The Hiring Intelligence Report: H1 2026
The traits organisations are assessing in the first half of 2026
Artificial intelligence is changing hiring, but it is also making human capability more important.
Our H1/2026 Hiring Intelligence Report explores how employer priorities have shifted since the rise of generative AI, using assessment data from January to May 2022 (pre-ChatGPT) and comparing it with the same period in 2026.
The results point to a clear change in what employers are looking for. While AI can support speed, automation and decision-making, organisations are placing greater emphasis on the traits that help people perform in complex, pressured and people-centred environments.
Stress management, listening, resilience, calmness, adaptability and self-development all feature strongly in the 2026 data. These traits show that employers are looking beyond technical ability alone. They want people who can stay composed under pressure, build trust with others, keep learning as work changes and adapt when priorities shift.
Our latest report examines the top 10 most assessed traits in H1/2026, the traits gaining the most momentum since 2022 and the traits declining in relative popularity.
For HR leaders, recruiters and hiring teams, the report offers a practical view of how talent priorities are changing. It shows where employers are focusing their attention now, and what this means for building fairer, more effective hiring processes in the AI era.
Key findings
Top 10 most assessed traits in the first half of 2026:
Stress Management
Previous position: 4th
Stress management is now the most assessed trait in H1/2026. This reflects a strong demand for people who are not flustered by high-pressure work, can cope with tight deadlines and may even perform better under stress.
Its rise to the top suggests that employers may be placing greater emphasis on candidates who can stay productive when work becomes intense or unpredictable. In an environment shaped by rapid technological change, economic uncertainty and increasing workload complexity, the ability to function under pressure has become a core workplace capability.
Listening
Previous position: 1st
Listening remains one of the most important traits in modern hiring. Although it moved from the top position to second place, it continues to be assessed more than almost any other trait.
High scorers are prepared to take time to listen to people, consider others’ opinions and are easy to talk to. This makes Listening especially relevant in roles that require collaboration, leadership, customer interaction and cross-functional work.
In the AI era, where information can be generated instantly, the ability to understand people, interpret context and build trust through conversation remains deeply human — and highly valuable.
Resilient
Previous position: 2nd
Resilient remains firmly in the top three. This trait describes people who are not usually upset by criticism and are resilient rather than emotional.
The slight drop in ranking does not suggest declining importance. Instead, it shows that resilience remains a foundational hiring priority, while stress management has become even more prominent.
Employers continue to look for people who can recover from setbacks, handle feedback and maintain performance when things do not go to plan.
Striving
Previous position: 6th
Striving has moved up the ranking, showing increased demand for people who are motivated by achievement and like work that has a clear outcome.
High scorers are uncomfortable doing nothing and are energised by pursuing goals. This rise suggests that, alongside emotional steadiness, employers still value drive, ambition and performance focus.
The message is clear: the ideal candidate in 2026 is not only calm under pressure, but also motivated to deliver.
Adaptable
Previous position: 3rd
Adaptable remains a top-five trait, even though it has moved down slightly from its 2022 position.
This trait reflects the ability to adjust behaviour to suit different individuals and situations. It remains highly relevant in workplaces where roles, teams and technologies are constantly evolving.
The slight fall may indicate that adaptability is now seen less as a differentiator and more as a baseline expectation. In a post-AI workplace, employers may assume that flexibility is essential — while giving increasing attention to stress management, listening and resilience.
Order
Previous position: 5th
Order remains consistently important. High scorers like clearly defined rules, orderly environments, boundaries and controls.
Its continued position in the top 10 shows that employers still value structure, predictability and reliability. This is especially important in roles where compliance, safety, process quality or consistency matter.
Even as organisations become more agile, the need for people who can operate within clear frameworks has not disappeared.
Calm
Previous position: 18th
Calm is one of the clearest risers in the H1/2026 data.
This trait describes people who are unlikely to become tense or flustered and remain cool even in difficult situations. Its movement from #18 to #7 suggests a major increase in the popularity of assessing emotional composure.
This is closely connected to the rise of Stress management. Employers are not only looking for people who can work under pressure, but also those who remain steady, measured and composed when situations become difficult.
Variety
Previous position: 22nd
Variety has made one of the biggest moves into the top 10.
