“Leadership” is a broad term. The CEO of a globally recognized corporation is a leader. The construction manager at a build site is a leader. The owner of a three-person insurance agency is a leader.

And no two leadership roles are the same.

Performance is easier to measure in certain types of jobs. In sales, you can look at revenue generation, closing ratio and client retention. In customer service, there’s call volume, percentage of cases resolved and customer survey results.

But in management, it’s not always easy to connect A to B. Is the team productive? Are people engaged? Are decisions sound? Is the company moving in the right direction?

Decades of personality data show that the candidates who possess the following attributes are more likely to succeed in any type of leadership role:

1) Effective communication skills. A good leader states expectations clearly. This means delegating responsibilities and holding people accountable in a way that is consistent and constructive. 

Good communication also means navigating organizational levels and understanding how to tailor a message so that it resonates with difference audiences, whether that means executives, peers, general staff, new hires, business partners or customers.

2) Openmindedness. By listening attentively with the goal of learning and understanding, good leaders not only acquire new ideas and methods, but also uncover the interests, motivations and concerns of their team members and other stakeholders—and can therefore provide more appropriate and targeted responses.

3) Engagement. When managers take an active interest in the careers of their staff members and empower them with new responsibilities, employees feel more valued, engaged and committed. Engaged employees are more productive and loyal.

The return on investment is three-fold: better relationships, better business results and lower turnover.

4) Resilience. Managers face a variety of stressors and frequently find themselves mediating conflict. Good leaders know staff members are looking to them for guidance in difficult times, and the best way to get people to follow them is to display positivity and confidence.

5) Balance. The indecisive manager allows problems to escalate and looks weak to staff members. On the other hand, rushing decisions and acting impulsively can send the organization down the wrong path and cause problems that only appear when it’s too late to fix them.

A good leader makes balanced decisions by gathering insights from trusted advisers and doing the necessary research to make sure decisions are viable and feasible. They don’t get bogged down in analysis or fear commitment.

6) Follow-through. Once a leader clarifies short- and long-term goals and expectations for staff performance, it’s critical to follow through. This could involve training, team building, setting attainable but competitive deadlines, and providing feedback.

Leaders should always set the right example, not by offering platitudes, but by delivering consistently on promises.

Eric Baker is a writer and editor at Caliper.