In an economy where companies yell for “elite employees,” there’s one recruiter who’s not like the rest. William Vanderbloemen, founder and CEO of the Vanderbloemen Search Group, has been executive recruiting for 15 years, conducting over 30,000 interviews.
But he’s not searching for the average employee. He’s searching for what he calls “unicorns”: the seven types of the most elusive employee types that any business would love to capture.
Setting the Scene: The Search for Unicorns
Vanderbloemen is not your typical recruiter. He fills top-level leaders at ministries, nonprofits, and businesses.
After conducting hundreds of CEO interviews, he found there are seven personality types that emerge at the top, the sort of high-performing employees who do not merely create value, but change. Here’s why each of them matters.
1. The Fast Unicorn
Speed is not about diving into all projects at breakneck speeds; it’s about feeling urgency and acting with ferocious focus. Fast Unicorns sprint through decisions, restart stuck projects, and keep stringent deadlines without sacrificing quality.
Why do these types of employees matter? Rapid response will probably be followed by high-stakes follow-up, and work that languishes in wait is probably a goner.
How to build it:
- Reward rapid, correct answers.
- Set concrete but attainable deadlines.
- Encourage firm decision-making, “Yesterday’s good enough” trumps waiting for perfect.
2. The Real Unicorn
Authenticity generates trust, as simple as that. Such employees are honestly refreshing: they own up to mistakes, seek assistance, and show up to work with humility. It builds a culture where everyone else feels secure to take intelligent risks.
Why do these types of employees matter? Day-one inauthenticity kills momentum, while authentic staff create interest and camaraderie.
How to build it:
- Encourage public admissions of mistakes.
- Vulnerabilities and lived experiences to share.
- Turn mistakes into stepping stones, not career-stoppers.
3. The Solver Unicorn
Problems aren’t excuses, they’re opportunities. Problem Solver Unicorns get their sleeves rolled up and bring ideas, energy, and momentum. But the smart ones do know when someone just needs listeners, not instant solutions.
Why do these types of employees matter? CEOs say that employees who constantly go from grievance to solution are indispensable.
How to develop it:
- Frame problems as “opportunities.”
- In meetings, insist that there be at least one suggested solution to each issue.
- Balance assertiveness with listening; sometimes just being heard is enough.
4. The Self-Aware Unicorn
Self-awareness isn’t a nonsense buzzword, either. It’s a superpower skill. These unicorns know their strengths and weaknesses, don’t dominate the conversation, and actually use feedback to transform.
Why do these types of employees matter? Effective feedback loops and self-management prevent workplace conflict as well as wastage of time.
How to build it:
- Offer normalized feedback, not criticism, on development.
- Be Mindful: Do you interrupt? Curse? Talk about irrelevancies?
- Encourage ownership of professional and personal blind spots.
5. The Curious Unicorn
Curiosity fuels innovation. Steve Jobs said in one of his many quotes of wisdom:
“Much of what I stumbled into by following my curiosity turned out to be priceless later”.
Curious Unicorns first inquire “why?”, and then they dive deeper, particularly if work is boring.
Why do these types of employees matter? Curiosity suggests motivation beyond a salary; it’s the driving force for constant betterment.
How to make it:
- Promote questions over solutions.
- Allocate “micro-learning” time: read a book, view a lecture, soak up the news.
- Reward experimentation and failure as well.
6. The Friendly Unicorn
Brains without collaboration? Disaster. Friendly Unicorns thrive on warmth, humility, and relational capital: the goodwill placed in actual relationships. They’re the reason teammates continue to show up.
Why do these types of employees matter? Trust trumps talent. The “brilliant jerks” that are good workers but bring negative energy to the office will probably be shown the door.
How to build it:
- Start meetings with non-work check-ins: “How’s your weekend?”
- Remember names and anecdotes; it counts.
- Create an earned trust and kindness culture.
7. The Productive Unicorn
Productivity is not hours, it’s results. These unicorns recognize their best self, track their output, and focus on high-impact work.
Why do these types of employees matter? Effective people convert plans into action without burnout from overtime.
How to prepare it:
- Prioritize your top three activities daily
- Track your progress and take note of your best work habits.
- Reward results, not duration.
Why are All Seven Types Collectively Significant
On their own, each unicorn quality is desirable. Combined? They create elite employees:
Fast + Efficient = outcomes without wastage.
Authentic + Self-Awareness = high emotional intelligence.
Curious + Solver = implementation and innovation.
Self-Awareness + Friendly = morale and longevity.
Such values are also consistent with Vanderbloemen’s culture philosophy of responsiveness, purpose-driven hiring, and “ridiculous responsiveness” based on trust and clarity.
Building Your Very Own Unicorn Team
If you want the best workers, don’t just alter job descriptions. Include these traits in each step:
- Hire with purpose
Interview for story-based behavior: “Tell me about a time when…?” and “What did you learn about yourself?”
- Onboard for impact
Set the model from the start that feedback, genuineness, and inquisitiveness are the norm.
- Set cultural expectations
Let’s bare our uncut “weird,” we call it “our type of crazy,” freely and soon.
- Develop feedback loops
Weekly check-ins, peer appreciation, and midpoint evaluation keep everyone on their toes and self-aware.
- Acknowledgment counts
Identify when one is showing unicorn behaviors. Encourage the solver, the curious one, the good co-worker.
A Word to the Wise
These habits don’t necessarily come naturally to many of us, and that’s alright. Most of us can be trained, as Vanderbloemen notes, unicorn behaviors aren’t magic; they’re habits. If these already feel unnatural, begin small:
- Choose one trait, say curiosity.
- Practice mentoring by asking thought-provoking questions.
- Each week, reflect on what worked and what didn’t.
And here you are, already on your way to assembling your team of unicorns in no time.
Seven Rare Unicorns
Vanderbloemen’s “seven rare unicorns” are the blueprint to the competitive hiring environment of today. Organisations that find and nurture them don’t just survive, they thrive. They’re agile, aligned, and truly connected.
Finally, if you want A-plus employees, stop bringing on talent for skills or resume sparkle only.
Bring on talent for heart, flexibility, self-awareness, curiosity, and, for goodness’ sake, hire people who are nice. That’s your unicorn solution. And as Vanderbloemen would put it, build it, and elite employees will thrive.
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