Employers Share What Makes an Ideal Employee: Unspoken Mantra of Employment

Every employer has a target to achieve; has a mission to implement and a vision to follow through. But we all know that on their own, employers cannot achieve much. An employer needs a team to achieve whatever objective they have laid out.

Most employers never really put down what they expect from their employees, save for what HR demands of them, if one has the money to set up a HR department, which in most cases, is missing in majority of startups. Having been an employer for the past couple of years, the challenges have been too great, almost breaking my team up and killing the business. Sheer determination has seen us through and the last couple of months have opened my eyes to what an SME startup needs and how to go about achieving those needs. To go far, one needs a motivated team of employees who are energized enough to achieve the vision of the firm.

De philosopher Dj Kyos once challenged entrepreneurs that they must hustle so hard that people will hire themselves to work for you for free. That Some will be their generalist and investigators. They will be asking about them and there where abouts. Some will be there PR who will be telling others about them. Some will become their fans following them in every social media. They will make tea for them so that they can get close to them and see what they do and learn from them.

To go far, one needs a motivated team of employees who are energized enough to achieve the vision of the firm.

This has gotten me thinking for the past couple of months on exactly what I would need from an employee. I realized that once I have a set of standards of what I need from an employee, then the criteria for hiring will be made simple. My drama with employees has been full of lessons and being a start-up founder, I lack the means of a corporate brand and hence the challenge is a thousand fold.

One thing I have come to learn is that the hard way is quite simple. Employees project what they expect from you as their boss. I learnt that for a startup to thrive, employers must hire character and train for skill. It’s easier to train skill. It’s virtually impossible to train character. This is a lesson that took two years to skin in.

Read: What the 21st Century Employee Needs from his Employers

But what are the key characteristics that any employer would desire in their employees? From my personal experience, the following ten tenets define the core essence of an employee to their employer.

Any employer would like an employee who is; –

• Loyal at all costs
• Committed to the agenda of the business
• Trustworthy
• Resourceful
• Reliable
• A quick study
• Honest
• Confident in their engagement

The above eight characteristics cannot be taught so when you hire, hire based on this and train for needed skills as you go along. This, I can assure you, will see you going far with a dedicated team. But these are just from my experience. Am I being too ambitious? Am I pushing too hard? I have written here before on what employees desire from their employer. Do they match? What’s your take on the important qualities to look for as an employer or as an employee?