7 Ways to be a Star Employee

A foundational component of the VIP Way is the idea of "star" employees. We define a "star" as an employee who is meeting (or of course, exceeding) expectations in terms of "living" the organization's core values (behavior) and achieving results (performance). For example, if an organization's core values are "teamwork", "integrity" and "innovation" then a "star" employee will be modeling these behaviors consistently.

I am often asked, "what are the universal characteristics of a "star" employee" (whether an organization has a set of published core values or not). In my experience of leading people for over thirty years, I strongly believe the following seven characteristics answer that question.

1. Resilience

2. Civility

3. Gratitude

4. Flexibility

5. Discernment

6. Self-Awareness

7. Approachability

The great news for employees (and leaders) is that exhibiting these characteristics has nothing to do with your age, cultural background, organizational responsibilities / title, work experience, tenure in the company or education.

People who exhibit these behaviors on a consistent basis will be highly sought after by any organization in any industry. They will also have more productive and enjoyable days at work, and their behaviors will not only contribute to a VIP Way work environment but will drive better bottom line results for the organization.

Beginning this year, we will be providing opportunities (both virtual and in-person options) to take a "deep dive" into each of the seven characteristics. We believe this "curriculum" will be most effective in the form of a roundtable discussion with employees (with me, or one of our team members, leading the discussion), but it can also be delivered in a normal training mode. We believe this curriculum could also be used to complement your organization's existing new hire orientation / on boarding.

Having employees understand these desired behaviors will be another way to ensure The VIP Way is being lived out in your organization from top to bottom. We look forward to sharing this with the Jon Harrison community!