You know, I'm a huge fan of strategy. Scratch that - I absolutely love strategy. Frankly, I can't get enough of it. If I'm not reading a new business book, I'm probably checking out a new magazine looking for strategy cues . . . then linking them back mentally to Talent Acquisition.

In a space dominated by discussions that always focus on the tactical ("What new technology apps can further automate our recruiting process?", "What tools can help me get more names?", "What incremental process improvement can I launch today?" etc.), I always find myself seeing chinks in the armor because the tactics are considered way before the strategy. It's like sending a bunch of Special Operations gurus out with no intel or little consideration of their target or objective. When considered in the context of potential loss of human life, it's easy to see how absurd a lack of strategy can be. Yes, this is an extreme comparison, but worth considering for effect.

To me, the below competitive response by Microsoft is utterly brilliant. Perhaps I'm wrong - the only way we'll ever know is sales data. The point, however, is that Microsoft didn't just launch this ad as a tactical counter; rather, this was very, very, very well thought-out. Let's be honest: Apple has crushed the market perception of the PC running Windows . . . and being neither loyal to either the PC or Mac, I got juiced up when I saw this competitive response.

Think about this: When considering a new ad campaign, they didn't outsource it with no input. The analogy is that they just weren't looking for more names to dump into the recruiting sales funnel. Rather, they focused on quality; they focused on strategy; they focused on not just the quantitative growth of the pipeline, but rather the qualitative development of the pipeline. In my estimation, their response is indicative of strategic minds . . . and this campaign may reverse Apple's re-positioning of the PC.

So in watching, consider the following: What strategies are worth considering to improve your position among those talent pools most critical to your organization's short or long-term success? After all, this is where you should be concentrating your Strategic Sourcing efforts, right?