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What is the most important quality you look for in a potential employee?

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Genesis’s Answer

Hi Gabby,

Great question! If I was a recruiter and I was searching for employees to hire there would be a few characteristics I would be looking for. I work at a Big4 accounting firm and know there are certain traits that stick out. For starters someone with a great attitude - sometimes you're in really difficulty schedules where you are constantly working long hours and it's always great to be surrounding by good people that keep the ball rolling. Another great characteristic is someone who's sociable - there any many instances where you're working with different people, with different backgrounds, ethnicities, and religion. Sometimes you may even have to work with difficult people, but that is life. It is very important to always stay professional and courteous. Skills are also essential, but I am a firm believer that your resume will speak for itself and if you don't have a lot to show for thats when your personality can really shine through. Giving the recruiter the reassurance that you'd make a great employee and someone amicable to work with. My last advice and something I think every recruiter looks for is confidence. Demonstrating you know what you're talking about and you will deliver when the time is needed is truly important.

Hope some of these tips are helpful.

Good luck with everything!

Genesis
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Richard’s Answer

Hello again!

When I was hiring people, I looked first to make sure they had the desired skills and knowledge. With people new to the position, I'd look at their academic background for what courses they took and how well they did in the relevant courses. I'd also see what type of extracurricular activities they took part in and if they had any special projects/independent learning.

This showed initiative and willingness to get things done, along with commitment to a particular endeavor.

A positive, enthusiastic, excited personality is also important. I found that negative people tend to pull down strong performers and weren't good team players.

Teamwork is also important because more and more you have to get the job done by working closerly with other people in different groups/organizations.
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Jim’s Answer

Hi Gabby,
There are a lot of qualities to look for when hiring someone for a job. I feel the most important quality is "a willingness to learn". When you first get hired for a job, you will not know every single thing that job entails until you have worked in the position for a while. So the best way to succeed in that job is to continue learning and keep an open mind to new ideas.
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Samantha’s Answer

Hi Gabby,

This is a great question. I have found that one of the most important qualities for potential and new employees is being "coachable". Often, you are not expected to know exactly how to do the job before you start. Most of the knowledge that I have relating to my job did not come from school, but rather by on-the-job experiences and my more experienced teammates coaching me. To be "coachable" it is important to be open to feedback and to listen carefully and think critically about what the other person is trying to tell you. It is also beneficial to ask thoughtful follow-up questions to confirm your understanding. It is perfectly okay to make mistakes or not know how to do something. Those working with you would much rather take the time to explain something or give beneficial feedback and see that you understand something than to spend less time and not have you understand. They will appreciate your efforts to learn and improve. This quality will be beneficial as you continue to learn and develop in your career.
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Jorge’s Answer

Gabby,

Thanks for the question. In my opinion many of the specific skills will be very dependent on what role they are applying for however I will share a few characteristics that I certainly want to see in candidates we consider for a position on our company:

Work Ethic: This is a critical one for me. I want to work with individuals that are self motivated and has a strong ethic when it comes to work. Many of the roles we have are in the field and with minimal supervision and therefor we need to have people that are going to perform at their best weather on their own or when being supervised.

Adaptability: Many industries are ever changing and you want to bring on board people that can view obstacles and challenges as opportunities. Look at the world we are living in today, in a very short period many companies have had to go to a work from home model...Here you can see clearly how both adaptability and Work ethic come into play.

Potential: I share one additional item important to me. I may hire someone for a current role, however I am always thinking about how that individual may fit into the future of our company. How much run way do they have for growth. Will they be able to help us beyond the capacity they are applying for?

Hope you find these helpful.

Regards
Jorge
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Khai’s Answer

The most important quality I look for is their ability and capacity to learn under different conditions/environments.
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Elana’s Answer

Trustworthiness/integrity. I want to be surround with people I know are being honest.
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JAYAKRISHNAN’s Answer

My answer is Attitude, Dedication and open to learn things.
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Kevin’s Answer

There are a lot of things that I look for in hiring an employee when conducting an interview the things that I try and focus on are how people have come up with creative ideas to deal with situations in their past. I look to see how poised they are for the interview process are they; ready and prepared, are they not easily flustered.
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Olivia’s Answer

Hey Gabby,

My name is Olivia! I am a current pharmacy student in Indiana and I grew up in Carmel, IN. I have had several different job experiences in different pharmacies. I am currently taking a leadership course right now in pharmacy school and one of my professors gave us some good advice for how to perform in a job interview. You will probably get asked about what your goals are for the job. My professor told me after you answer it is a good idea to ask them what their goals and expectations are from you. Everyone wants to hire somebody that is going to make their job easier and if you seek interest in completing their goals as well they will really like that!
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Terence’s Answer

Some good answers above, so I'll summarize my key points.

1) your CV/Resume should be in order, it should speak to what things you've done to distinguish yourself, whether it's an employee of the month, a target you helped achieve, a difficult project you worked on, or activities you've been played a role in at school (student associations, volunteering)

2) Attitude over aptitude, both are important but the attitude of the candidate is more important to me in judging their fit for my teams. If you've made it in the door for an interview, there's a level of competency that you've demonstrated to be able to do the job. As a hiring manager, I'm going to test your aptitude a little bit, but I'm mostly looking to see whether you'd be a fit on the team. That's not to say you need to be exactly like the rest of my team, but moreso focused on whether or not you are willing to learn, put in the time required, and are dependable. Often times there are many candidates that can do the given job, it's identifying the person that wants to do the job and shows potential for more.

