What candidates (and companies) need to understand heading into the year ahead. Here are the Top 5 Hiring Trends for 2025 for the Market Research & Insights Industry.
2025 was a year of recalibration for Market Research & Insights hiring. Fewer roles, more candidates, longer processes, and a noticeable shift in how companies think about talent. As we head into 2026, hiring isn’t frozen; but it is more intentional.
After spending more than a decade recruiting in this space and working closely with both supplier-side agencies and client-side brands, here’s what we’ve seen shape hiring decisions for 2025; and where both candidates and clients are still getting it wrong.
1. “Smart Hiring” Is the New Hiring Strategy
Hiring in 2025 was less emotional and far more strategic than it was in the post-COVID boom years.
- Reactive vs. proactive hiring: Companies are no longer panic-hiring. Instead of backfilling every open role, leaders are asking why they need someone and what problem this hire solves.
- Timing matters: We continue to see hiring activity increase later in the year, particularly Q3 into Q4, rather than kicking off aggressively in January.
- Restructuring is ongoing: Especially within PE-backed consumer organizations, where efficiency and ROI are driving org design.
- Layoffs haven’t disappeared; but they’ve slowed: There are still reductions, but they’re more targeted and far less sweeping than 2023–2024.
- Strategic, not headcount-driven: Fewer “nice-to-have” hires. More roles tied directly to revenue, growth, or operational impact.
- Middle management is back: We’re seeing stronger demand for Manager, Senior Manager, and Director-level roles (on both client and supplier side) versus heavy hiring at the very top.
The theme here is intentionality. Companies want hires who can do, not just lead.
2. The Types of Roles We’re Seeing (and Not Seeing)
The composition of open roles in 2025 looks different than it did even two years ago.
- Research agencies are hiring more than brands, by volume. That said, we are seeing an uptick in traditional PMR and Insights roles client-side after a quieter stretch.
- Less pharma overall, more consumer: Healthcare hasn’t disappeared, but hiring has leaned more heavily toward consumer, CPG, retail, and tech-enabled research.
- Startups are creating opportunity: Many are disrupting traditional PMR by embracing AI-first models, and even legacy firms are following suit.
- AI Engineers & Data Scientists are no longer niche: These roles are becoming foundational across research orgs.
- Qualitative research is strong across industries: We’re seeing renewed demand for qual talent compared to previous years.
- Sales & growth roles are critical: If you can bring in business, your value (and compensation potential) increases dramatically.
- Targeted pharma hiring still exists: Particularly in oncology and GLP-1 related work, where expertise remains essential.
3. AI Is No Longer Optional — Even If It’s Not “Required”
Every organization we work with is integrating AI in some capacity. Period.
- Some are bootstrapping internally
- Others are hiring AI engineers, enablement leads, and data scientists
- Many startups are pivoting entirely from traditional PMR to AI-based platforms
- Teams are building more efficient workflows, leveraging NLP modeling, automation, and advanced analytics
Here’s the key point:
AI may not be listed as a requirement in job descriptions; but you must be able to talk about how you’re using it.
Candidates who stand out in 2025:
- Can clearly explain where AI fits into their workflow
- Can articulate what frustrates them about how their current org is (or isn’t) adopting AI
- Are actively seeking companies that embrace innovation
On the company side: if you’re not investing here, you’re going to struggle to attract top talent , full stop. We’re even seeing entire new divisions built around secondary research and AI-enabled insights.
4. Salary Reality in 2025 (It’s Messy)
Compensation continues to be one of the biggest friction points in hiring.
- There’s very little structure in what companies are offering
- Titles remain inconsistent, and so does pay attached to them
- Entry-level salary expectations are… honestly, bonkers
(Yes, we’re still seeing $70–80K asks for bachelor’s-level roles) - The post-COVID salary boom created expectations that simply aren’t sustainable
- Frequent 2-year hops are starting to work against candidates
- Business Development has massive upside compared to delivery-only roles
- Client-side still outpays supplier-side; but increases, sign-ons, and LTIs are smaller
- We saw multiple offer issues in 2025:
- Candidates declining and offers offending them
- Candidates accepting, then backing out for a better offer
- Asking for more post-offer and losing the deal entirely
At the same time, companies are struggling to attract top talent without paying for it; and that tension hasn’t gone away.
5. What Candidates (and Clients) Are Getting Wrong in 2025
For Candidates:
- Being resistant to AI: Listing tools isn’t enough. You need to explain how you’re using them and why it matters.
- Unrealistic salary expectations: The market has shifted. Companies can’t throw money at talent the way they did in 2021–2022.
- Over-indexing on tasks vs. impact:
“I’ve written 500 surveys” is far less compelling than:- Why you chose certain methodologies
- How insights influenced business decisions
- How you partnered with clients and told the story
For Clients:
- Case studies are broken: Candidates feel like they’re working for free. Either create realistic exercises or pay them.
- Lack of transparency: Long processes with little communication are costing you top talent.
- Playing it too safe: The market is saturated. Decide what traits matter most, align internally, and be willing to take a chance.
Final Thought
Hiring in 2025 wasn’t about speed or volume; it was about clarity, adaptability, and alignment.
The candidates who will win are those who understand where the industry is going and evolve with it. The companies who win are those who invest thoughtfully, communicate clearly, and hire with intention.
And as always: hiring isn’t static. It’s human.
Connect with Daniel Wilberschied or Lindsey Bartlett for continued insight into hiring now and in the future for all things Insights & Analytics.
