How can you tell if an employee has what it takes to go to the next level of their career? When you’re making a hiring decision or choosing to promote someone within your organization, there are some key traits that will stand out for the right candidates. Here are the five things that high-potential employees have in common.
- Expertise. They know your business. They know it backwards and forwards. However, they also continue to learn and remain hungry for knowledge. You want someone who is competent not only at what they do, but at what your company does, and who will continue to make valuable contributions.
- Worthy of Respect. A successful employee garners respect from their team members and managers. If you are looking to promote someone into management, they need to prove that they can work well with people of all walks of life and skill levels. Do their current co-workers respect them?
- Ambition. High-potential employees are not only on a career track, they are ambitious beyond what they do today. They want to know more, have more responsibility and be recognized for their accomplishments. Assess what they have done in their careers up to this point, and determine if their ambition matches your company’s values.
- Team oriented. Even with the respect of their team and the ambition to move to new levels; a successful employee will also be the real thing when it comes to being a team player. They understand the dynamics of a good organization and are able to form strategic partnerships. How does this candidate work well with other members of the organization?
- Risk takers. Real success can’t happen without someone willing to put their neck on the line. The high-potential employees also know there is a high likelihood of failure and they must not be afraid of that possibility. You never want to hire someone who has always made perfect decisions. Ask them about a situation where they have failed and how did they overcome that.
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