but prefer events with provide additional value, but I think it's a mistake to see social events generally as low value.
Even computer programmers who spent the majority of their working output working alone can benefit a lot from having good connections when it comes to finding good jobs.
People skills have great value for programmers, and finding jobs is a very small part of it. I write this from personal experience.
Programmers are still people. The amount of great software any one person can write in their lifetime is very limited. Teaching or convincing others (from coworkers to the rest of the world) to agree with you on what makes software great, to write great softw...