3 Personality Traits for Remote Employee Success
For five years, Dellea and Angela have shared everything: an office, an administrative assistant, and a key function. Both women work in the Accounting division and, while both do good work and make valuable contributions, Angela always has a slight edge. She’s just a bit faster, a little more precise than Dellea. Since transitioning to remote work, however, the tables seem to have turned. Dellea hands in flawless reports before the deadline, while Angela struggles with time management and needs more supervision than usual.
Why is Dellea successful remotely while Angela flounders?
Personality.
What is personality?
More than whether someone is warm or funny or charming, ‘personality’ refers to quantifiable qualities and traits. And how those characteristics combine can have a significant impact on how well someone performs in different settings.
Smart companies have always known that understanding employee personality leads to increased morale, higher productivity, and lower turnover. Now, they’re leveraging that knowledge to ensure that employees receive the support they need to maintain performance and make the best hiring decisions for remote teams and projects.
That’s why Cangrade uses over fifty different traits to evaluate your workforce and identify your top performers – so you can set your remote employees up for success and source the best new hires.
What personality type works best in an office?
Some employees may find themselves missing their cubicles more than others, however. Employees who prefer structure and appreciate in-person reinforcement and feedback may need additional guidance when adjusting to a remote team. Similarly, employees motivated by competition or a desire to achieve perform best in the office, surrounded by teammates (or rivals). Employees with high levels of productivity in an office setting also tend to prioritize in-person social networks. They easily share emotional and practical support with colleagues and take pride in belonging to a ‘team’.
On a personality assessment, Angela would score highly in areas like preference for routine, teamwork, and relationship building, but unfortunately, the same traits that made her so successful in her large office setting don’t give her the same edge in a remote environment.
What personality type leads to remote work success?
On that same personality assessment, Dellea would score highly in areas like:
- Conscientiousness
- Adaptability
- Autonomy
Those who enjoy collaboration and gain energy from interaction will go the extra mile to keep projects on track and teams aligned. They’re also less susceptible to isolation and have better-developed tools to connect with colleagues and friends. And adaptable employees are more likely to perceive the switch to working from home as an opportunity to develop new skills or routines to increase productivity. Successful remote employees also feel comfortable working autonomously and like to take charge of their own schedules.
Remote work better suits Dellea’s personality, giving her more of an opportunity to grow and shine than she had in an office setting.
The takeaway on remote employee success
Navigating remote work means understanding your workforce in a new way.
Whether you’re re-evaluating existing teams or looking to acquire new talent, Cangrade’s Assessments empower you to set your employees up for remote work success.