Marvin OnumonuTo round out 2025, Workplace Journal brought together leading voices from the world of work to forecast the trends, technologies, and cultural shifts set to transform workplaces in 2026.
From the future of recruitment and wellbeing to flattening hierarchies and emotional salaries, our round-up highlights the key changes that employers, HR leaders, and employees cannot afford to ignore as we enter the new year.
Redefining recruitment
Karen Handley, head of future careers at Virgin Media O2, predicts a seismic shift away from CV-led hiring in 2026 and beyond, as artificial intelligence (AI) becomes integral to both education and job applications.
“Traditional CVs are increasingly shaped by AI tools and can disadvantage those without access to the same support,” says Handley.
She advocates strengths-based, human-centric assessments that reveal how candidates think and solve problems, levelling the playing field and surfacing true potential.
She says: “Young people are looking for authenticity. They want recruitment experiences that feel human, not engineered.”
As AI-generated applications surge, strengths-based interviews and assessments will provide deeper insight into candidates’ attitudes.
CV-Library’s 2026 Hiring Trends report reinforces this move. It shows that AI-assisted recruitment is becoming the norm, but a growing candidate backlash – especially among shortage-skill and senior professionals – means employers must reintroduce human touchpoints or risk losing top talent.
The jobs market is splitting in two, with robust hiring in healthcare, construction, energy and engineering, but a slowdown for retail and lower-skilled roles.
Other trends include hybrid work as a core employee value proposition (EVP), behavioural data driving better hiring decisions, and a shift to skills-first recruitment, with job ads prioritising adaptable capabilities over traditional qualifications.
Evolving employee benefits
Iain Laws, CEO of Towergate Employee Benefits, sees 2026 as the year benefits become truly personalised.
“Employees seek benefits that cater to their unique needs,” Laws says, predicting a rise in tailored mental health support, meaningful financial wellness programmes, and family-friendly flexible working.
Technology, he adds, will underpin this personalisation, while sustainability and support for older workers will become mainstream.
Katharine Moxham, spokesperson for GRiD, expects employers to focus on proactive health and wellbeing interventions, not just reactive benefits.
Moxham says: “Employee benefits designed to maintain attendance and facilitate effective return-to-work pathways will be more highly utilised.” She adds that prevention and clear value from benefits spend topping the agenda.
Christine Husbands, commercial consultant at RedArc, anticipates a surge in independent clinical case management as employers work towards the recommendations of the Keep Britain Working review.
“Most employers are not fully equipped to deliver effective case management in-house,” she says, making external support vital to ensure all employees – especially those with disabilities or long-term conditions – receive the right care at the right time.
Microlearning and L&D as a differentiator
Brad Batesole, founding partner of Madecraft, says 2026 will see the end of the hour-long training course.
Batesole says: “The talent that’s moving through the workplace now wants a digital, personalised, efficient learning experience. Bite-sized, role-specific content will drive completion rates and close the confidence gap for new hires.”
AI will power microlearning and personalised learning feeds, but “AI fatigue is real and the backlash is coming,” warns Batesole.
While AI can curate content, employees crave human-led learning experiences with authenticity and engagement.
He adds: “In 2026, the organisations that treat learning as seriously as recruitment will secure the talent everyone else is chasing.”
Human-centric cultures
Research from Glen Callum Associates (GCA) highlights that fast, clear, and competitive employers will lead recruitment in 2026.
Research showed that candidates are moving quickly and are open to opportunities, but salary and transparent communication remain critical to winning top talent.
It is clear thar hybrid models are now the key battleground for Gen Z and early-career talent, with fully remote roles diminishing to just 9% of the market.
Matt Monette, head of UK & I at Deel, outlines the rise of ‘emotional salaries’ – the non-financial rewards such as flexibility, wellbeing, and a sense of purpose that are now as important as pay.
He states that the “great flattening” of organisations is pushing decisions closer to the front line, but success depends on clarity and strong communication, not just cost-saving.
New trends like ‘keeper testing’ (managers evaluating who they’d fight to keep), “micro-shifting” (flexible work blocks over rigid hours), and “conscious unbossing” are redefining what progression looks like.
The rise of ‘LinkedIn envy’ – employees comparing themselves to others online – means clear development pathways and honest conversations about progress are more important than ever.
Wellbeing as strategy
Chris Britton, people experience director at Reward Gateway | Edenred, argues that wellbeing is now a business imperative.
With 44% of employees citing poor wellbeing as a barrier to productivity, employers must act.
Data-driven wellbeing audits, psychological safety, and targeted support for the so-called “wellbeing grey zone” (the 18% of employees who feel neither positive nor negative about their wellbeing) will be priorities.
Financial resilience will also be in focus, with employers offering payroll savings options and earned wage access to help staff weather economic pressures.
The bottom line
It is clear that work in 2026 will be defined by a more human-centric, flexible, and data-driven approach.
Employers who manage to blend technology with empathy, and therefore process with authenticity, will attract and retain the best talent.
Indeed, human insight, wellbeing, and a commitment to genuine development are no longer ‘nice to have’ – they are the new baseline for success.
The challenge for every leader: adapt now, or risk being left behind.
