We are often asked the question: ‘what qualities/ characteristics do you look for to identify a high performer?’
In our observations and experience, not only when working on behalf of our clients but also in our previous lives as employers and leading teams ourselves, the following are key identifying traits that are found (in the vast majority) of high performing individuals:
1. Optimism – How people view and respond to the world around them, to obstacles and challenges faced is extremely telling and this is a key and often underrated/ under assessed trait. This also directly correlates to resilience.
2. Resilience and the ability to navigate grey, work with uncertainty and often demonstrated in how people respond to change and challenges they need to overcome.
3. Proactiveness and high self-ownership (high self-accountability) + self-drive , which will translate into self-managing behaviours, proactive problem solving, seeking out challenge and growth experiences and for them to manage deadlines, meet and exceed goals set with minimal prompts/ support day to day.
4. A growth mindset and commitment to self-learning, with an enquiring mind
5. High self-awareness (linked to and can also be described as high EQ). strongly linked to how they communicate and engage with others.
6. Highly engaging and effective communication – with strong self-awareness and the ability to read others and situations – these individuals will be best placed to navigate sensitive discussions, build strong rapport, deliver clear messaging, take others with them and adapt their style and communication to suit the audience desired. They will demonstrate the ability to show empathy and connect genuinely with others and hence be very effective leaders.
This is not an exhaustive list as there are many traits that highlight high performers and these are merely some of the most common that we see, explore and look for when managing roles for our clients … Now you are probably thinking… ‘where can I get one of those??’
A few top tips to attract high performers in any organisation:
1. Partner with the right people to help you identify and engage with them (wink wink!)
2. Consciously manage and promote yourselves as an employer – internally and externally … this takes work and never stops!
3. Be clear about what you offer and why people want to work in your organisation and then have an army of ambassadors that can share and articulate this
4. Be clear about how you measure, manage and support high performers (many businesses are not able to share this as employers and do not have a specific plan for high performers and those highlighted for future leadership paths)
5. Get your interview process slick and ensure that anyone entering a process/ applying to a role with your business has a superb experience, regardless of outcome (massively underrated and something we spend a lot of time investing in, on behalf of ourselves and our clients).
The above traits can be used to form an integral part of any hiring process and interview questions and to really provide a bigger picture of how individuals work best, add value and what support they will need to do their best work.
Unfortunately, too often we see organisations try and ‘fit’ people into their culture/ perceived culture and this often translates into hiring a number of very similar people/ personality types, which does not always create diversity of thought and allow for individual styles, personalities and freedom to perform.
High performers can be introverted or extroverted and traits will need to be explored in depth to ensure that the right questions are asked or you may well miss the opportunity to identify a high performer, through poor interviewing and process.
Once you have secured your high performers then … how to keep them?
Part 2 Blog coming soon on this ! (Watch this space).
