Skills, experience and expertise are obviously important when it comes to moving forward in your career. That said, many employers look beyond those traits in a leader. According to a recent survey, the top trait they look for is integrity.
Photo by Ben Rosett.
A new survey from management resource group Robert Half asked thousands of CFOs to choose the three most important attributes in a potential leader. Forty six per cent of them picked integrity, and another 45 per cent also picked fairness. Surprisingly, only 22 per cent ranked decisiveness as a top three trait.
- Integrity: 46 per cent
- Fairness: 45 per cent
- Decisiveness: 22 per cent
- Strategic mindset: 32 per cent
- Transparency: 33 per cent
- Accessibility: 33 per cent
- Collaborative mindset: 39 per cent
- Competitiveness: 30 per cent
A press release for the poll concluded:
“When it comes to the people who lead them, professionals place a greater emphasis on personal qualities than a hard-driving business edge,” the survey said. “This feeling is consistent with the C-suite, according to the research. CFOs most commonly reported they value integrity in business leaders. Decisiveness and competitiveness were the least-cited traits among financial executives.”
The survey also compares these answers with answers from workers to see how perspectives differ. For example, 75 per cent of workers said integrity was one of the most important traits, but unlike employers, they also valued decisiveness. Thirty seven per cent said it was a top trait.
Of course, this is one simple survey and your own experiences might vary, but it’s still interesting to see what executives value in potential leaders. For more detail, head to the links below.
What Is the Most Important Leadership Attribute? [Robert Half via CheatSheet]
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