Nice article today on the Job Advice Blog that gives tips on interviewing the ever-elusive "Top Talent". As the article advises:

"Don’t be a jerk who thinks you’re “holding the golden ticket” when interviewing someone. This is a client driven market but don’t exploit this fact. If you want to attract top, passive candidates, don’t forget that you may need to “sell” your opportunity."

One important point the article brings up is the need to find out why the candidate might be convinced to join your organisation. If you know a person's motivations to work, you can gauge what clear advantages your organisation will give them--or realise they might be better off where they are!

Another article that's worth a read is Keeping top talent in a down economy, which asks the question: How do managers boost the performance of employees when business is down?