With 2017 just around the corner, it is time to map out your talent acquisition strategy for the coming year. What are the important industry trends to which you should pay attention? Here is a round-up of some of the top trends affecting executive recruiters and hiring managers in the coming year: Trend One: C-Suite Buy-In for Talent Acquisition Strategies In recent years, it has become increasingly obvious that business success derives from having a strong alignment between overall business objectives and talent acquisition strategies. Small and mid-size organizations are seeing the benefits of tighter relationships between talent leaders and executives, which give these organizations a significant competitive advantage. [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/295199255″ params=”color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /] Trend Two: Employment Engagement and Cultural Fit Are Key A whopping 77 percent of hiring managers believe that their employer brand has a significant impact on their ability to hire great talent. Therefore, much emphasis will be placed in the coming year on building a culture that fosters employee engagement through appropriate feedback and clearly defined paths for career growth. HumanResourcesToday notes: “Next generation HR technology offers performance feedback, ongoing growth conversations that supplement annual reviews, and simply make work life better.” eBook: How to Attract Top Talent Using Inbound Recruiting – Find out how to harness the power of an inbound recruiting strategy in order to attract, hire, and retain top talent. Trend Three: Quality of Hire Takes a Front Seat More than half (57 percent) of hiring managers in small to mid-size businesses anticipate hiring a higher volume of employees this year than they did last year. But now is not the time to hire just any candidate. Hiring managers are looking to measure factors such as how long a new hire stays with the company, how satisfied both employees and hiring managers are, and how long it takes to fill mission-critical positions within the organization. Of these three metrics, hiring managers report that the most important is new employee retention. 48 percent of hiring managers at mid-size companies list this as the factor that most indicates success for their organization, and 54 percent of small companies agree. As for time to hire, about half of both small and mid-size companies are looking at a 1-2 month hiring time frame for most positions. The more that time can be shaved while still maintaining a good record of employee retention, the more likely a company is to save money and continue to grow as an organization. Trend Four: Employer Brand is the Differentiator A 55 percent majority of hiring managers of both small and mid-size companies feel that their main challenge is to differentiate their companies from others by having a strong employer brand. To meet this challenge, hiring managers must identify the factors which make their companies unique and incorporate strong brand messaging into all their communications with candidates. One of the best ways to do this involves using cutting-edge talent acquisition software that provides a powerful, personalized candidate experience. Thrive TRM is a talent acquisition software solution that does just that. Thrive TRM facilitates real-time collaboration among your entire talent acquisition team and provides a global view of your entire talent pipeline at any given time. It also enables robust communication with candidates, meaning that you can cultivate your talent pipeline with consistently professional, engaging content. Why not get a jump start on your 2017 talent acquisition strategies by scheduling a demo of Thrive TRM today?