Employers Seek Leadership Abilities in College Grads

What evidence of leadership abilities are employers looking for in the college students they hire? According to Jackie Freiberg, co-founder of the Family Business Institute at the University of San Diego and coach to executives, managers, and front-line professionals, the students who great organizations hire:

1. Are purpose-driven—"Leaders have a vision and an end in mind. They know what they want to accomplish and where they want to be five or 10 years from now. They have a dream, a purpose, and that purpose is what wakes them in the morning and causes them to be alive. A purpose is bigger than a goal. A goal is temporal. A goal is, 'I want the job.' [Great employers] don't want to hire a college graduate who just wants a job. [They] want to hire a graduate who wants to own a home, be an active community member, be a business leader, and be part of growing something that's bigger than themselves."
2. Have a strong work ethic—"This purpose impacts [a college grad's] work ethic. Great leaders, gutsy leaders, leaders who are blowing the doors off of 'leadership as usual' these days are people who work like crazy, but it's not a vocation, it's an avocation and it's not a 'have to,' it's a 'want to.' Work brings them life versus sucking the life out of them."
3. Are able to execute—"Can a student do what she says she can do? A lot of college graduates come out of school and maybe they've succeeded and done well on certain projects, but executing in the real world and making things happen is really different than doing it in a protected academic environment. [Great employers] want people who take incredible initiative, execute, and get results. [Students should be] able to go to a potential employer and say, 'I didn't just do this incredible paper. Let me tell you about the results that I got when I worked on this project.' Again, purpose and work ethic drive this quality."
4. Put service first—"[Employers] need to see and sense in someone that it's less about them and more about a holistic approach to work and life. It's hard to be a college graduate and not be egocentric. Life has revolved around them. What great employers are looking for is service over self-interest. Someone who has the potential to be a great leader is someone who has served rather than just worked. That means someone who has taken the time to go down to Mexico to build a house or fed the homeless during the holidays. Employers like to see a track record of service to others. That's what leadership is all about."