The momentum is building. It is not just that our talent acquisition technology solution providers are continuously improving and developing new solutions, finding funding, and merging/acquiring other providers. Evidence from Brandon Hall Group’s 2016 Talent Acquisition Technology Study points to organizations looking to deploy new solutions, switch talent acquisition technology providers, and/or increase their technology budgets. This is good news. Organizations of all sizes are fiercely competing for talent, and talent acquisition technology can help in that endeavor.
Take for instance, the maturity level of organizations with respect to deploying talent acquisition technology. One third (34%) of the organizations we surveyed are in the developing stage where they are currently formulating a technology strategy and expect deployment soon. Most of these organizations are small (49%) and mid-size (34%) organizations. Only 17% of them are enterprise organizations. It is not surprising that the majority of enterprise organizations (10,000 + employees) already deploy talent acquisition technology as their hiring levels exceed small (1 to 999 employees) and mid-size (1,000 to 9,999 employees) organizations and drives the need to automate.
Then, let’s look at switching talent acquisition technology providers. One-third of the organizations are actively considering switching their talent acquisition technology provider over the next two years. This cuts across organizations of all sizes and has somewhat to do with user experience, reporting/analytics, and system integration. However — not to forget — there is still a sizable part of the market (47%) that is not switching providers and 19% that do not know whether they will be switching providers. While at first glance switching providers may not seem ideal, especially from the perspective of the current providers, it is an indication that organizations are seeking to improve their processes and their technology.
How about the all-important talent acquisition technology budget? Expectations are on the rise there too. On average, organizations deploying technology expect to allocate 15% of their current HR budget to talent acquisition technology, and 35% anticipate this budget to rise next year, while more than half (57%) think there will be no change, and few (8%) believe there will be a decrease. The expected trend for increasing talent acquisition budgets is evident, with slight differences, across organizational sizes. 
So, with all the positive movements it seems there will be some growth in the talent acquisition technology market, especially with respect to the new users – mostly small and mid-size organizations. This is excellent news, not only for providers, but for the organizations that will be better able to attract, engage, and onboard new talent in an effective and efficient manner using talent acquisition technology.
–Daria Friedman, Principal Analyst, Brandon Hall Group
