They were simply professional and productive, which distinguished from the average colleague I had.

None of them was doing much extra, but during their 8/5 they moved projects ahead consistently and were reliable.

I can't stress how even such basic things are imho rare so obviously every time there were positions open in companies I've worked for I tried to get them in.

Even among those good performers there's still another selection in my eyes, when it comes to soft skills and how they handle stress or managers. A bit of political skills are always handy to have.

I don't consider myself personally above the but I know those people are courted, and not just by me but many other former colleagues.