What are the recruitment trends of 2025?

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By Anthony Wolny

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By Anthony Wolny

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Recruitment is constantly evolving, and 2025 is shaping up to be no different.

With advancements in technology and new challenges to tackle in the hiring process, many businesses are rethinking how they attract and retain talent.

This blog explores the key recruitment trends of 2025 to watch, helping you stay ahead in an increasingly competitive job market.

1) Employee attrition is on the rise

It was recently reported that 23% of workers plan to quit their jobs in 2025, according to predicted attrition data from 10 million employees in the UK.

This level of employee attrition is greater than other leading economies, with the US at 19% and Australia at 18%.

The study also found that an additional 13% do not see themselves working for their current employer in the long-term.

What does this mean for your hiring process?

From a recruitment perspective, 2025 could see greater pressure to fill vacancies quickly in a bid to minimise disruption caused by employees leaving.

Here are a few tips for improving recruitment:

  • Make your company an attractive place to work by promoting areas such as Learning and Development (L&D) and company culture
  • Speed up your time to hire, avoiding candidates dropping out
  • Improve your onboarding to get people quickly up to speed and feeling part of the team

The other side of this issue is that businesses need to also focus on their staff retention as you don’t want a revolving door of people, in which current employees feel abandoned and subsequently resign, creating a never-ending cycle of vacancies.

While there is no one-size-fits-all approach to retention, we advise businesses to focus on:

  • Providing meaningful L&D and growth opportunities
  • Collect data driven insights to spot opportunities for workforce improvement
  • Ensuring staff recognition and celebrating wins
  • Gathering regular feedback

We cover the above recruitment trend around attrition and retention in far more detail in our Employee Lifecycle Guide.

FREE Guide: Putting people at the heart of the employee lifecycle

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2) The increasing prominence of AI in recruitment

As with all industries, Artificial Intelligence (AI) remains a hot topic, with research finding that 80% of companies are planning to invest.

Recruitment, in particular, is seeing quite a lot of AI-related change, with impacts on both employers and candidates.

Software companies, like IRIS, are committed to exploring the benefits of AI for our customers and how key functionality can be added to products; for example, job-ad builder and CV redactions are increasingly pioneered features which aim to aid those recruiting.

From a candidate-perspective, there is an increased use of AI when applying for jobs, whether that’s using it to create job applications and cover letters or using apps during video interviews to receive prompts when answering questions.

During the CIPD Annual Conference and ExhibitionSam Turnpenny, Campus Recruiting Lead at Accenture, discussed AI in recruitment, revealing that 60% of candidates admit to using AI during the hiring process, with 50% of students admitting to using it regularly to support with their studies.

Despite the increasing usage, some employers are banning the use of AI during the hiring process, claiming it is cheating.

However, the world is changing, and AI competency is becoming an increasingly sought-after skill, so I would urge you to approach the situation with more of an open mind.

In fact, AI is expected to become so prominent in the future candidate market that Generation Alpha is being referred to as Generation AI.

Ultimately, resistance to change could hinder your potential to hire the best talent in the future.

More content: Three ways artificial intelligence (AI) is shaping the future of cloud HR software

More content: Three ways artificial intelligence (AI) is shaping the future of cloud HR software

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3) Greater focus on skills based hiring

Skills gaps in the workplace can hinder productivity, innovation, and growth. With evolving job demands and industries redefining what it means to be qualified, hiring managers must adapt. One of the most effective ways to address these challenges is through skills based hiring - a big emerging trend on the recruitment landscape.

By prioritising actual abilities, or soft skills, over traditionally "qualified candidates" in the hiring process, businesses will not only bridge skills gaps but also reshape how they build stronger, more capable teams. Here’s how—and why—it matters.

Broaden the Talent Pool

Skills based hiring expands access to diverse candidates with different backgrounds, including those with expertise gained through non-traditional paths like boot camps or freelancing, helping close critical skills gaps.

