Mercer's new Global Talent Trends Study identifies the top five workforce trends for 2018 After years of talking about disruption, executives are determined to turn talk into action. According to Mercer's 2018 Global Talent Trends Study – Unlocking Growth in the Human Age, 96% of UK companies have innovation on their core agenda this year and 92% are planning organisation design changes. At the same time, employees are seeking control of their personal and professional lives, with more than half asking for more flexible work options. As the ability to change becomes a key differentiator for success in a competitive global climate, the challenge for organisations is to bring their people along on the journey, especially as the top ask from employees is for leaders who set clear direction. "This year we saw palpable excitement from executives about shifting to the new world of work. They are pursuing an agenda of continuous evolution – rather than episodic transformation – to remain competitive," said Ilya Bonic, President of Mercer's Career business.