High scorers enjoy variety in day-to-day work and prefer doing many tasks in parallel. This rise suggests that employers increasingly value candidates who are comfortable with broader, more fluid roles.
As work becomes more dynamic and AI reshapes tasks, employees may be expected to shift between priorities, manage multiple workstreamsand adapt to changing demands. Variety captures that appetite for movement, breadth and multi-tasking.
Self-development
Previous position: 26th
Self-development is one of the most interesting new entries into the top 10.
This trait describes people who are keen to improve, value training and developing new skills, and prioritise self-development. Its rise from #26 to #9 is highly relevant in the context of AI.
As skills change faster, employers are looking for people who can keep learning. In 2026, it is not enough to hire for what someone knows today. Organisations increasingly need people who are motivated to develop what they will need tomorrow.
Change
Previous position: 7th
Change remains in the top 10, although it has dropped slightly since 2022.
High scorers like to work within a culture of organisational change and prefer innovation to tradition. Its continued presence shows that employers still value people who are comfortable in evolving environments.
However, the slight decline may suggest that change orientation is now being balanced with traits like Calm, Stress management and Order. Employers do not only want people who like change — they want people who can remain composed and effective while change happens.
Key insights: The human advantage
The top 10 traits in H1/2026 tell a clear story.
Employers are increasingly assessing for traits that help people remain effective in uncertain, high-pressure and people-centred environments. The strongest signals are not only about technical competence or task delivery. They point to the human qualities that help people stay steady, work well with others and keep improving as the nature of work changes.
Stress management, resilience and calm
Stress management, Resilient and Calm show a clear demand for people who can stay effective under pressure. Employers are placing more value on candidates who can handle intensity, recover from setbacks and remain composed when situations become difficult.
Listening
Listening remains one of the most assessed traits in 2026. As AI becomes more common, employers still need people who can understand context, build trust and respond thoughtfully in human situations.
Adaptable, variety and change
Adaptable, Variety and Change point to a growing need for people who can adjust to shifting priorities, varied workloads and new ways of working. As roles become less fixed, employers are looking for candidates who can move with change without losing focus.
Striving
Striving shows that employers still value drive and outcome focus. The strongest candidates are not only calm under pressure, but motivated to deliver clear results.
Order
Order remains important because structure, consistency and process still matter. Even as workplaces become more flexible, employers need people who can work within clear frameworks and maintain standards.
Self-development
Self-development is one of the clearest signals in the 2026 data. Employers are increasingly looking for people who want to keep learning, develop new skills and stay effective as tools, roles and expectations change.
What this tells us about hiring in 2026
This data suggests that the AI era is not making human traits less important. It is making the right human traits more visible.
As AI handles more content generation, automation and data processing, employers appear to be prioritising people who can listen, learn, adapt, stay composed and keep performing when the environment changes.
The advantage in 2026 is therefore not a single trait. It is a combination of emotional steadiness, interpersonal judgement, adaptability, motivation, structure and learning agility. These are the qualities that help people use technology well, work with others effectively and continue performing when work becomes more complex.
Fastest growing traits
Fastest growing traits in the A.I. era.
Looking beyond the top 10, the fastest-growing traits show which capabilities have gained the most momentum between Jan–May 2022 and Jan–May 2026.
These are the clearest signals of what employers are placing more emphasis on in the post-generative AI hiring landscape.
Variety
The Variety scale assesses how motivated the individual is by dealing with a variety of tasks and challenges at work. People at the high end of the scale are likely to feel motivated by roles that involve lots of plates spinning at the same time.
What this indicates:
Variety recorded the largest increase in the data.
This suggests that employers are increasingly assessing for people who enjoy diverse work, can manage multiple tasks in parallel and are comfortable with changing priorities.
In a workplace shaped by AI, job roles are becoming less fixed. Employees may be expected to move between tasks, tools and responsibilities more fluidly than before. Variety captures this appetite for breadth and flexibility.
Poised
Poised measures social confidence—how comfortable and self-assured someone feels in social settings. High scorers tend to be composed and confident in new or demanding interactions, while lower scorers may appear quiet or reserved.
What this indicates:
Poised also saw a significant rise.
High scorers are at ease with other people, confident and relaxed on social occasions. Although Poised has not entered the top 10, its upward movement suggests growing interest in social confidence and interpersonal ease.
As digital tools become more common, human interaction becomes more valuable in moments that require trust, persuasion, collaboration or reassurance.
