2025 Hiring and Market Outlook

2025 presents employers with a complex hiring landscape of skills shortages, open roles and pending projects at a time when labor pools are tight. Meanwhile, AI is changing job roles and skills needs. Yet many firms are slow to hire, jeopardizing productivity and revenues and risking the loss of skilled talent to competitors.

The bottleneck of pent-up demand could signal an approaching hiring boom. To thrive in this environment, managers must pay salaries that meet or beat market rates, fast-track the hiring process and, even more important today, offer flexible arrangements such as nontraditional schedules and fully remote or hybrid work options.

Roles crucial to advancing key initiatives or that require specialized skills see the largest starting salary increases, though 48% of managers anticipate ongoing difficulty meeting candidates’ compensation expectations. When the gap between expectation and offer is too great, many employers negotiate remote and hybrid work options to help seal the deal.

of hiring managers say today’s job seekers are more likely to negotiate salary. of hiring managers say today’s job seekers are more likely to negotiate salary.

Managers often hold out for professionals who check every box. But in an environment with more vacant positions than available workers, organizations that take too long to hire risk missing out on skilled candidates, creating rising workloads, declining employee morale and stalled business growth.

Higher turnover
due to heavy
workloads Higher
recruitment
costs Losing
candidates
to competitors Higher turnover
due to heavy
workloads Higher
recruitment
costs Losing
candidates
to competitors

Offering
hybrid work Offering
flexible
schedules Increasing
starting
salaries Giving
referral
bonuses Adding
new perks
or benefits Offering
signing
bonuses Hiring
remote
candidates Offering
hybrid work Offering
flexible
schedules Increasing
starting
salaries Giving
referral
bonuses Adding
new perks
or benefits Offering
signing
bonuses Hiring
remote
candidates

63% of hiring managers expect voluntary turnover to increase or stay the same through 2025. To address skills gaps caused by retirements, 45% of organizations are enhancing training to upskill staff and 41% are bringing back retirees as part-time consultants.

More open
roles to staff Loss of
institutional
knowledge Diminished
leadership
pipeline More open
roles to staff Loss of
institutional
knowledge Diminished
leadership
pipeline

Firms use diverse strategies to address staffing challenges

In response to hiring challenges, skills shortages and project demands, companies are adopting multiple talent strategies. 40% of managers plan to engage contract professionals to fill skills gaps, and 39% will work with a managed services provider for critical initiatives and functions. These approaches are part of a scalable talent model that includes:

Professionals reluctant to change jobs

Professionals are more hesitant to leave their current position than they were a few years ago. This career caution often stems from a desire to keep flexible work arrangements that were granted during the height of the pandemic, as well as job satisfaction. To increase workers’ comfort in making a move, firms can offer premium salaries, remote work options and highlight advancement opportunities.

As more businesses adopt AI-based tools to increase efficiency and productivity, they face skills gaps on their teams. This is driving demand for candidates with relevant AI experience and the emotional intelligence, critical-thinking ability, ethics and other soft skills essential to complement the needed technical expertise.

of hiring managers are recruiting for different skills due to advancements in AI and automation. of hiring managers are recruiting for different skills due to advancements in AI and automation.

are engaging contract talent with AI skills their team lacks. are engaging contract talent with AI skills their team lacks.

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Hiring managers: Need more insights? Schedule a Salary Guide walk-through

Non-salary data referenced in this Salary Guide is based on online surveys developed by Robert Half and conducted by independent research firms. Respondents include hiring managers and workers from small (1-99 employees), midsize (100-999 employees) and large (1,000-plus employees) private, publicly listed and public sector organizations across the United States.

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