mckinsey -2026 人力资源监测报告：人力职能迎来转折点 HR Monitor 2026 A turning point for the people function

People&OrganizationalPerformancePractice

June2026

AcomprehensivebenchmarksurveyofworkforceandHRtrendsacrossEurope,theUnitedStates,andChinadeliverscriticalinsightsfortoday’sHRleaders.

HRMonitor2026

HRMonitor2026

June2026

ThisreportisacollaborativeeffortbyJulianKirchherr,KarelEloot,SandraDurth,UlfSchrader

andVincentBérubé,withCharlotteSeiler,KiraRupietta,KristinaStörk,MarleneSenst,SéverineFobe,andSimonGallotLavallée,representingviewsfromMcKinsey’sPeople&OrganizationalPerformancePractice.

INTRODUCTION

Contents

3Preface

4

HRataturningpoint:From

functionalexcellencetosystem-

leveltransformation

CHAPTER1

6

Strategicworkforceplanninginthe

ageofhuman–AIcollaboration

CHAPTER2

11

Talentacquisition:Enhancing

hiringeffectivenessaslabor

marketssteady

CHAPTER3

18

Employeedevelopment:Preparing

workersforrapidlyevolvingskill

andAIrequirements

CHAPTER4

23

Acautiousworkforce:Insights

intoemployeeexperience

andretention

CHAPTER5

31

HR’soperatingmodel:

Rewiringthepeoplefunction

intheageofAI

39

Conclusion

40

Appendix

42Abouttheauthors

Preface

AsAItransformshowworkgetsdone,thepeoplefunctionismoreimportantthanever.Theworkforceis

undergoingfundamentalchangeasrolesandskillrequirementsshiftandnewformsofhuman–machine

collaborationemerge.HRistakingonanewdualrole:ItservesasanarchitectofAItransformation,shapinghowwork,roles,andcapabilitiesevolve,andasa“lighthouse,”leadingbyexampleinreimaginingitsown

operatingmodelanddemonstratinghowtoembedAIintocoreprocesses.

Inthisenvironment,chiefhumanresourceofficers(CHROs)andotherHRleadersneedasharper

understandingofwherethefunctionstandstodayandhowitneedstoadvance.WehaveexpandedourHR

Monitorreporttoprovideleaderswithricherdatatobenchmarktheirpeoplefunctionagainstpeers,evaluateprogress,andidentifykeyareasforaction.

Ourinauguralreportin2024focusedonGermany’sHRlandscape.Lastyear,wehighlightedworkforceand

HRtrendsacrossEurope.Thisyear,wesurveyedapproximately1,300HRprofessionalsand5,500employeesacrosstencountries,withaprimaryfocusonEurope(Belgium,France,Germany,Italy,Netherlands,Poland,

Spain,andtheUnitedKingdom),complementedbycomparativedatafromtheUnitedStatesandChina.ThedatawascollectedinJanuary2026,spansmultipleindustries,andiscomplementedbyinsightsdrawnfrom

discussionswithHRleadersandexpertsacrossMcKinsey’sPeople&OrganizationalPerformancePractice.Theresultisarobustdatasetenablingcross-country,cross-industry,andyear-over-yearcomparisons.(Note:Year-over-yeardifferencesinsurveyresultsshouldbeinterpretedasdirectionalonly,ascountrycoverage

changedslightlycomparedto2025,withtheadditionofChina,theNetherlands,andBelgium.)

Thisyear’sreportexploreswhatHRdelivers—coveringcoredimensionssuchasworkforceplanning,talent

acquisition,learninganddevelopment,andemployeeexperience—andhowHRgeneratesvalue,including

theimpactofdigitaltechnologiesandAI.Additionally,itcomparesHR’sownassessmentwithemployees’

experiencestohighlightpotentialperceptualgaps.Ineachchapter,wewillhighlightthekeythemesemergingfromoursurveydata,alongwithrecommendationsforleaders.

ThankyouforyourinterestintheHRMonitor.Welookforwardtofurtherrefiningandexpandingthisbenchmarkinthecomingyears.

