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Digital Talent: Cisco Systems Inc.

What's on the agenda of the VP of Human Resources at one of Silicon Valley's fastest-growing and most competitive high-tech companies? Not what's on the mind of every other HR manager in the Valley -- or in any fast-growing company anywhere. "Recruiting's the hot topic -- but that doesn't make it the right one," says Barbara Beck, 41, senior vice president of human resources for Cisco Systems Inc. "Companies are so focused on hiring that many forget the point of the exercise. The goal is to recruit and to retain the best." Beck shared with Fast Company how Cisco uses digital technologies to build competitiveness.

Digital Idea: Everything we do with technology focuses on developing a linked set of capabilities: hiring the right people; aligning a huge, chaotic organization around the same goals and mobilizing around specific, targeted initiatives; and developing leadership capabilities. Setting up a technology tree, where all of these functions are interlinked, allows us to leverage our time.

Digital App: We've built the recruiting piece of the technology tree around a few basic principles: The best people to screen Cisco candidates are the candidates themselves; great people gravitate to other great people; we don't fill jobs -- we're constantly looking for people who can help drive the company forward.

Digital Bottom Line: Once you put in a new technology, you can't continue doing things the way you've always done them. We've moved from focusing on old functions, such as "orientation" and "recruiting," to building employee and organizational capabilities -- fast. Once you make that shift, recruitment becomes a self-fulfilling process.

Digital Customers: Levi Strauss & Co.

Levi Strauss & Co. uses a mix of digital technologies to involve customers both in the creation of their own jeans and in the future of the company, says Sanjay Choudhuri, 48, Levi's director of mass customization and director of the Original Spin initiative. "Most people in the apparel industry who talk about mass customization are talking about fit. With Original Spin, we've moved from a fit proposition to an individuality proposition," he says. "We're focusing on one thing: building mechanisms of direct connection with customers." Choudhuri spoke to Fast Company about the thinking behind Levi's digital spin.

Digital Idea: The Original Spin program is at the forefront of our exploration of alternative business models for connecting with customers. It sets up a feedback loop so that we can tap into that level of information right in the store, using interactive kiosks and sales associates who are trained to guide customers through the process. The goal is not to sell a pair of jeans; it's to build a relationship.

Digital App: If you walk into any of our 10 Original Levi's Stores around the country, you can easily interact with one of our Original Spin kiosks to create a unique pair of jeans. Once you're satisfied with style and fit, a sales associate zaps your information over our network to our factory in Tennessee. Your jeans arrive at your home or at the store 10 to 15 days later.

Digital Bottom Line: We're not marketing to the customer -- the customer is acting as a styling consultant to us. The customer says: "I know your pants fit me; now let me tell you what I want the jeans to look like and how I want to look in the mirror." It's getting personal. The customer is starting to design.

Digital Finance: Dell Computer Corp.