IT Staffing (Finally!) Poised for Modest Gains

Last month, SIA released the first of its biannual updates to the US Staffing Industry Forecast in conjunction with its annual Executive Forum North America conference. As a whole, IT staffing once again contracted, falling 3%, in line with the industry overall. Most losses were due to drops in staffing volumes, which stemmed from factors such as increased offshoring, growing use of AI to assist with coding, ongoing corrections following the pandemic hiring bubble and a continuing shift toward IT solutions.

The market is expected to return to modest growth in 2026 and 2027. To start 2026, the market for IT staffing is improving, with increased sales activity expanding pipelines and a growing number of customer conversations. In SIA’s US Staffing Industry Pulse Survey Report, IT posted median year-over-year growth of 3%, and the SIA | Bullhorn IT Staffing Indicator showed a 2% increase in IT staffing hours at the beginning of March compared to the same week in 2025.

However, growth remains unequal.

Some of the best opportunities can be found in AI and machine learning, data and analytics (particularly related to finance and business transformation), and cloud architects. Increasing demand for roles that are related to the development and deployment of AI solutions includes both:

• Well-established roles like data engineers, cloud engineers, full-stack developers/engineers, DevOps engineers, ERP business analysts, IT project managers and Python engineers
  
  
• Emerging roles related to AI, such as AI and machine learning engineers, forward-deployed engineers (who work directly with customers), automation engineers and AI developers (though prompt engineers and model trainers are no longer in demand)

In contrast, demand is lagging for roles like QA testers, entry-level programmers and coders, and help desk support. These positions are increasingly being automated or augmented by AI, which is depressing demand. Software engineers are among the roles most commonly cited as being replaced. However, even with these declines, software engineers remain among the most commonly employed IT professionals. Additionally, it is relatively easy for software engineers to upskill into AI-related application roles, providing opportunities for staffing firms that offer their candidates robust training resources.

Another opportunity is to shift focus to industries that have not historically been large spenders on IT staffing, including healthcare, data centers, utilities and industrial firms:

• While healthcare has lagged other industries in IT spending and technology adoption, healthcare technology is increasingly viewed not as an expense but as a business enablement tool, and growth is expected to outperform IT staffing overall.
  
  
• Strong investment and construction of data centers is driving demand for cloud and infrastructure roles to deploy complicated data center systems.
  
  
• The number of patents to integrate AI into power grids has grown, as smart grid solutions can increase monitoring, prediction of maintenance needs and potential issues with power supply.
  
  
• As operational technology increasingly becomes integrated with software, robotics, and other systems, there is a growing need for IT workers who can program and manage these machines.

Customer demand is evolving, and staffing companies must adjust their approach to be successful in the new environment. For an in-depth snapshot of market conditions across the US staffing industry — from IT, healthcare and industrial to the smaller occupational segments — corporate members are invited to join Staffing Industry Report (Americas) - US Forecast. Register now to gain insight into the key trends shaping client industries and areas where demand for staffing is growing the strongest. We will also provide a special update on how staffing firms are verifying candidates and combating the increasing problem of candidate fraud.

Originally Published On: https://www.staffingindustry.com/editorial/it-staffing-report/it-staffing-finally-poised-for-modest-gains

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