JulianKirchherrPartner,Berlin

VincentBérubé

SeniorPartner,Montréal

KristinaStörk

AssociatePartner,Munich

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HRMonitor20264

Introduction

HRataturningpoint:From

functionalexcellencetosystem-leveltransformation

Economicpressures,AIdisruptions,andshiftingworkforceexpectationsareredefiningeffectivepeoplemanagement.WhilemanyHRfunctionshavestrengthenedprocessesinrecentyears,ourdatarevealaneedforbroaderprogress.Structuralgapspersistbetweenoperationalplanningandstrategicforesight,trainingandskillsgrowth,employeeexpectationsandorganizationalresponses,andAIexperimentationandscaledimpact.

Basedonoursurveydata,thisyear’sHRMonitoridentifiesfiveprioritychangesthatleaderswillneedtoembraceintheageofhuman–AIcollaboration:

—Workforceplanningmustmovebeyondoperationalcapacityplanningtostrategiccapability

planning.AutomationandAIarerapidlyreshapinghowworkgetsdoneandwhichskillsarerequired.Yet,workforceplanningremainspredominantlyfocusedonshort-termheadcountplanning,withonly

11percentoforganizationsadoptingalong-termperspective.Atthesametime,skillsgapspersistanddemandisshiftingtowardmorepeople-centeredandAI-relatedcapabilitiesastheneedforroutine

task-basedskillsdeclines.Organizationsmustevolvetowardforward-looking,task-andcapability-basedplanningorriskunderestimatingthescaleoftheworkforcetransformationahead.

HRMonitor20265

AutomationandAIarerapidlyreshapinghowworkgetsdoneandwhichskills

arerequired.

—Inemployer-drivenlabormarkets,recruitingisbecominglesscriticalbuthiringeffectivenessremainsessential.Globallabormarketshavelargelysteadied,withofferacceptanceratesupthreepercentage

pointsandoverallhiringsuccessupfourpercentagepoints.Whilethemarketcontinuestofavor

employers,theystillneedtomakehiringpracticesmoreefficient.Companiesmayneedtoprocess

higherapplicationvolumespervacancy,requiringgreaterscreeningandcoordinationeffort.Atthesametime,longhiringcyclespersist,raisingtheriskoflosingtopcandidates.AIhassubstantialpotentialto

increasehiringspeedandimprovecandidateexperience,butitmustbeintegratedintodisciplined,well-designedprocessesinsteadofbeinglayeredontoexistingcomplexapproaches.

—Performancemanagementandemployeedevelopmentarebackonleaders’agendas,butremain

fragmentedinexecution.Manyorganizationsareplacingrenewedemphasisonmeasurable

performanceandsystematiccapabilitybuilding.However,thisambitionisnotyetreflectedinpractice.

Learningparticipationremainslimited,with24percentofemployeesreportingnotrainingparticipationatall.Feedbackcyclesareinfrequent,withmorethanhalfofemployeesreceivingfeedbackonce

peryearornotatall.HRprofessionalstendtooverestimatebothparticipationintrainingandthe

importancethatemployeesassigntodevelopmentopportunities.Companiesneedtotreatperformancemanagementasacoredriverofemployeedevelopmentandimprovemeasurementofskillbuildingto

betterpreparetheirworkforceforthefuture.

—Amideconomicinstability,labormarketmobilityisdecliningandcompensationisatopconcernfor

employees.Inanenvironmentofmacroeconomicuncertainty,employeemobilityisdeclining.Voluntaryattritionisdowntwopercentagepointsyearoveryear,evenasemployeesatisfactionlevelsremain

broadlystable.Atthesametime,employees’decisionstostayattheirjobsareincreasinglydriven

bytangiblefactors:compensation(52percent),work–lifebalance(46percent),andjobsecurity(45

percent).Whilecompensationhasbecomeacentralconcernforemployeesamidpressureonreal

incomes,companiesareonlypartiallyaddressingtheissue.Employer-drivenlabormarketsreduce

externalopportunitiesand,inturn,thepressureonorganizationstoadjust.Againstthisbackdrop,

improvingemployeeexperienceislessaboutrollingoutadditionalprogramsandmoreaboutreinforcingfairness,transparency,andsustainableworkloadmodels.

