This year will continue to bring groundbreaking challenges – but also opportunities to commit to a future of data-driven decision making.

But there is a dark side to being committed to being data-driven. What happens when you collect enough data on your employees to spot non-productive staff automatically? And if the data can spot them... what happens when automation fires them? Sound crazy? It's happening right now. This isn't a "this is bad!" post, but these are the changes that are happening that directly impact how people perceive your employer brand.

There's absolutely nothing wrong with investing in tech, but you can't use it to replace your brand mindset. But how will robots change branding? Well, if your brand is tech-driven, it will definitely flip over the apple cart. But if your brand is idea-driven, it's a very different story.

Employer branders are expected to master an insane breadth of platforms, channels and tools, many far afield from any core recruiting or sourcing skills (here’s a list). When we get a new tool, we usually do the 101 thing, get it set up and get on to the next thing without diving too deeply into the mechanics and strategy. Which is why I really liked this article (and video) on email automation, which really has more of a 301 feel than most articles on the subject.