Industry Insights

When hiring new marketing professionals for your Atlanta-based organization, experience and hard skills matter. But so do soft skills and personality. You probably have a list of personality traits that you want to see in top candidates – the qualities that will make someone a great member of the team. These traits will vary from company to company, but there are some universal traits that you should work to identify in the hiring process.

Accountability

Accountable marketing professionals make excellent teammates because they do what they say they will do. When things go wrong, accountable people not only take on the responsibility for the failure, but they also look for ways to make sure they do not repeat the same mistake. How can you identify accountable marketing professionals during the interview process? Have them discuss times when they missed a deadline or made a crucial error. What did they do about it? How was the situation resolved?

The Ability To Accept Feedback and Coaching

Every individual, no matter how talented they may be, has room to grow in their role. Good candidates will understand that they are not perfect and that feedback – both positive and constitutive – are critical tools for growth. To identify coachable marketing professionals who are open to feedback, talk to candidates about how they learn from failure. Ask about the last time they received negative feedback. What did they do with it and how did it impact their work?

Empathy and EQ

Empathy is the ability to put yourself into another person’s shoes and see a problem from their perspective. Empathetic people with high emotional intelligence don’t make snap judgments or act without thinking – they take time to understand where other people are coming from when a problem or conflict arises. This is an absolutely crucial trait for marketing professionals who have to work as a team and/or work directly with clients. Ask candidates how they handle emotionally charged situations. For example, what would they do if a coworker berated them in front of others for a small mistake that they made?

Positivity

Positivity is something you cannot teach, which is why it is so important to uncover it during the hiring process. Positive people have a good outlook, they are excited about their work and they don’t let small problems send them spiraling. A positive attitude can also spread to others who might be struggling with stress and frustration. During interviews, look for natural signs of positivity and a good outlook and ask candidates how they maintain a sunny disposition under pressure and extreme stress.

Approachability

Even if a marketing professional works remotely, they don’t work in a bubble. In the course of a workday, questions arise between coworkers. If someone has a reputation for being unapproachable, it has a negative impact on team dynamics. Pay close attention to the first few moments of your interview and raise questions about approachability during reference checks.

Are You Looking For Top Marketing Talent in Atlanta?

It’s easy to identify and verify skills in a hiring process, but the “intangibles” like personality traits can be a challenge, even for seasoned hiring managers. If you are looking to streamline your hiring process while also ensuring that you are hiring talented and well-aligned marketing professionals, contact the marketing recruiting experts at Method in Atlanta today.