—AgenticHRoperatingmodelsareemerging,butlarge-scaleAIadoptionremainslimited.The

traditionalUlrichmodelisgraduallygivingwaytomoreagileandtechnology-enabledconfigurations,

butmostorganizationsremaininahybridtransition.AlthoughautomationmodelssuggestsubstantialAIpotentialacrossHR,adoptionisprogressingslowly(withzero-tosix-percentage-pointincreasesinoperationaluse,dependingonthedomain).Manyorganizationsremaininpilotmode,withdeploymentslargelyconcentratedinadministrativeareas.Thefragmentedtechnologylandscapeandlimited

capabilitybuildingcontinuetoconstraincompanies’abilitytoscaletheirAIadoption.UnlockingAI’sfullvaluewillrequireHRtoredesignitsoperatingmodelaroundflow-to-workprinciples,establishaunifieddatabackbone,andmovedecisivelyfromexperimentationtoenterprise-widetransformation.

Strategicworkforceplanningin

theageofhuman–AIcollaboration

1

HRMonitor20267

AdvancesinAIareexpectedtosubstantiallyshifthowandwhereskillsareappliedasworkevolvesintoa

partnershipbetweenpeopleandagents,combininghumanjudgmentwiththepowerofautomation.IfAI

isadoptedatamoderatepacethrough2030,upto30percentofcurrentworkhoursinEuropeandthe

UnitedStatescouldbeautomated,accordingtoaMcKinseyGlobalInstitute(MGI)analysis.1MGIprojects

thatoverthesameperiod,morethan70percentoftoday’sskillsareexpectedtoremainrelevantandcouldbeappliedinbothautomatableandnon-automatablework.Butthisdoesnotmeanrolesthemselveswill

remainunchanged.Nearlyeveryoccupationwillexperienceskillshiftsby2030,astasksarereallocatedbetweenhumansandintelligentsystems.2

Inperiodsofrapidtechnologicalchange,theorganizationsbestpositionedtorespondarethosethattreattalentwiththesamestrategicrigorasfinancialcapital.S&P500companiesthatexcelatmaximizingtheirreturnontalentgenerate300percentmorerevenueperemployeecomparedwiththemedianfirm.3In

manycases,thesetopperformersusestrategicworkforceplanningtostayahead,takingathree-to-five-yearviewandanticipatingmultiplescenariossothattheyhavetherightnumberofpeoplewiththerightskillsattherighttime.

Yet,theuncertaintyintroducedbygenAImakesthisforward-lookingviewharderandmorecriticalthanever.GenAIisnotjustanothertechnologicaladvancementaffectingspecifictasks;itisacatalystfororganiza-

tionstorewirehowtheyoperateandgeneratevalue,fundamentallyalteringtheratioofhumanstotechnol-ogy.Strategicworkforceplanningprovidestheanalyticalfoundationtomodeltheseshiftsexplicitly,helpingorganizationsmovefromreactiveheadcountadjustmentstocapability-andscenario-basedworkforcedeci-sions.ThisenablesorganizationstoanticipatefutureworkforceneedsunderdifferentadoptiontrajectoriesforAI,identifyemergingskillsgaps,andimplementtargetedreskillingandupskillingmeasurestoensure

long-termworkforcereadiness.

HerewehighlightkeythemesrelatedtoworkforceplanningemergingfromtheHRMonitorsurveydata.

Skillsgapspersistbutvaryacrossindustries

AccordingtosurveyedHRprofessionals,23percentofemployeeslackatleastsomeoftheskillsrequiredtoperformintheircurrentrole,downninepercentagepointsfromlastyear.Atthesametime,22percentofemployeesindicatethattheydoubttheywillhavetheskillsneededtoremainintheirroleoverthenextfiveyears,downsixpercentagepointsfrom2025.

