HR administrations look for many elements when finding a qualified candidate, but many hiring experts believe that a good attitude is most important.
In a recent interview with Forbes, Mark Murphy, CEO of Leadership IQ, said that 86 percent of qualified candidates who were hired and let go within 18 months cite negativity as the reason. Positive demeanors go a long way for many senior-level executives, and according to recent research by ExecuNet, 88 percent of upper-level managers believe that a team member with a good outlook is worth more than someone with a higher-skills. Only 6 percent said that they would accept bad attitude if it came from a top performer.
Robyn Greenspan, chief content officer at ExecuNet, said she was not surprised by the results, as negativity can spread throughout a company.
"In reviewing initial data from our 21st annual executive job market intelligence survey, we're finding there is a dramatic attitudinal contrast between those who are happy at work and those who are not," Greenspan said. "Negativity can quickly become contagious in an organization and drag down performance. B-players with great attitudes can likely become A-players in the right environment."