Target Specific Needs

Focus on must-have skills rather than credentials, ensuring candidates are equipped to meet current challenges with precision.

Encourage Learning

Promote up-skilling and re-skilling to address workforce gaps, fostering growth and reducing turnover.

Reduce Bias

Evaluate candidates on abilities, not backgrounds, creating a more inclusive and diverse workforce that drives innovation.

Boost Performance

Hire candidates whose skills align with job requirements, improving productivity and reducing onboarding time.

IRIS recently held a webinar on skills based hiring, with some truly amazing guest speakers including Mervyn Dinnen, Analyst, Author and Commentator.

During the session, Mervyn explained that the importance placed on “candidate experience” will progressively have less value due to the rapid changes we are seeing in the working landscape.

He said: “In my experience, recruiters would frequently gauge competency based on past experience, often thinking: if a candidate has done this, surely they're capable of this.

“However, while I agree that past experience can offer some insight, I’d say that it isn't necessarily the best approach to rely on it, as length-of-service and past roles don't necessarily translate to competency.

I'm sure we've all also noticed that the world of work is rapidly changing; with new technology and ways of working being regularly adopted, past experience can quickly become outdated, further emphasising the need for tangible skills.”

Read Mervyn's recent blog here, in which he details how you can facilitate skills based hiring and the role of technology.

4) Hybrid working model are here to stay

A number of business leaders have expressed that in 2025, we will see the death of return to the office (RTO) policies, insisting hybrid working models are here to stay.

According to third-party research, almost half of respondents work in a hybrid way and say they won't accept a job that didn’t offer hybrid working. Last year, we saw a number of large businesses make headlines as they attempted to push RTO tactics, only to alienate large portions of their workforce, undermine hiring efforts and receive major social backlash.

This solidification of hybrid working is further emphasised by the Government's Employment Rights Bill, which aims to make flexible working the norm where feasible and introduce actions to make the workplace fairer, in addition to also pushing “right to switch off” measures.

The Government stated“As part of the Bill, we’ll introduce new measures to help make the workplace more compatible with people’s lives. This includes making flexible working the default where practical.   

As such, for those recruiting talent in 2025, the general emphasis, where feasible, will remain on hiring hybrid or fully remote workers.

Those offering hybrid or remote work options are likely to appeal to a broader talent pool, especially candidates who value work-life balance or require flexibility for personal reasons.

Note: do keep in mind that the hybrid working conversation goes beyond location, also involving areas such as flexitime and compressed work weeks, helping staff accommodate personal routines and commitments.

Subsequently, businesses that try to reject working from home and resist offering flexibility will likely struggle to attract the best talent, as job seekers continue to increasingly prioritise this over traditional benefits.

More content: What does the new Employment Rights Bill mean for businesses?

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5) Greater focus on Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) policies

According to Deloitte's 2024 Gen Z and Millennial survey, 72% of respondents stated that environmental credentials and policies are important when considering potential employers.

What is ESG? ESG stands for Environmental, Social and Governance, representing a framework which is used to evaluate a business' commitment to sustainability, ethical practices and effective leadership.

As such, going into 2025, we urge businesses to consider their ESG policies and ensure they're meeting candidate demands.

Also, clearly communicate ESG initiatives in your job postings, websites and social media, highlighting your efforts.

For those who don’t have anything relating to ESG in place, the urgency to action something meaningful becomes strikingly clear, especially if you want to come across as an attractive employer.

Additionally, ensuring that internal policies align with ESG principles is crucial, as inconsistencies can damage credibility.

Securing top talent

This year is shaping up to be a big one for recruitment.

Businesses that remain flexible and adapt to these new recruitment trends can secure top talent, motivated and forward-thinking employees.

Staying proactive and prioritising innovation can help build teams that are not only skilled but also committed to driving long-term success.

To see how our solutions can support your recruitment efforts, click here for more information on our recruitment software.

FREE Guide: Essential guide to recruitment

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