HRprofessionalsinItalyreportthehighestcurrentskillsgap(28percent),whilePolandreportsthelowest(23percent).Attheindustrylevel,thehighestcurrentskillsgapsarereportedinchemicals(30percent);thepublicandsocialsector,andelectronics(28percent);andtourismandfoodservices,andsemiconductors

(27percent).Thelowestskillsgapsarereportedinmechanics(16percent);travel,logistics,andtransport

(18percent);andrealestate(19percent).ThesefiguressuggestthatHRprofessionalsareunderestimatingtheextentoffutureskillchanges,asMGIresearchprojectsthatnearlyeveryoccupationwillexperienceskillshiftsinthenextfewyears.

1

“Anewfutureofwork:TheracetodeployAIandraiseskillsinEuropeandbeyond

,”McKinseyGlobalInstitute,May21,2024.

2“

Agents,robots,andus:SkillpartnershipsintheageofAI

,”McKinseyGlobalInstitute,November25,2025.

3“

ThecriticalroleofstrategicworkforceplanningintheageofAI

,”McKinsey,February26,2025.

HRMonitor20268

Importantfutureskillsareshifting

Problem-solvingremainsthemostfrequentlycitedfutureskill,with44percentofHRprofessionalsrankingitintheirtopfivethisyear(Exhibit1).Creativityiscitedsecondmostoften,whereaslastyearitwasthefifthmostcited.DataanalyticsandAIremainsoneofthetopthreemost-citedskillareas.

Bycontrast,adeclineintheimportanceofsoftwaredevelopmentandotherhighlyspecializedtechnicalex-ecutionskillsreflectsthatAIsystemsincreasinglytakeoverthosetasks.Atthesametime,skillsnecessary

toguide,interpret,andapplyAIoutputsaregainingprominence.Digitalliteracyisthefastest-risingskill,cit-edsixththisyearafterranking20thin2025.Abilitytoreasonrosetoninthplaceafterranking12thlastyear.

Exhibit1

Futureskillswillshiftfromroutinetask-basedcapabilitiestoskillsfocusedonanalyzingandinterpretingAIoutputs.

TopfutureskillsaccordingtoHRprofessionals,2025–26,%ofrespondents(whomentionedtheskillamongtheirtop5)●●TraditionalskillsoTechnologicalskillsooTransformativeskillsooDigitalskills

50

Problem-

solvingskills

Creativity

DataanalyticsandAI

Resilience

Abilityto

resolveconfiicts

Digitalliteracy

Agileworking

50

40

40

30

20

+9

percentage

+15

30

20

10

points

+6

–2

+3

–2

–3

10

0

0

20252026

30

20

Abilityto

innovate

Abilityto

reason

Entrepreneurial/

personalinitiative

Change

competence

Digitallearning

Mission

orientation

Digital

collaboration

30

20

10

–3

+3

–5

–4

–8

-

+1

10

0

0

IT

architecture

Software

development

Intercultural

communication

Digitalethics

Hardware/robot-icsdevelopment

User-centereddesign

Quantumcomputing

20

20

10

+2

–4

–2

–1

–5

–3

–3

10

0

0

Note:Year-over-yeardi仟erencesshouldbeinterpretedasdirectionalonly,ascountrycoveragechangedslightlycomparedwith2025,withtheadditionofBelgium,China,andtheNetherlands.

Source:McKinseyHRMonitorSurvey,Jan2026,n=1,303HRprofessionalsinBelgium,China,France,Germany,Italy,Netherlands,Poland,Spain,UK,andUS;McKinseyHRMonitorSurvey,Dec2024,n=1,925HRprofessionalsinFrance,Germany,Italy,Poland,Spain,UK,andUS.