Calm
Calm measures very similar aspects of emotional style to measures of anxiety, emotional stability and neuroticism. The low end of the scale is associated with an emotional style characterised by frequent worry and difficulty in letting go of thoughts and feelings outside of the workplace. The high end of the scale describes an emotional style that is more relaxed and settled, with infrequent worry.
What this indicates:
Calm is both a fastest-growing trait and a top-10 trait in 2026.
Its rise reinforces one of the strongest themes in the data: employers are looking for people who remain composed in difficult situations.
This is not just about avoiding stress. It is about bringing stability to teams, customers and organizations when the pace of work increases.
Self-development
The Self-development scale measures the extent to which the individual is motivated by personal development activities at work.
Scores at the low end of the scale indicate that the individual is more motivated by focusing on work and doing a good job than opportunities for further learning and development. Scores at the high end are associated with a strong motivational focus on self-development; the individual may make career choices based on opportunities to develop.
What this indicates:
Self-development is one of the most strategically important movers.
People who are keen to improve and develop new skills are increasingly attractive to employers. In the context of AI, this makes sense: organizations need employees who can keep learning as tools, workflows and expectations evolve.
Self-development may become one of the defining traits of the AI-enabled workforce.
Fastest declining traits
Traits losing popularity in the first half of 2026
Some traits have moved down significantly in relative assessment popularity between Jan–May 2022 and Jan–May 2026.
This does not necessarily mean these traits are no longer valuable. In many cases, they may still matter, but they are being assessed less frequently relative to the other traits being assessed.
Creative
Down 12 ranks
Previous position: 8th
This trait describes people who look for new approaches, enjoy trying new ideas and prefer inventing new methods over applying old ones.
The decline may seem surprising in an era of rapid change. However, it may indicate that creativity is being reframed. Employers may be focusing less on creativity as a standalone trait and more on related capabilities such as Change, Variety and Self-development.
In other words, organisations may still value innovation, but they may be assessing it through broader indicators of adaptability and learning agility.
Optimistic
Down 12 ranks
Previous position: 9th
Optimistic has also dropped notably.
High scorers expect things to turn out for the best, feel confident about the future and accentuate the positive.
The decline may suggest a shift from positivity toward resilience and composure. Employers may still value optimism, but they appear to be placing more emphasis on people who can manage pressure, recover from setbacks and stay calm when things are difficult.
In 2026, realism under pressure may be more in demand than positivity alone.
Tenacious
Down 8 ranks
Previous position: 23rd
Tenacious describes people who get things done and continue with a task even if it is boring.
Its decline may indicate that persistence alone is less frequently assessed as a differentiator. In fast-changing environments, continuing with a task matters — but so does knowing when to adapt, reprioritise or learn a new way of working.
This may reflect a broader shift from pure persistence toward flexible performance.
Gregarious
Down 6 ranks
Previous position: 13th
This trait describes people who like the company of others, are sociable and work well with others. The decline suggests that general sociability may be less central than more targeted interpersonal traits.
Listening, for example, remains #2 overall. Poised has also risen significantly. This suggests employers are not moving away from people skills — they may simply be favouring more specific forms of interpersonal effectiveness over broad sociability.
What this means for hiring in 2026
The H1/2026 data points to a clear conclusion: the human advantage in the AI era is not one single trait. It is a combination of emotional steadiness, adaptability, learning orientation and interpersonal effectiveness.
The most valuable employees are increasingly those who can:
- Stay productive under pressure
- Remain calm in difficult situation
- Listen to others and build trust
- Adapt behaviour to different people and situations
- Keep learning as skills evolve
- Manage varied work and shifting priorities
- Stay motivated by clear goals and outcomes
This is a powerful message for employers.
AI may change the tools people use, but it does not remove the need for human judgement, emotional control or collaboration. If anything, it makes these qualities more important.
As we move further into 2026, the organisations that hire well will not only assess for technical fit. They will assess for the human traits that help people thrive in a workplace where change is constant, pressure is real and learning never stops.
How Clevry can help you hire better
At Clevry, we help organisations identify these traits with fair, evidence-based psychometric assessments, interview tools and hiring insights. If you want to hire people who can perform, adapt and grow in the AI age, our assessment platform can help you make better, more confident hiring decisions.
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