The 2026 Talent Outlook
Hiring, retention and workforce design for the year ahead — the signals every talent leader should be watching, and what to do about each one.
Research, reports and thinking from our desk. We publish what we learn from the talent market — the trends, the data and the practical guidance to help you hire smarter and plan further ahead.
Every article we publish, filterable by format. New to the subject? Start with what is talent mapping.
Hiring, retention and workforce design for the year ahead — the signals every talent leader should be watching, and what to do about each one.
A plain definition, the six-step process, what a finished talent map actually contains, and how it differs from sourcing and recruitment.
Where demand is outrunning supply across sectors, how to tell real scarcity from a narrow spec, and what it means for workforce planning and reward.
What you get from a talent mapping engagement: competitor maps, executive maps and intelligence reports — scope, timelines and deliverables.
Reading the UK market: how competitors are structured across London and the regions, and what it takes to move the people you want.
Metro-level supply, competitor build, and the equity conversation — what a US talent map has to answer before you open a role.
Our flagship annual read on the year ahead: where the scarcest skills sit, how competitor organisations are restructuring, what reward now looks like, and where representation is — and is not — moving. Written for anyone planning a workforce for the next twelve months.
The starting point if the term is new to you. A clear definition, the six-step research process behind a talent map, what the finished deliverable contains, how it differs from sourcing and executive search, and the moments in a business when it earns its cost.
Where demand is outrunning supply across sectors, how to tell genuine scarcity from a specification that is simply too narrow, and what both mean for workforce planning and reward over the next three to five years.
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Our published insights are just the start. Talk to us about a bespoke study for your sector.