McKinsey&Company

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Theseshiftsillustratetheneedforskillsintelligence:theabilitytosystematicallycapture,analyze,andfore-castskillsupplyanddemandacrosstheorganization.Withoutagranular,continuouslyupdatedunderstand-ingofwhichskillstheorganizationholdsandwhichareemergingascritical,workforceplanningcannot

keeppacewiththerateatwhichAIisreshapingtaskstructures.Organizationsthatbuildrobustskillsintel-ligence—combiningcomprehensiveskillstaxonomieswithAI-poweredanalytics—candetectthesecom-

positionalshiftsearly,identifyskilladjacenciesthatenabletalenttoberedeployed,andtranslateemergingrequirementsintotargetedworkforceinterventions.Strategicworkforceplanning,underpinnedbyskills

intelligence,providesthefoundationtosystematicallyassessfutureskillneedsanddefinetheworkforcerequiredtomeetlong-termbusinessobjectives.

Workforceplanningremainspredominantlyshorttermandoperational

Onaverage,62percentofHRprofessionalsindicatethattheircompaniesconductorganization-widework-forceplanning,while34percentapplyittoatleastpartoftheirworkforce.However,only11percentconductstrategicworkforceplanning,definedasforecastingworkforceneedsthreeyearsormoreintothefuture,

whilenearlytwo-thirdsfocusonaplanninghorizonofupto12months(Exhibit2).

Exhibit2

Mostcompaniesconductoperationalworkforceplanning,butonly

11percenttakeastrategic,long-termapproach.

49

7

53

8

57

1

60

3

63

66

5

6

2

4

France

Yes,infullthroughouttheentirecompany2

Yes,butnot

exhaustively3

44

No,notatall

Belgium

39

Poland

42

1

Italy

58

41

Netherlands

37

Germany

32

4

US

29

UK

70

24

Spain

71

28

China

73

27

Average

62

34

Engagementinworkforceplanning,1%ofrespondents

Howfarinadvancecompaniestypicallyforecastworkforce

needs,⁴%ofrespondents

>5years

3to<5years

1to<3years

6to<12months

<6months

Only

4

11%

7

27

takea

strategic

long-term

approach

44

18

Note:Figuresmaynotsumto100%,becauseofrounding.

¹Question:Doesyourcompanycarryoutstrategicpersonnelplanning?

²Includingdemandandsupplyside,regularlyupdateddata.

3Notallrolesaretracked;dataisnotalwaysuptodate.

⁴Question:Howfarinadvancedoesyourcompanytypicallyforecastworkforceneeds?

Source:McKinseyHRMonitorSurvey,Jan2026,n=1,303HRprofessionals:Belgium,n=101;China,n=131;France,n=142;Germany,n=145;Italy,n=142;Netherlands,n=100;Poland,n=130;Spain,n=130;UK,n=141;US,n=141

McKinsey&Company

HRMonitor202610

Industriesreportingthehighestskillsgaps—forexample,chemicalsandthepublicandsocialsector—arelessengagedinorganization-wideworkforceplanning(47percentand45percent,respectively,comparedwiththecross-industryaverageof62percent).Iftheseindustriesdonotincreaseorganization-widework-forceplanning,theyriskfallingfurtherbehindandexperiencingwideningskillsgaps.

Inaddition,85percentoforganizationsreporthavingaskillstaxonomyinplace,upfrom78percentin

2025.However,only57percentcombineorganization-wideworkforceplanningwithcomprehensiveskillsdocumentation.Thisindicatesthatmanyorganizationsdonotyetuseskillstaxonomiestoinformworkforceplanning—missinganopportunitytoidentifyskilladjacenciesthatenablefasterinternalredeploymentandtousegranularpeopledatatomakemoreinformed,evidence-basedtalentdecisions.

Forecastingpracticesfurtherillustratethedominantplanninglogic:46percentplanatthelevelofspecificrolesorpositions,roughlyone-thirdatthelevelofjobfamilies,andonly22percentapplyaskill-basedfore-castingapproach.Giventheincreasingimportanceoftask-leveltransformationandevolvingskillrequire-

ments,evenskill-basedapproachesmaynotbesufficient.Atthesametime,thepaceanduncertaintyofAIadoptionmakepointforecastsincreasinglyunreliablebecausetherangeofplausibleworkforcescenariosiswiderthanever.Thismakesitcriticalfororganizationstoadoptscenario-basedplanning,modelingdifferenttrajectoriesforhowAIreshapesactivitiesandcapacityneeds.

