How To Identify Your Best High Performing Employees

Every successful organisation needs individuals who work hard, listen to instructions, are punctual, and produce good quality work. For your business to continue its success, you need to identify and nurture your high performers. You may also have ‘high-potential’ employees who have what it takes to become top performers.

Although every organisation will have its own criteria for performance levels, there are certain common traits that high-performing employees have. Most high performers aim for quality, can work in a team, manage time efficiently, and are willing to learn. In some cases, top-performing employees are those who motivate others or who are highly qualified.

In this article, you will find out how to identify your best employees and how to nurture them. First, you may be thinking, why do you need to know who your best performing staff members are.

Why identify high performing employees?

Because every organisation depends on its employees for success, it is worth investing time and effort to identify your best ones. Along the way, you will probably find other employees who, with some training, could also start to perform better.

According to the results of a 2018 Gallup poll, 53% of workers in the U.S. don’t feel actively engaged in their workplace. The result is that they usually only do the minimum of what is required. So, although they are doing their job, disengagement leads to poor performance.

The same Gallup poll found that companies who have a high-engagement culture are more successful. For example, having a large percentage of high-performers leads to better productivity, less employee turnaround, and more profits.

How to identify your top high performing employees?

What are some of the traits you should look for to find potential leaders and high performing employees in your organisation?

Attitude

Having a good attitude is one of the foundations of high-performing employees. The right attitude puts people in a positive mindset where they don’t dwell on negativity. Your best employees are the ones who respond well to constructive feedback. Even if they have received some critique, your top performers will find solutions and push themselves to improve.

Skills development

Employees who have the potential to become good leaders are always working on improving their skills. Even though they may have natural talent, you can spot a high-potential employee because they are always working at perfecting their skills. Over time, this concerted effort results in growth and better performance.

Self-motivated

Another way to identify high-performing employees is by their levels of motivation. Your best performers are ones who do extra research and spend more time on tasks than under-performers. You may even find that your best performers use their initiative to come up with new ideas and tasks.

Remain calm under pressure

One of the best qualities to look for in potential leaders is how they perform under pressure. Usually, the top-performing employees take the time to analyse situations and come up with solutions. Confidence in their own abilities makes them able to stay cool under pressure.

Excellent communication skills

Observing how an employee communicates can help you identify if they are among your top-performing employees. Performing well at work requires communicating thoughts and ideas effectively. Skilled communicators can also work well with others to come up with solutions and solve problems.

Social skills

Having good social skills is another indication of an employee’s potential to become a top performer in your organisation. There are a number of reasons why this is so.

First, a person with excellent social skills knows how to manage themselves. This gives them the ability to get things done under pressure and remain focused.

Second, social skills are essential in forming and maintaining good relationships with others. This is an important trait to have for leaders because they have to be experts in managing people.

In conclusion, it is important for the success of your organisation to identify and nurture your best-performing employees.