HUMAN CAPITAL MANAGEMENT M&A MARKET DYNAMICS
With the conclusion of 2025, the Human Capital Management (HCM) landscape reflects upon a year of structural transition with demand varying significantly between key sectors within professional and commercial staffing services. The “no hire, no fire” mentality has become prominent across the corporate landscape, shifting further demand towards contract and temporary staffing solutions versus permanent placements. Employers are prioritizing workforce agility and operational velocity while erring away from the long-term liability of permanent headcount.
Total M&A transaction volumes returned to growth for the first time since 2021, reaching 404 closed transactions in 2025 and representing a 5% increase over 2024. Despite a slight softening of dealmaking in Q4, the market is poised for a strong 2026 as demand for specialized staffing solutions, most notably across technology sectors, is driving interest from both strategic buyers and private equity funds seeking to capitalize on the “AI Boom”.
What We’re Discussing With Clients
Dominance of Temporary & Contract Staffing
In 2025, the U.S. staffing market was characterized by a broad-based shift toward temporary and contract staffing versus direct hire and permanent placement, as employers have prioritized workforce agility over permanent headcount. Over the past year, contract staffing proved significantly more resilient than permanent hiring, with major players such as Robert Half and Kforce observing stable performance in contract revenue while permanent placement continued to struggle. Employers are using flexible talent as a bridge to maintain operational velocity while remaining dynamic in workforce needs. Employers are simultaneously able to avoid the long-term liability of permanent hires through a contract hire approach. The “no hire, no fire” mentality over the past year has led to decreased workforce churn and lower conversion rates from contract-to-hire.
Technical Sector Resilience Vs. Generalist Weakness
Sector performance across the staffing and outsourcing services landscape remained highly bifurcated in 2025, with the Engineering, Telecom, and Healthcare sectors demonstrating strong growth while sectors such as Finance & Accounting, General IT, and Warehousing struggled amidst reduced demand. Engineering and Telecom observed stronger demand due to heavy capital investments in infrastructure modernization, while Healthcare benefitted from continued demand for clinical practitioners and specialized health technology providers. Education also saw an uptick in demand due to the ongoing critical shortages in K-12 substitute teacher staffing. On the other hand, Finance & Accounting struggled amidst corporate cost-containment efforts and the automation of back-office roles. General IT staffing, separate from more focused technical staffing, also saw a shortfall in demand as clients paused “traditional” IT projects to focus on AI readiness.
Surge in Complex Consulting Projects
Despite the recurring theme of generalist staffing remaining soft, 2025 observe a surge in complex consulting and assessment projects focused on preparing enterprise data stacks for the integration of generative AI. IT consulting and technical staffing services are in high demand as clients are more focused on “outcomes” versus just “bodies” to supplement their workforce. The data & AI, cloud, and cybersecurity specializations were strongest amongst technical staffing specialties as clients have acknowledged that they can no longer wait to address the backlog of critical digital transformation projects required to leverage AI. The “AI Boom” has required fundamental replat forming of enterprise technology stacks, driving the need for higher-margin consulting engagements and specialized staffing partners.