Workforceplanningrecommendationsforleaders

Aschangeaccelerates,theseworkforceplanningstrategiescanhelpensurecompaniesremaincompetitive:

—StartwithaclearNorthStarandpragmaticdesign.Anchorstrategicworkforceplanningwitha

clearlydefinedtargetofwhattheprocessshouldlooklike,specifyingthedecisionsitwillinform,the

stakeholdersitwillserve,andthekeybusinessquestionsitmustanswer.Focusinitiallyonalimitedsetofhigh-impactusecases,suchassupplyanddemandforcriticaljobfamiliesoverathree-to-five-yearhorizon.Managecomplexitybyaggregatingrolesintojobfamiliesandusingdata-drivenassumptionsratherthanintuition.Incorporateearlyanalysisofdifferentscenarios—forexample,modelingmultiplescenariosofgenAIadoption—toaccountforuncertainty.

—Shifttostrategictask-andcapability-basedworkforceplanning.Introducestrategicworkforce

planningasastructured,multiyearhorizonanchoredinbusinessstrategy.Movebeyondheadcount-

basedroleplanningtowardatask-andcapability-basedviewoftheworkforce,identifyinghow

activitieswillevolvethroughautomationandwhichcapabilitiesarerequired.AIcansupportthisshiftbyanalyzingtasks,forecastingcapabilitydemand,andidentifyingemerginggapsatscale.Prioritizecriticalgapsbasedonbusinessimpactandaddressthemthroughtargetedinterventions,includingfocused

reskilling,strategichiring,orexternalpartnerships.

—Establishlarge-scalereskillingandupskillingengines.Buildtheinfrastructureandmechanisms

tosystematicallycloseexistingskillsgapswhiledevelopingcapabilitiesacrosstheworkforcethatwillbecriticalinthefuture.Thisincludesadoptingscalablelearningplatforms,creatingAI-enabled

personalizedlearningjourneys,andsystematicallyintegratingcontinuousskilldevelopmentintoday-to-dayworkashuman-AIcollaborationevolves.

marketssteady

Talentacquisition:Enhancing hiringefectivenessaslabor

HRMonitor202612

Amidpersistentgeopoliticalandeconomicuncertainty,thegloballabormarkethaslargelysteadied—andremainsanemployer-drivenmarket.Acrossmajoreconomies,unemploymentrateshaveremainedbroad-lysteadyoverthepastyear.InDecember2025,unemploymentstoodat5percent(seasonallyadjusted)acrosstheOECD,unchangedfromayearearlier.

4

Similarly,theEuropeanUnion(5.9percent)reported

largelysteadyfigurescomparedwiththepreviousyear.

However,strainremainsvisibleinselectedmarkets.Germanyrecorded3millionunemployedindividualsinJanuary2026—thehighestJanuarylevelin12years

5

—whileregisteredjobopeningsfellbelow600,000,

signalingweakeninglabordemand.

6

Spaincontinuestoshowthehighestunemploymentrateinoursampleat10percent,basedonDecember2025data.

7

ThesemacroeconomictrendsarereflectedintheHRMonitorsurveyresults,fromwhichweidentifythefollowingkeytalentacquisitionandlabormarketthemes.

Talentmarketsaresteady,withemployersinthedriver’sseat

HRprofessionalsreportbeingunabletofill11.6percentofvacancies,upjustslightlyfrom11percentin

2025.Thisindicatesthatwhilelabormarketsgloballyhavesteadiedafteraperiodofpeaktightnessinre-

centyears,organizationscontinuetostruggletofillrolesinsometargetedskillareas.Theelectronicssector(13.7percent)andthetechnology,media,andtelecommunicationssector(13.3percent)reportthegreatestchallengeswithunfilledvacancies,reflectingongoingscarcityofspecializeddigitalandengineeringcapa-bilities.Bycontrast,thepublicandsocialsectorandservicessector(both9.9percent)reportcomparativelylowervacancygaps.Thepublicsectorbenefitsfromperceivedstabilityandjobsecurityinuncertaintimes,whiletheservicessectoroftenrequiresbroader,lessspecializedskills.

