Five Things to Look for in Potential Leaders

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You need to find someone to move into the next open management position. There are several people with the technical expertise, but being an enlightened leader yourself, you are looking for some ability to lead people, not just manage the department. How do you find that special person who will be a good leader?

If only there was an easy answer to that! There isn’t, but there are some definite characteristics you should be seeking. Of course, you want someone with technical expertise, but beyond that there are some critical traits that help signal potential leadership success.

1. Look for someone who has unquestionable integrity. A leader you can’t trust will be dangerous and you’ll spend a significant amount of your time watching what they do. No matter what other qualities the candidate may possess, if he or she doesn’t have integrity, they will be trouble.

2. How does your candidate relate with his or her co-workers? You’re not looking for the most popular person in the room, in fact that can be a negative sign because a person who is always popular may not have the organization’s best interest at heart. The ideal leadership candidate is one who is respected by the majority of co-workers. But, more importantly, he or she treats all co-workers with respect. This is a difficult test but a leader who doesn’t treat others well will not be as effective as one who does.

3. Does your candidate display an eagerness to learn new things? This doesn’t mean a person who is willing to learn something when tasked with something new but rather is constantly seeking out new information and stretching to gain more knowledge. This is a critical trait for a good leader.

4. Do your candidate’s co-workers naturally follow him or her? This can be a two-edged sword. Someone to whom people naturally gravitate can become a great leader, but they sometimes require a little more training and supervision specifically because of this natural ability. Sometimes called “born-leaders” they are usually charismatic and can often get their way without much regard to how others, especially those higher in the supervisory chain, feel about what they’re doing. If your candidate seems to have this ability, that’s fine, just make sure they stay in bounds.

5. How does your candidate relate to authority? Ideally, you’re looking for someone who respects authority and yet isn’t afraid to present thoughtful suggestions and opposing views. The ability to observe this skill is very much dependent on the leadership culture within your organization. It’s important though for leaders to be able to interact with authority figures without undue fear.

Remember that leadership is a learning process for new managers and they are not likely to be experts right away. There will be hiccups along the way, but if you’ve selected for these traits, you probably won’t be disappointed.