Cooperation & Teamwork
It’s one of the business world’s hoariest clichés, but a great workplace really is like a great team, and teamwork helps keep exemplary employees focused on the endgame.
Dr. Cerfolio believes employees, like athletes, should love what they do and pursue goals in terms of ownership, responsibility, and pride instead of simply drawing a paycheck. Such employees, he notes, are more likely to “surround themselves with other employees who are also excellent and reliable”—a principle that transcends mere financial incentives.
Communication
Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, and the ability to listen aren’t just trite résumé fodder—they’re vital tools that can make the difference between an average employee and an exemplary one.
Even if a worker’s process and goals are crystal-clear in his/her own mind, they won’t help the company succeed unless they can be effectively communicated to others.
Mandel insists such skills are primary for an exemplary employee: “Clear communication of what the endgame is should not be secondary,” he asserts. “When people are able to achieve a laser focus on their target, the output is always superior.”
Confidence
Confidence isn’t just a character trait but a state of mind. When an employee exudes confidence in his/her abilities, others follow suit. Trust is built on performance, and performance is based on an employee’s work ethic and willingness to see a project or sale through from start to finish. Exemplary employees aren’t satisfied with merely completing a task, but in expanding upon it by forging relationships, both within the company and outside it.
Partnerships and a job well done in turn inspire confidence, and this confidence can influence corporate culture. “When teammates don’t share values or a culture, teams fail,” comments Dr. Cerfolio. Further, if an outstanding employee is surrounded by ‘marginal’ workers, after time, the exemplary employee will falter and probably move on, as he or she will perceive there is no longer an advantage to working harder.
Rules To Live By
In addition to embodying the aforementioned key traits, top performers also follow their own set of rules. The first ‘rule’ is knowing what he/she wants out of a job and to have a clearly defined career path. “An exemplary employee is someone who lives daily with a good attitude to do the best job,” says Ricardo Salinas, technical coordinator at Ruiz Sales in Edinburg, TX. “Maintaining clarity about your work allows you to achieve the highest levels of excellence in our industry.”
