Amazing! These 3 tips are what you need to look for in an exceptional Female Employee

Are you looking for the perfect employee for your company? Someone who is able to elevate your business and take it to the next level? How can you be sure that the employees you choose are the same ones who will boost your way to the top? Mauro Porcini, PepsiCo’s chief design officer, has a way of finding what you’re looking for.

“Unicorns”, as he refers to them, are people with the perfect mix of traits and skills that are crucial to the business, which makes them “ideal innovators”. Their attributes are a combination of natural talent and regular practice and, perhaps most importantly, they must be “people in love with people”.

What most companies don’t know is that most of these “unicorns” can be found within their current employees! Most often than not, they are overlooked despite their dedication and big ambitions in making the company better. They are not content with just making changes for minimal improvement; They want to make big changes. And they know they often can’t do it alone, which makes them the best team players.

This is especially prevalent with female employees. According to SurveyMonkey’s new Women at Work survey, 54% of the 1,068 US working women, have said that they are highly ambitious in their careers. In addition, Mckinsey’s 2022 ‘Women at Work’ report indicates multiple barriers for these women to push the company forward, such as battling microaggressions and being under-recognised by their business leaders. 40% of women employees say their work isn’t acknowledged at all in performance reviews. As such, female employees tend to be overlooked when looking for the “right” person to advance the company.

Porcini describes the traits of unicorns in his book and organises them into three different categories: entrepreneurial gifts, social gifts and enabling gifts. You don’t have to look too far outside your organisation — you can nurture and develop these traits within your team. In order for you to avoid overlooking the fantastic female employees that you may already have, here are 3 unique traits to look for in your company.

1. The business gifts

Entrepreneurial gifts are skills that directly affect your ability to develop innovation strategies. This includes a willingness to experiment, develop new ideas and make them happen. Unicorns are proactive in finding the root cause of a problem. This is often where the best inspiration for innovation comes from. Unicorns are also willing to take risks. But they don’t take it to the extreme and deliberately seek out experiences that help them develop a healthy sense of caution. They are aware of the trends in their industry and should also try to become trendsetters themselves, as this can mean real innovation in the field.

Overall, your entrepreneurial spirit and drive must come from a place of “love for people”, as Porcini says. Unicorns aren’t content with just good profit margins; they want to create real value for the people they have in mind when working on their projects. This means they are fully involved in their projects, looking at them from every possible angle.

2. Social gifts

Social gifts are what make ideal team players. Porcini stresses the importance of kindness and respect in a group environment, arguing that this will motivate your team to work to their full potential. A high level of emotional intelligence is vital for navigating group dynamics, especially as you rely on your team’s collective skills and experience to complement each other, rather than play against each other. Unicorns recognise the value of diversity, in experiences, knowledge and communication styles.

Storytelling is also a crucial trait. Being able to convey a meaningful message about your team’s work can make or break your project. But don’t put too much pressure on your team to be successful every time. Porcini argues that there is a lot of value in not taking yourself too seriously and having fun; it can make your team more productive and encourage everyone to be fully involved in the project.

3. The enabling gifts

The enabling gifts are the traits and soft skills that help unicorns use their abilities to their fullest potential. To be a visionary problem solver, you need to develop a deep sense of curiosity. A healthy sense of humility and an optimistic outlook can make you more resistant to experimentation failures. Unicorns feel comfortable with discomfort because they know it’s part of the innovation process. Unicorns may be rare, but they are not impossible to find. Emphasising these traits within your organisation can also help you create the perfect environment for your unicorns to grow. These are people who are not satisfied with being “good enough”, work best in collaborative and creative environments, and encourage everyone around them to reach their full potential.

A successful company is often a diverse company.

In order to hire an exceptional female employee, it is important to create a work culture that would allow them to be themselves at work. It is also essential that there are no gender biases in the hiring process and they provide equal opportunities for both men and women.

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