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2026 Business Outlook: Where Workforce Strategy Will Define Value Creation

Date Posted: 31 December, 2025

As businesses and investors assess the 2026 business outlook, one theme is becoming impossible to ignore: workforce strategy is moving from an operational concern to a core driver of value creation.

Global growth remains positive, but subdued. According to the International Monetary Fund and OECD, global GDP growth is forecast at approximately 3.0-3.3% through 2026, below long-term averages and far from the conditions that support indiscriminate expansion.

In this environment, value will not be created through scale alone. It will be created through how organisations structure, deploy and manage their workforces, and how closely workforce strategy is aligned to delivery, risk and long-term performance.

For investors and senior decision-makers, this shift defines the 2026 business outlook far more clearly than any single macroeconomic headline.

Global economic conditions entering 2026

Economic momentum is holding, but unevenly distributed.

OECD and Deloitte’s global outlooks point to continued expansion across parts of Asia-Pacific and the Middle East, while Europe remains cautious and capital deployment across mature markets is becoming more disciplined. Businesses are prioritising margin protection, operational resilience and risk management over rapid headcount growth.

This has direct implications for labour-intensive sectors such as infrastructure, logistics, energy, professional services and government-linked industries, where workforce cost, compliance exposure and delivery risk materially influence enterprise value.

Labour markets are tightening, not collapsing

Despite persistent headlines, global labour markets are not experiencing uniform contraction.

The International Labour Organisation forecasts continued global employment growth through 2026, albeit at a slower pace, with ongoing shortages in construction, infrastructure, logistics and skilled technical roles. At the same time, the World Economic Forum estimates that 44% of workers’ core skills will change by 2027, driven by automation, digitisation and evolving operating models.

The challenge for organisations is not a lack of people. It is a widening mismatch between skills, roles and delivery requirements. As a result, hiring decisions are becoming more selective, and tolerance for inefficiency is falling sharply.

Workforce strategy becomes an investor issue

According to PwC’s Global Investor Survey, more than 70% of investors now consider workforce resilience a material factor in long-term value creation, up from just over 50% prior to the pandemic. This reflects a structural shift. Labour is no longer viewed purely as a variable cost. It is increasingly treated as a risk-weighted asset that affects operating margin, regulatory exposure, speed to market, delivery reliability and scalability across regions.

For boards and investors, workforce decisions no longer sit neatly within HR. They intersect directly with operations, governance and financial performance.

AI, automation and margin pressure in 2026

By 2026, artificial intelligence will no longer be experimental. According to the McKinsey Global Institute, AI could contribute up to $4.4 trillion annually to global productivity. However, productivity gains alone do not guarantee profitability. The determining factor will be organisational design.

Businesses that pursue automation without reconsidering workforce structure risk eroding capability. Those that integrate AI alongside skills-based deployment models are more likely to improve margin while preserving delivery capacity.

This reinforces demand for workforce partners who understand how technology, skills and compliance interact in practice.

Why this environment matters for Resource Group Holdings

The 2026 outlook favours businesses with structural relevance, not cyclical dependency.

Resource Group Holdings operates across executive search, professional recruitment, workforce optimisation, large-scale deployment, advisory, payroll and compliance services. This integrated model aligns with the conditions organisations are entering, particularly where expansion is cautious, workforce flexibility is prioritised, and regulatory exposure must be actively managed.

Deloitte research shows that organisations with integrated workforce models are 1.6x more likely to outperform peers on operating margin during periods of economic uncertainty, reinforcing the relevance of joined-up people solutions in tighter markets.

For investors, this points to a business model aligned with sustained, structural demand rather than short-term hiring cycles.

What will define opportunity in 2026?

The defining feature of 2026 will not be disruption. It will be discipline.

Organisations that perform well will be those that:

Align workforce strategy directly to delivery outcomes
Balance automation with human capability
Scale across regions without accumulating compliance risk
Treat labour as a strategic system rather than a transactional function

Growth is not disappearing in 2026, but it is becoming more selective. The businesses positioned to support execution, resilience and workforce precision are likely to be the ones where value compounds quietly over time.

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