What Top Candidates Have in Common: 7 Traits Recruiters See Across Industries 

Key Insights 

• Ownership is one of the clearest differentiators of top talent.  

• Adaptability separates top candidates from those who meet the requirements.  

• The strongest candidates understand the business behind their work.  

• Communication goes beyond interviewing well.  

• Top performers make the people and organizations around them better.  

What separates a good candidate from exceptional talent?  

The answer may have less to do with industry, function, or job title than you might expect. 

Across Accounting & Finance, Industrial, Legal, Technology, Sales & Marketing, Human Resources, and other specialized functions, BrainWorks recruiters work with high-performing professionals at every stage of their careers. While the technical skills required for these roles can look very different, the characteristics that distinguish top candidates are remarkably consistent.  

Repeatedly, our recruiters see the same traits: ownership, adaptability, curiosity, strong communication, business acumen, self-awareness, and an ability to make an impact beyond an individual role.  

These qualities don’t just help candidates stand out during the hiring process. They are often indicators of the kind of talent that can strengthen teams, solve complex business problems, and help organizations grow.  

1. They Take Ownership 

Among top talent, the one characteristic that appears consistently across functions is ownership.  

Cory Kyle, Senior Director for BrainWorks’ Accounting & Finance practice, describes the strongest candidates as having high ownership and being builders, not maintainers.  

That same characteristic stands out to Leah Berrong, Senior Account Manager in the Industrial practice. Across procurement, supply chain, operations, and commercial leadership searches, she sees top performers taking responsibility for outcomes rather than explaining away problems. They establish expectations, create accountability within their teams, and remain focused on what needs to happen next.  

Kartik Magnani, Manager of Recruiting Operations for the Interim Accounting & Finance practice, sees it as well. Top performers follow through, do what they say they will do, and consistently show up prepared.  

Ownership is ultimately about more than completing assigned responsibilities. Exceptional candidates behave as though the outcome matters personally. When something needs to be solved, improved, or built, they step into the problem.  

2. They Adapt Instead of Defend

The best candidate on paper isn’t necessarily the person who will make the greatest impact.  

Ashley Peretick, Director of Client Services for BrainWorks’ Sales & Marketing practice, identifies adaptability and ownership as two of the biggest differentiators among top performers. Strong candidates can enter a new environment, determine what the business actually needs, and figure out how to contribute. They are comfortable wearing multiple hats and moving between strategy and execution.  

That adaptability is equally important in Human Resources. Danielle Hinz, Senior Recruiter in the HR practice, sees exceptional HR talent comfortably navigate ambiguity, different leadership styles, changing teams, and evolving business priorities. Rather than becoming attached to “how we’ve always done it,” they adjust based on what the organization needs now.  

Adaptability also requires coachability. Kartik Magnani points to candidates who take feedback well and adapt rather than defend. They remain open to suggestions, recognize their own gaps, and continuously look for ways to improve.  

In fast-changing organizations, knowing how to do the job today matters. Having the ability to evolve with the job tomorrow can matter even more. 

3. They Understand the Business Behind Their Role 

Exceptional talent maintains strong business acumen; a characteristic that can distinguish them from everyone else being considered.  

Leah Berrong consistently sees the strongest leaders understand how decisions within their function affect the broader organization, including margin, P&L, working capital, customer service, and growth. Rather than operating solely within the boundaries of their department, they understand how their work contributes to overall business performance.  

Jack Vandervelden, Senior Client Manager in BrainWorks’ AI, Data/Data Science/Analytics & Tech practice, sees a similar distinction among technology professionals. Top candidates don’t simply understand the technology an employer uses. They understand why the business uses it and can communicate the impact their work has had on the organization.  

The same theme appears in HR. Danielle Hinz sees top performers use data to tell a story, challenge assumptions, influence leaders, and turn complex people-related information into insights that resonate with the business. 

The common denominator is context. Exceptional talent understands not only what they do, but why it matters.  

