66% of U.S. firms plan to boost hiring this half
CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES — Two-thirds of United States employers plan to increase permanent hiring in the second half of 2026, up from 60% in the first half and 57% one year prior, as a Robert Half survey of more than 2,000 hiring managers found that 63% experienced significant project delays and 48% canceled projects outright due to skills gaps.
Skills gaps cost U.S. firms half their projects
“Organizations are increasingly moving forward with strategic initiatives, but many recognize they need specialized talent to make those plans a reality,” said Dawn Fay, Operational President of Robert Half.
The survey, conducted by an independent research firm in April 2026, covered more than 2,000 United States hiring managers. Technology, healthcare, and finance and accounting lead hiring intent, with rates of 78%, 75%, and 74% respectively.
Alongside permanent hiring, 56% of respondents plan to bring on contract professionals in the second half of 2026. Denver leads city-level intent at 83%, followed by Minneapolis at 76% and San Francisco at 73%.
The combined 66% permanent and 56% contract hiring intent makes H2 2026 one of the most broadly expansive United States hiring periods tracked in the Robert Half index.
Specialized talent scarcity pushes employers toward staffing firms
“When specialized talent is difficult to find, employers are expanding how they approach hiring,” Fay said.
The Robert Half survey found 58% of hiring managers report qualified talent harder to find than a year ago, with industry-specific knowledge cited as the top gap at 47%.
Sixty percent of hiring managers turn to staffing firms to source specialized project skills, indicating outsourcing and contract labor are already structural responses to the domestic talent shortage.
Software proficiency gaps affect 42% of hiring managers and leadership ability shortfalls affect 40%, pointing to a two-tier skills deficit spanning technical and managerial layers.
Six in 10 U.S. hiring managers turn to staffing firms for project expertise, confirming outsourcing is a structural response to domestic talent scarcity.
A domestic market where 63% of hiring managers report project delays and 48% have canceled initiatives outright is a direct demand signal for business process outsourcing operators covering the specialized skills U.S. firms cannot source domestically.
The technology, healthcare, and finance and accounting sectors, the three highest-intent categories in the survey, are the same industries driving the largest share of offshore staffing demand in 2026.
BPO operators with capability in technology support, healthcare administration, and financial operations are directly positioned to absorb the skills-gap demand that 2 in 3 U.S. employers say is already disrupting their project pipelines.
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