Two key responsibilities of leadership are selecting people to join our team and routinely evaluating each team member’s performance going forward from the date of hire.
These past several weeks, we have been discussing eight key characteristics for selection and evaluation of personnel. Thus far we have discussed five character qualities, and the first of three technical skills: Available, Faithful, Teachable, Enjoyable, Responsible, and Administration (click to read each previous summary).
The three technical skills included in this assessment strategy are important; yet only within the context of having first determined that the five character qualities are in place. We continue to emphasize that without character, any amount of technical skill can lead to unwelcome challenges. There is nothing productive about a talented person with a contrarian attitude - because such people usually will disrupt the momentum of the department and/or distract the entire organization from its mission-focus.
Within the framework of proven character, today we are providing a bit more detail on the second technical skill: Communication.
"Communication" can be simply defined by delineating a list of parameters that can be objectively assessed:
- Listening skills: Demonstrates effective listening through active restatement and non-verbal responses
- Written communication: Appropriate; clear, concise; grammatically and typographically correct
- Consistent communication: Communicates directly, honestly, and appropriately utilizing mission-centered principles; not duplicitous
It is always true that the specific nature of the job-function will determine the priority of this skill-set in your evaluation process.