By Rosa Rolo, Managing Director of Major Players
2026 is the Year of the Fire Horse – fast, fearless, and impossible to ignore – and after a few years
of caution and constraint, the early signals suggest momentum is back and a real shift is
already underway.
In the latter half of last year, we saw a 22% increase in intent to hire, and that momentum has
continued, with six in ten businesses suggesting they’ll be hiring in the next 6 months. As
highlighted in our last update, the UK’s broad money supply has been rising – and in December
we saw a 0.8% month-on-month increase, a signal that liquidity is improving and conditions are
slowly becoming more supportive of investment, spending, and confidence.
We’re seeing this translate into real movement in the jobs market. Permanent job flow is up 20%
YoY (Jan 2025 – Jan 2026), suggesting employers are regaining confidence in making longer-term
hires. Freelance opportunities also rose by 8% over the same period – a meaningful change after
a period where businesses leaned heavily into caution. That said, the market is still rebuilding
from a lower baseline. Job flow is 30% down from where it was in 2023 underlining just how
cautious hiring remained through much of last year.
Another factor impacting job opportunities was a reluctance for talent to move, as many
employees prioritised stability amid ongoing job security concerns – even when opportunities
did appear. However, early data from our 2026 Census suggests that almost two-thirds of
employees are looking to change roles in the first half of this year, meaning even modest growth
could mean more opportunity as natural churn picks up.
The motivations for moving are clear: wanting a higher salary, stronger career progression,
desire to work on more interesting projects, and continued work/life balance. We’re already
seeing evidence of increased mobility, with a 20% uplift in talent moving roles in 2025 compared
to the year before.
However, the picture isn’t uniformly positive. Beneath the surface, worker frustration is still
building – and for many, that’s presenting as a ‘career comedown’ (coined by the brilliant
Stefanie Sword-Williams): a general sense of disillusion with their career due to lack of
opportunities or impact from the hardship of the last couple of years.
AI is adding another layer — but also a clear opportunity to rebuild momentum. In our latest AI
report (1,002 creative and marketing professionals), almost three-quarters believe AI will
fundamentally reshape roles and skills across the sector, signalling a workforce that knows
change is coming and wants to be ready for it. The businesses that pull ahead will be the ones
that enable adoption properly. Right now there’s real headroom for improvement – 40% offer no
AI training, 56% have no dedicated budget, and 60% expect self-learning.
Businesses that provide clarity and guardrails are the ones who are going to move faster in this
market: employees who understand their organisation’s AI adoption plan feel 4.7x more
comfortable using it in their role. And in a market where mobility is rising and so many are
already open to moving, that confidence will become a key lever for retention – helping
organisations keep talent engaged rather than watching uncertainty turn into attrition in the year
ahead.
As the market continues to shift, having the right future centric visionary talent is a competitive
advantage. At Major Players, we’re helping brands and agencies navigate this next phase – with
the specialist talent, insight and support needed to move forward with confidence. Whether it’s
scaling teams, making niche hires, or embedding talent into new roles across evolving
structures, emerging technologies, and shifting retention strategies, we’re here to help shape
what comes next. If you’d like to discuss any of these topics or explore how we can support your
growth, we’d love to hear from you at talk@majorplayers.co.uk.
