3 Simple Questions to Identify Top Talent at Work

Identify Top Talent
If only you could simply and easily identify top talent at work so that you could focus your energy on engaging and retaining your star performers to perform at their peak.  Guess what?  You can.

Three Simple Questions to Identify Top Talent at Work
For executives, you may need a leadership simulation assessment and for managers you may need a people manager assessment to ensure that you get it right for key leadership roles.  If that does not make sense for your unique situation, for many circumstances you can use common sense as a good starting point.  As you think through your key employees, ask yourself the following questions.  Your answers should quickly establish their value to the company and inform your decisions about who to hire in the future.

1. Would You Hire Them Again?
   There is no need for lengthy reviews of past performance, behavioral interviewing questions, or to analyze why you hired them in the first place. Just think about whether, if you had to do it again, you would repeat the job offer. Star employees are the ones who rate an enthusiastic “Yes” to that question.

   Without question, top talent contributes mightily to the organization and is thoroughly engaged in their work.  They are the critical few upon whom you depend and through whom the company and their colleagues thrive.

2. What If They Quit?
   This is the flip side of the first question.  How hard would it be to replace this employee?  How difficult would it be to continue without them?

   A star employee who quits leaves a vacuum that is often hard to fill.  Not only is their key role left vacant, but their team is often left in crisis.  The team mates who are left behind may worry about how they can get their work done and begin to think about their own levels of engagement.

   If, however, you think you or the team might be ambivalent or even grateful when this employee leaves, you have your answer.  They are not the top talent you want and need.  Their leaving has done you a favor; now you can identify top talent to fill the open slot.

3. How Does This Employee Affect Your Own Performance?
   The sign of an “A Player” is that, once you have given them a role to play, you no longer need to worry that the job will be expertly done. High performers simply “get it” and relieve you of the stress of having to monitor their work. Stars not only care about the quality of the work they turn in but also that they achieve the desired results.

   Lower performers drag down your performance because you have to spend time worrying about whether or not they will accomplish the assigned tasks on time and at the level of quality you demand.

The Bottom Line
To quickly identify top talent you can ask three simple questions.  You need to know if they are helping or harming the overall organization.  Ultimately, just think how wonderful it would if most employees were top performers who fit.  Identify top talent, attract top talent, engage and retain top talent to get the results you want.

To learn more about how to identify top talent, download The Surprising Recipe for Talent Management Success