Everyone wants those top workers, the proven performers that show up to work and make it happen. But spotting these candidates is harder than you might think. Here’s how to find the candidates that you can count on in a sea of “just okay” applicants.
Traits of the High Performing Employee
No matter the profession, finding a good employee is about looking for a few character traits that show off their star status. What are the common traits that all top performers share? We look for:
- Top performers care more about getting the job done right. They care and it shows in the effort they put into their work.
- They also want to learn, grow, and improve their skillset. This automatically marks them as good for your company.
- Top performers are good decision-makers and natural leaders. They can step up to do the unexpected in a way that makes sense for your organization and the team they’re in.
- These high performers also seek out regular feedback from their peers and bosses. They can handle “needs improvement” but excel with praise and guidance.
- These candidates are also self-directed. They do not need you to micromanage them and can lead teams to help your business, whether you ask them to or not.
- They are confident and can take the pressure, calmly analyzing problems, and responding appropriately even when a deadline is at stake.
- Finally, high performers are often really good with other people. They have a solid network of professional and personal contacts who understand their value as a person and as an employee.
Now that you know the character traits we find valuable in top-performing employees how can organizations seek these types of candidates out and put them to work?
Screening for Top Talent
Asking the right questions about current and past job performance is a good place to start when trying to find top talent. Qualified behavioral questions can help you discern if the employee has shown a pattern of good behaviors that they can apply in your workspace. Talking with prior employers will help you understand the candidate’s job history as well as discussing the kind of output the candidate has had in their past jobs.
Try to create behavioral questions that discern which candidates are faster learners and which have a high level of emotional intelligence they can apply to the job. There are all kinds of employee assessments on the market today but we’ve found that simply asking the right questions can help you discern the top talent. Some great behavioral questions to help you spot your next hire could include:
- What skills do you hope to gain or improve upon in the next three years?
- What was the biggest thing you learned in your last job?
- Can you give me an example of how you learned to be more productive in your job?
- Tell me about a time you overcame a big obstacle.
While these are just a few of the questions you can ask, it helps to have an expert team like PrideStaff on your side to help you find top talent. We can help you find a better quality candidate faster. Call on us.
