Think of the greatest leader you’ve ever encountered in your career or personal life.

What did they do differently than other so-so leaders you’ve known?

How did they make you feel? What did they get you to focus on? How far did you think you could go with them?

Leaders are all over the place. They’re a dime a dozen. But truly great leaders are rare.

Here’s the qualities to look for, and some ideas on how you might identify those qualities:

1. Emotional Intelligence

Emotional intelligence, or “EQ,” refers to someone’s ability to recognize their own emotions or those of others.

As the saying goes, “business is all about relationships,” isn’t it?

So then it only makes sense to identify a high EQ in the candidates you interview for your customer service team leader position.

High-EQ people have at least 14 obvious traits.

For example, a high-EQ person has a large vocabulary with precisely identified words they use to describe various emotions.

They would never say they feel “bad.” That’s too vague. They would say they feel frustrated, irritable, anxious, ashamed, irate, guilty, and so on.

We can’t cover the whole list of traits they have here. But you can read the top 14 to identify in a post at Business Insider.

2. Data-Driven

Being a great team leader doesn’t mean you only focus on emotions and relationships.

The truly top-notch balance that skill with an in-depth knack for understanding and using data.

They know how to create goals that help customers, and your team, achieve measurable outcomes.

And they understand how to do this for your team members too.

Everything is measured so they can learn what works, what doesn’t, why, and what to do next.

3. Clear Communication

Your team leader will be communicating with customers and your own associates all day long.

They have to know how to get to the point in as few words as possible, while still maintaining the tact necessary to avoid harming their relationships.

They have to be able to do this both verbally and in written form.

During the interview, you should not feel confused frequently.

Of course, it can take some back-and-forth while you both learn how to communicate.

But the candidate should be able to quickly adjust and get you both on the same page.

4. Advertise Your Job Where You Think You’ll Find the Right Person

Different types of people hang out in various areas – online and off.

You might even use a headhunter to find the proverbial needle in a haystack team leader you seek.

But then again, if you don’t, make sure you understand the demographic of the applicants at the place where you post your job ad.

You want to be in the right place so you give yourself the greatest chance of getting in front of the type of candidate you seek.

It’s not easy to find truly exceptional customer service team leaders. This post even oversimplifies the process.

But you have to start somewhere. And these tips will help you get going in the right direction.