When you realize people make a competitive difference, talent becomes the strategy. Read why and how from thought leaders from a wide variety of positions and industries: CIO of Toyota Motor Sales, EVP of retail banking at PNC Financial Services, HR director of Barclays, and chief personnel officer of ThyssenKrupp.

These Taleo users have used talent innovation and strategy execution to make a difference. And all of the leading executives and academics featured in Capturing the People Advantage: Thought Leaders on Human Capital recognize the value of human capital as a critical enabler of business results.

Among many insights around strategy, business, and talent management is this affirmative one in USC business professor Edward Lawler IIIs chapter, Walking the Talk with Talent:

In any organization that believes human capital is its most important asset, it follows logically that the HR department should be its most important staff group. This means that HR should contain some of the top talent in the company, along with the best information technology resources, and HR should be a valued expert resource when it comes to strategy development, change management, organization design, and talent management.

Booz & Company is now offering this book in PDF format as a free download. Its a good read.