Country-leveldynamicsfurtherillustratetheemployer-drivenenvironment.InSpain,thehighunemploy-

mentratetranslatesintostrongcompetitionforroles:SpanishHRprofessionalsreportanaverageof165

applicationsperjobposting,comparedwithaglobalaverageof30.Bycontrast,intheNetherlands—whereunemploymentstoodat4percent,belowtheOECDaverageinDecember2025—employersreceiveonly

tenapplicationsperjobpostingonaverage.

Compensationandjobsecuritydriveemploymentmoves

Globaleconomicuncertaintyisreflectedinthefactorsdrivingjobchanges.Remunerationandbenefitsrankastheprimarydriverofjobchangeglobally,citedby47percentofsurveyedemployees(Exhibit3).Jobse-curityranksthirdat36percent—asubstantialshiftfrom2025,whenitwastheleastimportantdriver.This

highlightsthepsychologicalimpactofmacroeconomicvolatilityandsignalsamorerisk-awareworkforce.Atthesametime,work–lifebalanceandflexibilityremainconsistentlyamongthetopfivedriversacrossallsurveyedregions.Flexibleworkarrangementscontinuetobeastructuralexpectationratherthanatempo-rarypost-pandemicphenomenon.

4“OECDunemploymentrateremainedstableat5.0%inDecember2025,”OrganisationforEconomicCo-operationandDevelopment,statisticalrelease,February12,2026.

5“Morethanthreemillionunemployedagain,”Tagesschaunewsservice,January30,2026.

6ArbeitsmarktimJanuar2026[LabormarketinJanuary2026],FederalEmploymentAgency(Germany),January2026.

7“OECDunemploymentrateremainedstableat5.0%inDecember2025,”OrganisationforEconomicCo-operationandDevelopment,statisticalrelease,February12,2026.

HRMonitor202613

Bycontrast,theperceivedimportanceoftraininganddevelopmentopportunitiesinattractingemployeeshasdeclinedmarkedly,droppingby12percentagepointscomparedto2025.Thisunderlinesthatmore

immediate,tangiblefactorssuchaspayandstabilitycarrygreaterimportanceforjobmovers.

Encouragingly,alignmentbetweenHRprofessionalsandemployeeshasimprovedsubstantially.In2025,weobservedadisconnectbetweenwhatHRprofessionalsthinkarethemostimportantmechanismsto

attractnewemployeesandwhichfactorsactuallydriveajobchangeforemployees.Thisyear,bothgroupsidentifythesametopthreefactors.

Yetamonglessimportantdrivers,westillobserveperceptiongaps:HRprofessionalsunderestimatethe

importanceofrelationshipswithdirectmanagersandcolleagues.Atthesametime,HRprofessionalsover-estimatetheimportanceoftraininganddevelopmentopportunitiesandemployerreputation.

Exhibit3

Remunerationandbenefitsarethetopdriversoftalentattractionandjobchange.

Driversforchoosinganewemployerandleavingacurrentemployer,%ofrespondents(top3drivers)

HRview1Employeeview2

Remunerationandadditionalbenefits

Work–lifebalance

Jobsecurity

RelationshipwithmanagersFlexibility

RelationshipwithcolleaguesMeaningfulnessofthework CorporatecultureReputationoftheemployer

Traininganddevelopmentopportunities

01020304050

1Question:Whatdoyouconsiderthemostimportantmechanismstoattractnewemployeestoyourcompany?

²Question:Whichthreefactorswouldmakeyouwanttoleaveyouremployer?

Source:McKinseyHRMonitorSurvey,Jan