15. July 2026
HR trends and what they mean: Precision hiring
Welcome to Personio Pulse: This Week in HR, where each week we take a look at the latest trends in the world of work, what you need to know about them, and what they mean for you as an HR professional.
This week, we're looking at the shift from growth-at-all-costs hiring to a more deliberate approach — and what it means for HR teams navigating a labour market that's stabilising, but still uneven.
What you need to know
Data from the Personio Index Q2 2026, which tracks anonymised, aggregated activity across 16,000+ European organisations, shows average headcount growth has fallen from 26.1% in 2022 to 8.7% in 2025. But this isn't a simple freeze. Recruiting intensity is beginning to pick back up — especially among smaller organisations.
What might surprise you: automation isn't the main driver. Research from ManpowerGroup found only 20% of organisations reducing headcount cited automation as the reason. Economic conditions are doing most of the work.
What others are saying about it
"What we're seeing is employers responding to the economic signals with a measured and deliberate approach. [...] Hiring is steady because organizations still need human skills to grow, but they are being very intentional about where they invest in additional talent," says Jonas Prising, Chair & CEO of ManpowerGroup, in the company's Q1 2026 Employment Outlook Survey. Europe posted the weakest hiring outlook globally at 20%, with the UK at 13%. The signal is consistent: employers are hiring, but only where the case is clear.
What that means for you
Use the slower period to fix hiring quality: Review where mis-hires are clustering, which roles take longest to fill, and where time-to-productivity is weakest. The organisations that pull ahead when hiring picks up will be those that sharpened their criteria now.
Don't let smaller competitors outmanoeuvre you: Smaller organisations are already increasing recruiting intensity — and they move faster. Identify your critical roles now so you can move quickly when headcount is approved.
Treat different functions as different hiring markets: Finance, insurance, and manufacturing held up better than tech in the Personio dataset. A single organisation-wide hiring strategy will misallocate effort if your functions have meaningfully different outlooks.
What else should I read?
That's all for this edition of Personio Pulse: This Week in HR. See you next time.
Want more from Personio?
Join our HR community | Book a free demo | Start your free trial
