At the same time, employers need to start rethinking their recruiting process, notably in using sophisticated social network search tools to go spear-fishing for high potential talent, rather than waiting for applications to come across the transom.

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And he rejected the assertion that such multiples were meaningless, saying that the public and private sectors were "fishing in the same pool for talent".

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Lo and behold, an agent could be turning down my street at any moment, perhaps to go fishing on our Yellow River, and would discover my untapped talent.

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