At the start of this year we published our 2026 Talent Trends Report, bringing together insights from Heads of Talent Acquisition and senior TA leaders across the UK. The report explored how teams were approaching hiring demand, candidate expectations and investment priorities as organisations entered a year where scrutiny on delivery outcomes, budgets and team capability continues to grow. The aim was to give TA leaders a practical benchmark so they could sense check their own hiring plans against what peers across the market were seeing.
A quarter of the way into the year, many of the themes highlighted in that report are already appearing in conversations with clients and TA leaders across the organisations we support. The patterns that emerged in the survey data earlier this year are now showing up in real hiring decisions, team structures and candidate conversations.
Hiring demand remains present across many organisations, although the structure of hiring programmes has become more deliberate. Many TA leaders are prioritising roles more carefully and phasing hiring across the year as business plans evolve. The report captured this shift toward a more measured hiring environment, highlighting that teams were moving away from growth at pace and focusing more closely on delivery confidence and operational flexibility.
Candidate expectations remain another consistent theme. Flexibility continues to play a major role in offer decisions, influencing 24 percent of candidate acceptances, with salary and bonus continuing to sit close behind as key drivers. Alongside these factors, development opportunities, organisational purpose and long term stability are appearing more frequently in candidate conversations. Candidates are spending more time understanding how roles fit into the wider organisation and the longer term direction of the business before committing to a move.
The report also explored where hiring friction tends to occur during the recruitment process. According to the data, 42.6 percent of candidate drop off takes place during technical assessment stages, with a further 29.7 percent occurring during offer negotiation. These later stages of the process require strong coordination between hiring managers, recruiters and internal stakeholders to maintain momentum and ensure candidates remain engaged throughout the hiring journey.
Investment priorities across TA teams are also evolving in ways that align with the report findings. The survey showed that 43 percent of TA leaders expect their budgets to increase in 2026, although that investment is being directed toward capability, efficiency and flexibility rather than simply expanding team size. Many organisations are strengthening the capability of their existing teams while exploring technology and flexible support models that allow hiring capacity to adapt as demand evolves.
One of the more interesting insights from the report is that 37 percent of TA leaders plan to invest in embedded or on demand recruitment support, reflecting a growing interest in delivery models that allow organisations to scale hiring capability when it is needed. This is something we are already seeing in the market, with many teams exploring ways to access additional hiring expertise while maintaining flexibility as hiring plans develop throughout the year.
Looking at the first quarter of 2026, the market behaviour we are seeing aligns closely with the themes identified in the report. Hiring demand continues across sectors, candidate expectations remain consistent and TA leaders are investing in capabilities that support reliable delivery outcomes.
If you have not yet explored the findings, the 2026 Talent Trends Report provides a deeper look at how TA leaders across the UK are approaching hiring delivery, team capability and investment priorities as the year unfolds.
CEO | the rec hub
