As a leader, if you’re not tapping into your employees’ strengths, you’re probably missing out. Not only can uncovering employee strengths benefit your company’s bottom line, but it unlocks new ways to motivate your team, both as individual contributors and as a unit.
Ready to get the best work from your team and inspire them in the process? This blog post explores the benefits of uncovering employee strengths and offers detailed examples and actionable advice to help your team realize its full potential.
What You Uncover When You Uncover Employee Strengths
Gallup, an organization famous for its research on employee strengths, claims that people who use their strengths every day are six times more likely to be engaged on the job. It makes sense; aren’t we all more motivated to do something we’re good at?
In addition to engagement, Gallup finds that using strengths improves well-being, reporting that the more employees get to use their strengths each day, the more they report “having ample energy, feeling well-rested, being happy, smiling or laughing a lot, learning something interesting, and being treated with respect.”
Further research highlights performance benefits. For example, a 2024 study by Bratty and Dennis found that employees who underwent a four-week “Strengths Builder” program performed significantly better at their job. What may have made this program so effective, according to the researchers, was its root in Niemiec’s (2018) aware-explore-apply model—where participants first become aware of their own strengths and those of others, then explore various aspects of their strengths before applying them contextually. This evidence underscores the importance of not only identifying strengths but also of applying them in the right context.
Notice how the aware-explore-apply model entails team members understanding each other’s strengths in addition to their own, which allows them to work more cohesively as a unit. For leaders, this underscores the importance of supporting strength-building as a team as well as highlighting individual employee strengths.
Examples of Employee Strengths to Look Out For (and How to Play to Each)
While there are tools designed to assess employee strengths (Gallup’s Clifton StrengthsFinder is a popular one), there are strengths that leaders can spot outside of formal assessments:
- Self-motivation/independence: Some employees excel when they can work independently. Play to these strengths by providing ample time and resources for them to complete tasks on their own, making yourself available to answer questions without hovering over them (which may only slow them down).
- Collaboration/teamwork: You may have a natural team player within your workforce without even realizing it. This is why it’s beneficial to take the time to understand employees beyond their professional roles. For instance, do you have a former sports team captain on your team? If so, consider giving them opportunities to leverage their team-building expertise and leadership skills in the workplace.
- Empathy/emotional intelligence: Some people are more sensitive to other people’s emotions than others. To them, this may feel like a weakness, but with the right leadership, you can guide these team members to use their empathy and EQ to inform customer-related decisions, for example.
- Organization: While many people dread the tedious work of organizing information and work processes, plenty of employees actually get energized by this type of work. Consider letting these workers take charge of spreadsheets and suggest ways to improve workflow.
- Leadership: You don’t have to have a leadership title to be a leader. Do certain team members tend to step up, whether jumping at the opportunity to take on new projects or guiding their teammates through uncertainty? Consider asking these employees for their insight on team dynamics, as they may observe things you may have missed.
Using Employee Strengths to Drive Success: Best Practices
In addition to the specific examples I provided, consider these general best practices for harnessing employee strengths:
- Ask employees if they feel their strengths are being used. Whether through a survey, one-on-one meetings, or both, establish your starting point. Remember, it’s likely that the answer will be “no” or “maybe in some ways.” Don’t beat yourself up; most leaders will get the same answers, but asking the questions shows that you’re interested in improving.
- Don’t assume that employees know their strengths. While some may be waiting to put their known skills to good use, others are still wondering what their strengths are. Give everyone the same opportunity for reflection and discovery. Even those who think they know their strengths may be overlooking some hidden gems.
- Allow employees to discover their strengths in a collaborative setting. Utilizing an assessment tool can simplify this process, allowing employees to complete it individually and then engage in group discussions to reflect on and share their results.
- Brainstorm ways to apply strengths to achieve common goals. Employee strengths are only as useful as their connection to team objectives. Once strengths are uncovered, have your team determine how each contributes to specific outcomes.
- Learn more about employees as people. A holistic approach to leadership is always a good idea, especially when trying to uncover strengths. As mentioned above, by understanding what non-work activities employees enjoy and excel in, you can discover transferable skills.
Conclusion
Your team consists of diverse individuals, each with a desire to learn and grow. By investing time in understanding their strengths—and helping them recognize their own and each other’s—you can inspire them to leverage their unique abilities. This approach not only enhances performance but also fosters a sense of competence, belonging, and recognition.
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