3) Growth potential is primarily displayed while on the job as you observe someone, however there are things you can display via your CV/resume and your interview. Talking about achievements, leadership roles, aspirations are clues to these things for a skilled interviewer.

4) Lastly, I would emphasize that job searches are a marathon with a combination of many, many factors. Do not take anything personal! Often times, it comes down to a few random factors that may be the difference between 2 candidates. That's ok, move on to the next one!
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Michael’s Answer

Hi Gabby,

Great question. It is always nice to see an applicant with a great personality and shows the willingness to learn.

Good luck in all your success,

Michael Middleton
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David’s Answer

Their experiences, their course work, their personality, and why they want this job or what can they bring to us or expect us to bring/lead them to. What I normally look for not only what they can bring to the company but what we, the company can do to improve or lead this employee too. Everyone expect to move up and if the company is not moving how can the employee themselves improve or move it. I had work with company were they just want to stay at one area and not taking risk or moving up which cause a lot employee to leave to a better company.
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Dustin’s Answer

The best things to look for is great attitude, great work ethnic, and and the ability to adjust to change.
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Miyoshee’s Answer

When I was in the position of hiring employees I looked for willingness to learn and also strong team player skills. Good luck to you!
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Nicole’s Answer

I am not currently a manager but I do know from experience many of my managers in the IT world look for eagerness to learn. We are a rapidly growing field and technology changes constantly so the eagerness to learn means you will never have a problem taking up new training assignments. It really depends on what area of work you wish to venture into. What may be important to a doctor may not be important to a network engineer and so on. Is there a particular subject you are interested in choosing as your career?

I generally follow these three rules as well, and it seems that no matter the job everyone appreciates this:
- Be on time
- Be in the right clean uniform
- Pay attention to directions and details when given a task or creating observations
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Stephen’s Answer

Outside of the ability to exceed expectations and the job requirements, here are a few things that as a leader I would look for.

Did you research the company, or the role? This would show me you are passionate about working for my company, not just searching for who ever will hire you.

How have you been preparing for this role, even if this is your first adult career position?

How well did you prepare for the interview? What did you bring with you (portfolio) that would set you apart?

What is your attitude?

Do you show empathy and emotional intelligence in your responses?

Are your responses honest and genuine?

I hope some of these help and good luck in your search!
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Alex’s Answer

To a large degree I have different requirements based on the experience level I'm looking for. My Senior level potentials have a different set of qualities than my juniors or recent-grads. Ultimately however there is a consistent set of attributes that I look for:

1. I want someone who is able to show initiative. I want this person to be able to look at a problem and start thinking about ways to solve it. Even if their job is normally a set of common repetitive tasks, being able to foresee situations and be smart about it is key because I don't hire people to stay at the level they came in at, but to grow and achieve new heights. That will only happen through their own iniative.

2. Collaborative. I want someone who is willing to work with people around them, communicate, and share knowledge. Learn. Take guidance and give feedback.

3. Communication skills. This goes hand in hand with being collaborative, but is key because it also means you're able to reduce information into easily understandable components.

So when I interview people I'm asking them questions that help me understand how well they exhibit these attributes. I understand people get nervous and I'll give quite a bit of leeway, but if I don't see these three things then you'll probably not go through.
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Fabio’s Answer

Hi Gabby,

To echo what some other people have already said on this thread, I think that an insatiable desire to learn should be near the top of the list of attributes. If you're coachable and are willing to roll up your sleeves to learn in a dynamic environment, you'll find that many employers will disregard any potential gaps you may have in your skillset. The key is to prove through your CV and interview process that you're an eager learner by crafting good, compelling stories.

Best of luck with the process!
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Veronica’s Answer

Hi Gabby,

Great question. I think the first thing I look for is a pleasant demanor. After that it depends on the role, but at an entry level would be any relevant training in the field and an open mind out it. You definitly want to portray a can do attitude and a curious nature. I say this because if someone is curious they are going to be more willing to learn things in their new role and bring more to it than someone who is not. I hope that helps.

Good luck!
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Matthew’s Answer

Hi
The most important quality to look for would be communication skills. Every job needs some sort of communication, making it a vital quality to look for. good luck!
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Todd’s Answer

The qualities most attractive to potential employers, besides the specific ones required to do the job itself, are also based on the environment. Let me provide some explanation:

If you're in a technical field, for example, you need the education in that area, but the employer may also be looking for willingness to work extended hours or ability to travel. They could also be looking for someone who is a team player or customer-facing. I know a lot of very talented technical people who are ninjas at what they do, but their people skills are not very strong. That may be perfectly fine, given their responsibilities.

So the role you're interested in may determine what the employer is seeking in terms of important qualities. In most cases you'll find that employers want someone who is considerate and respectful of others, on-time to work and on-time with deadlines, willingness to help out in other areas as needed, responsible and -- maybe most importantly -- a perceived fit in the company culture.

I hope some of this information proves useful to you. Do your research on the companies you want to work for and that will give you a better idea of the qualities they may be seeking. Best of luck to you!
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Heidi L.’s Answer

Gabby,
This is a great question. I think that this answer could vary depending on career, but one important quality that I think all employers look for is the ability to work well with others, including individuals with diverse backgrounds, personalities, etc. Working well together helps increase motivation and productivity. Best of luck in your career journey!
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