One of the great paradoxes of the current economy is a relatively high level of general unemployment among Western economies and simultaneously, a very tight labor market for certain skilled roles. Anecdotes of hiring cycles in the six-month range for specialized developers or designers are not uncommon in software circles, and high-tech manufacturers voice frequent complaints about the lack of skilled talent. The key to solving these hiring challenges is to think differently about the problem. All too often, hiring managers and recruiters default to a “hiring” focused answer, when frequently the real answer lies in development, internal mobility, apprenticeship and long-term career and succession planning. In this session, we’ll talk about how all these pieces fit together and why “hiring for critical roles” is fundamentally the wrong strategy in most cases.