Yes, ‘unicorn’ employees do exist. Here’s how you identify them.

Unicorn ahead. Photo credit: rumpleteaser/CC BY 2.0.

Unicorns are hard to catch. Back in the 1500s, it was believed that only fair young maidens could gain the trust of these elusive horned creatures.

I’m no fair maiden. Still, in my time, I’ve had the luck of getting close to many magical creatures… in the form of “unicorn” employees. Not to be confused with unicorn companies—startups valued at $1 billion or more—“unicorn” employees, for me, are staff who possess a unique set of qualities that make them extremely rare and valuable. Like the legendary beast, they’re hard to find. But once hired, they offer up enormous benefits in the workplace. To name a few, they shatter expectations, raise the bar for everyone, and are simply a joy to be around. They can literally take your business to the next level.

They shatter expectations, raise the bar for everyone, and are simply a joy to be around.

Whether you’re looking to build a unicorn army, or hoping to boost your own value in the workplace, here are the five key qualities of a unicorn employee:

You aren’t limited by your job title.

In about 5 years, my company Hootsuite went from a 100-person tech startup to a 1,000-person global company. Through this hyper-growth stage, the employees who truly flourished were flexible and intellectually curious.

Earlier on in the business, this meant having the ability to wear many hats and excel at varied tasks, critical at a fast-growing startup. For example, just because somebody’s job title was “Office Administrator” didn’t mean she would shy away from pitching in on a major marketing campaign by helping brainstorm some catchy tweets.

Later, as the company grew, unicorn employees jumped at the chance to dive deeper into specific, growing areas of business that needed good people. Some even decided to move across several departments. I saw unicorn employees make surprising leaps—one even went from financial specialist to software engineer. I think this is so important to employee growth that we recently launched a new pilot initiative, called the “stretch program,” to help people expand their knowledge and expertise across the business…and grow their unicorn horns.

Unicorn employees jumped at the chance to dive deeper into specific, growing areas of business, which needed good people.

You think big and small

Exceptional employees are able to think strategically. This means having the ability to take a step back and see the overall company goals, or the industry as a whole, then apply it to your work. To be effective in business, you must be able to see the big picture.

On the flipside, while big-picture thinking is critical, I’ve also found that the best employees also know the devil is in the details. Running a business requires meticulous attention. A minor copyright issue, improperly executed email campaign, or even what seems like a small technical glitch can end up being catastrophic, affecting a lot of clients in a short period of time. The best employees are those who take the time to read the fine print. These are the types of people I know I can entrust with serious responsibility.

You have true grit.

The concept of “grit” has made its way into popular culture recently, perhaps sparked by psychologist Angela Duckworth’s popular TED talk and book on the subject. She defines grit as “perseverance and passion for long-term goals,” and says it’s a crucial factor to achieving success.

I couldn’t agree more. Being an entrepreneur since I was a teenager, I’ve learned that the business world is like being on a boat in the open sea. Whether it’s a patch of rough waves or an unexpected storm, unexpected obstacles are inevitable. During these turbulent times, having grit—a dogged persistence—can help you keep focused on the destination. In fact, that very outlook helped my billion-dollar company weather the storm and get to the next level. Unicorn employees have true grit and are able to stay calm and focused on the task at hand, even on choppy seas.

You’re respectful by nature.

The ability to work well with others is a skill that benefits any workplace. It seems simple enough, but you’d be surprised.

You get sh*t done.