Have you encountered some “red flags” during an employee performance review for an employee that still seems to be excelling in all areas? It may be counterintuitive, but some employee performance review results are more complex than they appear. Here’s how to identify hidden talent in your organization.
Hyper-talented employees bring several less visible skills to the table. By no means are any of these hidden skills less important than those listed above. Unfortunately, many traditional performance reviews don’t identify many of the skills that hyper-talented employees possess. It may be the opposite.
What appears as “red flags” on performance reviews may be qualities that your company needs (or is built upon). Here are a few of the red flags that your employee may have on their performance evaluation that are extremely beneficial to a corporation.
Red Flag #1: Prioritizing Coworker Goals over Corporate Goals
Hyper-talented managers (or employees) may already employ some of these tactics. Allowing others to shine may appear as if that employee has done less than they’re capable of – but they’re actively fostering the rest of the talent at your company by sacrificing their gain. This is a trait that corporations can’t buy in their employees. If you have a manager or employee who prioritizes coworker goals over corporate goals… hang on tight to that talent!
Remember that what matters are the results and not who accomplished them.
Red Flag #2: Imperfect Answers
Don’t let polish and charm fool you when you’re completing performance reviews. Those who have perfectly constructed answers may have the least perfect track record in their manager role or productivity.
Those who enter into a performance review with imperfect answers may appear to be lower-performing than others… but they’re likely more genuine and authentic. The employees who aren’t always ready and willing with a perfect answer likely are also incredible critical thinkers who aren’t willing to provide an answer just because that’s what they know that management wants.
Don’t let imperfect or “ugly” answers affect the way that you judge performance. Listen to what the employee is saying and inspect the deeper value.
Red Flag #3: They Delegate Decision-Making
Most employees tend to think that decision-making is a manager’s job. However, hyper talented employees understand that decisions should always be made by the subject matter expert. This is true in any industry and at any company. Those who are in the thick of it every day are much more able to make decisions that will impact the company in the best way.
It may be a red flag that an employee often delegates decisions – but it’s a sign of deep understanding and emotional intelligence. Those who can delegate the decision to the right person will evolve your company to exactly where it needs to be in half the time it will typically take to get there.
Ask the Right Questions During Performance Reviews!
The moral of the story is that if you aren’t asking the right questions you may end up missing the hypertalented employees as a result of “red flags”