June 2026

June was another busy month for our team; there is a real sense that the Research Insight & Data market is beginning to come alive. Naturally the first place we see this is LinkedIn where there has been a marked rise in both inhouse and agency roles. 

We've asked how this is working for teams that are hiring and for now we are hearing that;

𝗬𝗼𝘂'𝗿𝗲 𝗴𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿.

𝗬𝗼𝘂'𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗳𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿ole and if you are it's taking more time than expected.

Here's why:

This is the June 2026 picture for market research, data & analytics:

📊 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗖𝗩𝘀, 𝘀𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 of the right candidates. General UK vacancies are down ~9% YoY, permanent placements have fallen for 40+ consecutive months. Yet research & insight postings are up ~7.7% YoY.

More applicants aren’t the same as more of the right applicants; strong candidates are still fielding 2-3 offers.

🤖 𝗔𝗜 𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗹, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗳𝗶𝘅𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘁 Candidates are using AI to mass-tailor CVs and cover letters to every posting in minutes, and speculative applications are climbing as a result.

That means your ATS is fuller, but a polished, keyword-perfect CV tells you far less about actual capability than it used to.

Ironically, most hiring teams say AI is making it harder, not easier, to spot the right person in the pile. This is why the LI ads are generating more response but it's not necessarily the right response. You could be getting CV blindness! 

💰 𝗣𝗮𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗽𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 Salary growth has slowed to its weakest pace in years. Good for budgets, but don't confuse a calmer market with candidates accepting less. Good talent still knows its value.

⚠️ 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗯𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗺𝗲, 𝗶𝘁'𝘀 𝗳𝗶𝘁 Skills mismatch is now employers' #1 hiring challenge. Plenty of people can build a dashboard or get AI to help them look like they can on paper.

Far fewer can turn a dataset into a decision your board acts on. For a majority of the roles in this sector, you need a combination of technical and commercial skills and you need to be able to assess people effectively and efficiently.

🎯 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗼 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 month Stop widening the net and stop trusting the CV alone. The companies filling roles fastest right now are pairing a tighter brief with a human filter early in the process - a proper conversation, then moving quickly once they find the real thing.

Be intentional, spend time honing the requirements before you kick start the campaign. Decide how to hire and you can control the process.

If you're hiring in the Research, Insight or Data space, could it be worth spending 15 minutes with us defining what's truly essential, rather than reviewing 40 AI-polished CVs that miss the mark?
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