10 Admirable Qualities Of A Good Employee
There is no shortage of talents in today’s scenario. Every person has a better skill set than the next. Hiring has become highly complex and competitive, to say the least. So, what qualities of a good employee should you look out for when you hire employees?
An ideal employee would be the one who fits in your company culture and the core values that your organization represents.
The right employee in the right position would bring in a lot of positive changes to the possible. However, the wrong one could easily disrupt your time, money, and resources.
To help you find the right employee for your company, here is our list of qualities of a good employee that we look out for:
10 Qualities Of A Good Employee That Every Manager Should Encourage
(Source: Unsplash)
1. Passionate
Passionate employees are engaged employees. Passion is the trait that really makes a difference in an employee doing quality work and his commitment to the company.
An employee lacking passion for the job might get the work done. But the difference will be seen in the employees’ long-term performance. A dispassionate employee, sooner or later, shows signs of lacking motivation and decreased productivity.
So, how exactly do you identify passionate employees? According to a survey from Deloitte, passion consists of these three aspects:
- A long-term, goal-oriented commitment to a specific domain.
- Always seeking knowledge from new challenges.
- A tendency to form strong, trust-based relationships.
2. Strong Work Ethic
Every ideal employee has enviable work ethics. An employee with a strong work ethic will be hard-working, dedicated, and determined to deliver their best work on time.
When employees have a positive approach towards work, they’ll require less management to get the job done. It also becomes easier for managers to delegate tasks to the team members when they display a strong work ethic.
A good set of work ethics will be the difference between a top performer and an average employee. If you hire employees with years of experience but no work ethics, it will only be a liability to you.
3. Honest
Honest employees aren’t afraid to voice their opinions, ideas, and frustrations without disrupting the work environment.
Some managers might find such employees tiresome but consider the alternative. When employees aren’t forthcoming, they will most likely take these internal frustrations and turn them into office gossip.
However, honest employees are so much more than that. Among the list of qualities of a good employee is to hold the highest standards of conduct as part of everyday activities.
Such employees represent a solid commitment to ethics and integrity of doing work.
Ideally, company culture should place honesty and transparency among one of its major agendas.
4. Confident
The value of a self-confident employee is a little underrated. Without confidence, human performance is relegated to untapped potential. Without confident employees, there is no action and no influence.
Employers benefit from confident employees because they are:
- Great contributors as they are more open.
- They are effective communicators.
- Good motivators.
- Make for great role models.
Confident employees are crucial to customer-focused roles. Ultimately, it will hugely affect your brand perception.
5. Ambitious
Ambitious employees are somewhat trickier to manage. On the one hand, ambitious employees display all the qualities of a good employee.
They deliver great performances, innovate, and are incredibly dedicated to their job.
On the other hand, ambitious employees are even harder to retain. It means making drastic changes to company culture, career advancement, and benefits package.
Thus, if you want to keep such a great employee, you need to provide a work environment that helps them thrive.
6. Team Player
The teams are what make your business function. And teams need reliable team members to perform at their optimum. When employees share responsibilities, it becomes crucial that everyone holds up their end of the job.
A great employee might show incredible individual results but not be a satisfactory team player. An employee who refuses to cooperate fully with their team lacks a critical skill set and misses the necessary camaraderie.
Ultimately, a good team will produce results that far outweigh what each team member could do by themselves.
Related Article: Importance Of Teamwork At Work
7. Critical Thinkers
Great employees exhibit the necessary critical thinking skills. Thinking critically is the skill set of looking at a problem and coming up with a logical solution.
Generally, this is done by reviewing different perspectives and possible solutions. Employees with such critical thinking skill sets:
- Ask the right questions.
- Identify business strengths and weaknesses for the long-term.
- Can identify problems and provide helpful solutions.
- They are great out-of-the-box thinkers.
- Never miss out on the crucial details.
Organizations find that when they hire employees with strong critical thinking skills, they are identified as assets.
8. Action Oriented
Hire employees who are most likely to take the initiative and display leadership skill sets. Action-oriented employees are ambitious, confident, and are always looking to innovate.
Every now and then, organizations need someone to go above and beyond their job. Action-oriented employees thrive on planning and doing all it takes to get the job done.
9. Good Communication Skills
Having good communication skills is undoubtedly one of the most essential qualities of a good employee. Having a good set of communication skillsets can often set candidates apart in the hiring process.
People who communicate effectively with managers, team members, and customers are genuinely ideal employees. Good communication skill sets are about having:
- Oral communication skills.
- Listening skills.
- Written communication skills.
- Presentation skills.
- Showing integrity and valuing others’ opinions.
10. Accountability
Reliable people make ideal workers. An accountable employee will take charge of his work, actions, and results.
They make for great employees because managers can assign or delegate tasks to them without fear. Most often, reliability also makes them ambitious employees as they tend to get things done.
Finally: Necessary Employee Recognition
However, don’t take this list as your only source of qualities of a good employee that you should look for. Different organizations have different core values.
An ideal employee at your company might not be that great in another. It’s up to you to decide which qualities your organization should honor.
Once you’ve identified those who fit the qualities of a good employee, be sure to appreciate them for a job well done. Reward and recognize achievements with shout-outs, awards, bonuses, or other employee benefits.