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10 Qualities to Look For in Your Next Hire

Feb 18, 2025

HR and Recruiting Industry Information, Recruiting Best Practices

Allie Blackham

Hiring managers look at several skills categories to find the right person for an open position. Education and experience are often non-negotiable for skilled jobs, but many soft skills transfer across industry and management levels. These attributes can be equally important to finding the best candidate for the job. Consider some of the following qualities to look for in your next hire.

Ambition

Success has long been tied to the concept of ambition: the drive to get ahead and accomplish professional goals. For some, working long days, rarely using PTO, or taking on extra work tasks is a way to prove their ambition. But recent innovative thought on work-life balance suggests that ambition can be defined in other ways than just “doing more.”

Josh Klapow, a behavioral scientist and clinical psychologist, describes ambition as a state of mind. “Ambitious means action, energized, going after something. You can will yourself to be persistent. You can will yourself to dedicate your actions, but ambitious is an emotional experience.” Sussing out candidates who have focused ambition with an eye on balance can lead to less burnout and quick departures for the next big thing.

Confidence

Another of the qualities to look for in your next hire is confidence, which means knowing what you’re good at and believing that you have the skills to accomplish the tasks before you. It’s also a quality that can ebb and flow depending on the challenges of life. Consultant Kristy Hulse suggests that not everyone views confidence the same way; some would describe a confident person as lively and energetic while another would describe someone solid and steady. It can be useful to consider that potential candidates may demonstrate confidence in a variety of ways that may not fit within preconceived notions.

Problem-Solving

Candidates with good problem-solving skills can look at a situation from many angles, determine possible solutions, and find the best course of action for resolution. It’s a strategic approach that requires good organization to identify, brainstorm, and then, most importantly, implement the solution. Lots of problems can be mulled over and discussed ad nauseum, but a good problem-solver demonstrates follow-through to make sure the solution comes after the interrogation.

Dependability

Many modern employers have adapted to a more flexible or hybrid working schedule but that doesn’t eliminate the desirability of dependable workers. Dependability in the workplace includes showing up for work when expected, ready to get started on the day’s tasks. Dependable workers communicate problems or concerns clearly and timely to both managers and colleagues. They follow instructions but also can take initiative to meet deadlines according to company policies and core values. They demonstrate they can be trusted with sensitive information. Dependable people make better team members and collaborators by bringing trust and stability to working relationships.

Adaptability

According to a 2024 LinkedIn survey of the most desirable soft skills, adaptability is the top skill of the moment. Many companies are dipping their toes into the possibilities of AI in their workflow, but that can also reveal its limitations and where humans are most needed. To find the ways their talents are most valuable, workers need to be adaptable to changing job descriptions and tasks. Adaptability helps people avoid early burnout and explore how their job skills can contribute. Adaptability, says Aneesh Raman, is the way workers can have agency in a changing job world.

Generosity

In the workplace, generosity is different than making donations or giving gifts, making it worthwhile among the qualities to look for in your next hire. “The power of generosity,” according to Dr. Deborah Hecker, “causes a ripple effect. Giving with no expectation of return benefits the giver, the receiver, and people in the community.” In the workplace, that could look like giving sincere compliments for work well done. You may offer a listening ear or words of support to a co-worker during a difficult project. Generous people give credit where it’s due and share knowledge freely.

Work Ethic

Even an entry-level employee can bring a strong work ethic to the table. Work ethic describes the approach and attitude towards the value of hard work. A person can be highly skilled in their field but not demonstrate a strong work ethic, which can make them closed off to mentorship and instruction and a challenging collaborator. Someone with good work ethic shows dedication to the company values, offers support to co-workers, and takes responsibility for their tasks.

Leadership

Leadership does not have to equal upper management. BambooHR embraces a company core value of “lead from where you are.” In other words, employees at any level can demonstrate qualities of effective leaders like good listening skills, respect for others, being a good example, and projecting a positive attitude. Employees who show leadership ability may be recognized for future promotions.

Collaboration

The qualities of a good collaborator encompass almost all the soft skills on the list. The more skills someone brings to the team, the more robust the collaboration. Other talents of a good collaborator can include active listening skills with good nonverbal and verbal communication, the ability to compromise when opinions differ, to delegate tasks to share the load, and conflict resolution skills.

Candidates with a variety of transferable skills often prove to be the best kind of employees. When preparing to add to your team, consider focusing on some of these qualities to look for in your next hire. ApplicantStack can help you identify candidates with specific skills, as well as get your open roles in front of a wider audience of jobseekers. Explore how this applicant-tracking system can make hiring and onboarding easier and more efficient!

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Allie Blackham

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