In today’s competitive world, recruiting qualified employees is an important task for any employer. And to ensure the success and stability of your company, you need to attract people with the right skills and abilities. But how exactly do you determine who is a really good employee?
In this article, we’ll look at a set of key skills that characterize a good employee, and reveal effective ways to test these skills during the hiring process. After all, identifying individuals with the right skills and qualities to meet the needs of your organization can be a crucial factor in achieving business success.
What makes a good employee?
While there is no single definition of a good employee, there are some common universal qualities that employers will look for. Combined with the seemingly basic skills required for the position, such as motivation, problem-solving and time management skills, and communication skills, these together make up a “good employee”.
Below, we take a closer look at each of these key good employee traits to better understand why they are so important.
1. Communication
Even if you work alone, you will probably still need to develop your communication skills from time to time.
Great communication skills are essential in everyday situations and should not be taken for granted, as they are of great value in life and at work.
The ability to listen effectively, speak effectively, and express thoughts in writing with clarity are essential to consistently performing at a high level of quality.
Good communication means a more productive environment and therefore better overall results, which is one of the key qualifications of a good employee.
Good communication also means less conflict in the workplace. Great employees are good at expressing themselves, reaching common ground easily, and understanding each other.
How to check?
It is important to check communication skills in the early stages of the hiring process. Pay attention to how well the potential hire articulates their thoughts and explains their previous experience.
2. Ability to work in a team
Let’s face it, even freelancers who work remotely sometimes have to rely on others to collaborate and get their work done. Despite being one of the most common buzzwords on resumes, teamwork is indeed more important than ever in the modern workplace and is one of the key requirements for a “good employee”.
Working in a team makes employees more efficient, it’s a fact. Good teamwork also has an impact on employee morale — the right lines of communication ensure that everyone feels good about their work. In addition, a company with a well-functioning team always has lower employee turnover and higher employee retention rates.
Teamwork provides a diversity of opinions, experiences, and different points of view, which keeps employees’ ideas fresh and helps them come up with better solutions.
How to check?
Of course, many candidates will simply state on their resume that they are a team player, even if this is not entirely true. To assess this important quality, ask a few questions during the interview, for example:
- Do you work better on your own or in a team?
- Tell us about a time when you were working with someone and a problem arose. How did you solve it?
- Tell us about a successful project you completed as part of a team. What was your role?
3. Time management skills
Employees who manage their time well are more efficient and can get more done in less time.
As we know, time is money. And, the more an employee can do during the working day, the better the return on investment will be. An employee who manages their time well improves the overall workflow.
Often, workflows depend on each other, so one bad connection can delay the entire project. If you have a group of good employees who manage their time well, you will meet your deadlines every time.
How to test it?
One way to test for time management is to send out a test task to a potential employee and see if they complete it before the deadline.
4. Problem solving skills
In an ideal world, work would be a series of tasks for which there would be a predefined solution. But unfortunately, in real life, work consists of a large number of unpredictable situations in which employees have to instantly adjust to find a logical solution to the problem.
When situations arise that go beyond the employee’s job description, the ability to think outside the box becomes one of the most important qualities for finding useful solutions and saving the situation. Good problem solvers will be able to spot problems before they become problems. Thanks to their observation, critical thinking and analysis skills, these employees can not only solve existing problems, but also anticipate future ones.
How to check?
Ask about previous experience by asking a few questions, for example:
- Have you ever had to solve a problem without management involvement? How did you do it?
- When you face difficulties at work, do you solve them yourself or do you ask someone for help?
Based on the answers to these questions, you can understand who meets the requirements of a “good employee” and who will bring fresh ideas and useful solutions.
5. Motivation
As it turned out, motivation is one of the most important issues in the modern workspace.
Motivation is the difference between an employee who finds new ways to improve their processes and get the job done and an employee who comes in early, leaves late, and takes a 2-hour lunch break.
If the staff is motivated, they are more productive, ready to achieve their goals and even exceed them. If you have the right motivation to do your job, your employees will be happier with the work they do.
Employees who are self-motivated improve themselves and their work. They can work independently and efficiently because of their energy and ability to get the job done effectively.
How to test it?
There is no practical way to assess motivation in the workplace, but there are a few questions you can ask a candidate during the interview. Here is one of them:
- Tell us about a process in your previous position that you improved and the steps you took to implement your idea.
Motivated or enthusiastic employees will always find a way to solve any situation with intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
Conclusion
Identifying good employees is a multifaceted task that requires attention to detail and professionalism during the hiring process. To be successful, employers should be aware not only of general skills, but also of the specific competencies required for a particular position or field of activity.
In addition, it is worth paying attention to skills such as communication, teamwork, and creativity. These qualities can determine an employee’s success in performing their duties and interacting with other colleagues.
And to test the skills of employees, using effective interviewing techniques, testing, and evaluating work samples can help determine whether a candidate is a good fit for the organization.
