For all managers, there is no better way to ensure professional and organizational success than by surrounding yourself with outstanding talent. Kick off the new year right by drafting resolutions that will aid in talent acquisition and development to get your business in the best shape possible.
The following tips will help you continue competing for the top human capital in 2008:
1. Know the big picture - Start by making sure you know what the big picture looks like by identifying the key challenges that you and your organization will be facing in the coming months (and years if possible). Understanding your company's challenges - and your employees' ability to meet them - will better position your organization for success in the coming year. With that in mind, you should be prepared for a similar competitive hiring environment.
2. Recognize that retention is still the name of the game - If you've had an open job in the last year, you surely know that there are fewer desirable candidates on the market than the past several years. A good recruiting plan starts with retention - don't let your superstar employees and critical contributors leave you with open jobs.
3. Invest in human capital - Start by identifying your top employees and putting them on long-term career plans. Then, create a blueprint for their continuing development based around the initiatives in your plan and the goals of your business. Utilize succession planning tools to keep your top team members engaged in your organization and to ensure that top positions are being filled from within.
4. Build a recruiting strategy that creates candidate flow - For those positions that do open unexpectedly, use multiple sources to generate the best candidates. While large, national job boards continue to be an excellent resource, also consider smaller niche sites, as well as local boards. Also take advantage of your public relations and marketing efforts to enhance your company's branding to draw talent in.
5. Develop an internal referral system - Companies that offer their current employees $5,000 or more for a hired referral will get better prospects in the door. These candidates are ones who have most likely bypassed job boards or are currently employed, and because they are attached to someone's name and reputation, they will be of a higher quality. Simply put, good people know good people.
6. Move your hiring process along - The hiring market in 2008 will be just as tight as in 2007 and, in order to win the war for talent, companies will need to find the right balance between giving strong candidates enough time to make an informed decision and pulling the trigger quickly. Thousands of jobs remain open every day because organizations were too slow to move, and their top candidates were stolen right out from underneath them.
7. Don't wait too long to sell - While you're making the effort to quickly pull the hiring trigger, be sure you're making your corporation and the specific opportunity as appealing as possible. Because there are so many more open jobs than there are qualified candidates, desirable job seekers want to be wooed.
8. Realize that it's not just about the money - Perks and strong benefits have become just as important as compensation. Flexible schedules, mother's hours, telecommuting, and sabbaticals are just a few of the work/life balance benefits that will attract key talent to your organization.
9. Freshen up your value proposition - The unique selling proposition you created last year to aid in the war for talent is just as necessary today. Update your story, and make it a good one. Demonstrate how your organization can compete with others out there, and put extra emphasis on what sets you apart.
10. Ensure that your message is clear, concise, and universal - Throughout the process of "selling" your organization, the team, and the open position to a candidate, it is important that all internal employees, and especially those who will interact in any way with the candidate, are on the same page. Share your revised value proposition with the entire company so that all communication with potential hires can be strong and consistent.
If you attend to the above ten items early in the new year, you will help yourself start your professional year off right. Why not resolve to do so in 2008?
Dave Sanford is Executive Vice President, Client Services of the Winter, Wyman Companies, a leading staffing firm based in Waltham, Mass. 