4. They Can Turn Strategy into Results 

Top candidates turn strategy into results. They don’t live exclusively at 30,000 feet, nor are they limited to execution. They do both.  

Ashley Peretick sees this in candidates who comfortably move between strategy and execution and clearly articulate the results they have driven. Leah Berrong similarly identifies the ability to translate big-picture objectives into priorities, actions, metrics, and measurable business outcomes as a hallmark of top leadership talent. They also know how to influence across functions and gain alignment from people they may not directly manage. 

That skill becomes particularly valuable in organizations experiencing growth or transformation.  

According to Leah, many of the strongest leaders are comfortable entering environments without perfect structure. They quickly determine what matters most, establish priorities and accountability, and create necessary processes without introducing unnecessary bureaucracy.  

They don’t simply maintain what already exists. They improve it.  

5. They Communicate Their Impact Clearly 

The best candidates all have strong communication skills, a characteristic that transcends industries.  

Jim Cafaro, Director of Legal Recruitment in the Legal practice, notes that polished resumes, strong communication skills, and measurable results remain important. What elevates top performers further is professionalism, responsiveness, and a clear vision for where they want their careers to go.  

Jack Vandervelden also looks for candidates who can communicate effectively about their backgrounds and, critically, their impact on previous organizations. Even a candidate’s resume should make that story easy to understand through a clear summary, relevant skills, career progression, accomplishments, education, and certifications.  

Communication becomes even more important at senior levels.  

Danielle Hinz identifies executive presence as a differentiator among exceptional HR leaders. They build credibility with senior executives, communicate confidently, bring a point of view, remain composed under pressure, and understand when the situation calls for speaking up, pushing back, or listening.  

The strongest candidates don’t leave hiring teams trying to determine the value they created. They can explain it.  

6. They Combine Confidence with Curiosity 

Exceptional candidates frequently combine confidence and curiosity.  

Jack Vandervelden describes top technology talent as having a quiet confidence in what they bring to the table while maintaining a strong desire to expand their knowledge and skills.  

Leah Berrong sees the same balance among strong leaders. They have enough conviction to make leadership decisions without assuming they already have every answer. They ask thoughtful questions, listen to different perspectives, and adjust when the facts point them in another direction.  

Kartik Magnani similarly identifies curiosity, coachability, and self-awareness as universal soft skills among top performers. They understand their strengths, weaknesses, and gaps and can discuss them honestly.  

That combination matters. Confidence allows leaders to act. Curiosity allows them to continue getting better.  

7. They Make the Organization Around Them Stronger 

Top talent makes the organization around them stronger. Perhaps the most important commonality is also the broadest: exceptional talent creates an impact that extends beyond individual performance.  

Leah Berrong describes the common thread among top performers as their ability to make the business around them stronger. They establish clear accountability, develop stronger teams, improve processes, and ultimately produce measurable results.  

That impact can take different forms depending on the function.  

For an HR leader, it may mean identifying a leadership or organizational gap, developing a practical solution, and influencing executives to act. For an Industrial leader, it may mean developing future leaders while improving operational performance. For a Technology professional, it could mean connecting technical decisions more directly to business objectives. For an Accounting & Finance leader, it might mean stepping into an evolving organization and building what doesn’t yet exist.  

The specific work changes. The underlying characteristic doesn’t.  

Identifying Top Talent Requires Looking Beyond the Resume 

Experience, technical expertise, and measurable accomplishments will always matter when evaluating candidates. But across industries and functions, the talent that consistently rises to the top brings something more.  

They take ownership. They adapt. They communicate. They remain curious. They understand the broader business. They translate ideas into execution. And instead of simply succeeding within an existing environment, they help make that environment better.  

For employers, identifying these characteristics requires looking beyond whether someone checks every requirement on a job description. The better question is what that person has done with the opportunities, challenges, and resources they’ve been given.  

Because the strongest candidate isn’t always the person who has done the exact job before.  

It’s often the person who can step into what’s next and make an impact.