11 Great Employee Qualities: Do You Have Them?

Are great employee qualities disappearing in the workforce? If so, then you should quickly see if you can adopt some of these traits and make yourself competitive. Related:How To Be The Employee Your Company Wants To Promote Don't wait to start improving how you work! Some great employee qualities bosses appreciate include:

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1. Self-Managed

Manage yourself by knowing your roles and responsibilities in your company. In addition, understand what it takes to go a step beyond what your current role entails. Know what makes you a competitive advantage to your boss. How do you improve yourself? Do you know your key strengths you can play up? Weaknesses you should seek to lessen via training or even self-learning?

2. Manages Up

Perhaps one of the more important great employee qualities is being able to manage your boss. That does not mean sucking up to him/her. It means knowing his/her likes and dislikes, and how he/she works. For example, if he/she likes to be updated via e-mail, he/she is perhaps a very visual based person. On the other hand, if he/she likes being updated verbally, he/she's probably more auditory. Learn how to break bad news to him/her, prepare him for meetings, and the unexpected. You will soon become a key competitive advantage in his/her team.

3. Managerial

Even if you are in the lower rung, make sure you have a managerial attitude. This is one of the important employee qualities. Behave like a manager and see to it things are done the way they are supposed to be done. Manage expectations of everyone in the team, from the boss to colleagues and peers within the department. Stick to time lines, follow up with next steps after every meeting, and have progress reports ready even if they are informal ones like an e-mail.

4. Productive

Prioritize your work and manage your time well. Know when to do what. Do not procrastinate on work, especially when they involve cross department participation. Your delay will affect other people's work. Great employees know how to manage their time well (even know how to manage their boss's time well).

5. Goal-Oriented

Work with objectives in mind. What is the overall objective of the project? Everyone must contribute towards that goal. You must learn to get results and expect high performance of yourself. Do not just do enough to get by. This is one of the most important "great employee qualities."

6. Driven

Great employees have the stamina to do outstanding work. They set the pace for others to follow. If you want to be great at what you do and be appreciated by the boss, look for ways to outdo yourself. Be the best you can be. Even if perfection is elusive, go out and get it.

7. Patient, But Hardworking

Have a “can do” attitude. Ever worked with someone who is always so negative? Do you catch yourself making the same mistake? Have a “can do” attitude. Have the courage and patience to work things out and figure things out even if it sounds very challenging. Bosses trust people who have a “can do” attitude in approaching work.

8. Detail-Focused

In everything you do, strive to be the best you can be. Take the initiative to ensure things are going right and make sure the details are tied down. Spend time doing what everyone else takes for granted.

9. Passionate

Peter Drucker, the management guru said, “Those who perform, love what they are doing.” They know each step, and that each detail builds on another and helps achieve the company objective (even if it means routine work). A boss can feel whether employees enjoy their work or otherwise. Someone who enjoys their work will naturally bring their best to work.

10. Positive

A great employee takes personal responsibility for everything they do. To be a great employee, you must contribute positively to the organization. Take initiatives, give suggestions, or even be the silent hero who solves challenges quietly. That is how a great employee works. They work to help achieve greater goals for the organization.

11. Social

Having great working relationships across departments and ranks is one of the important great employee qualities. It means you can get a lot more cooperation from the staff to help you get your work done. Your boss will have less people problems, too. Do you have these great employee qualities? If you don’t, start to see which of these qualities you can adopt and start on first. It will help you move up the corporate ladder a little easier. Related Posts5 Ways To Make More Time At The Office#1 Thing You Can Do To Become A Better Employee3 Things HR Looks For In An Employee   Photo Credit: Shutterstock