By Bill Benson and Jeff McGraw

As we approach 2026, hiring leaders are facing more complexity than ever before. Talent shortages persist in critical functions. Salary expectations remain high. Skill needs are evolving. And cultural alignment, once viewed as a “nice to have,” is now a top priority.

For executives and HR leaders in mid-sized and family-owned businesses, hiring decisions are no longer just transactional; they are strategic inflection points.

At the heart of every great hire is the ability to balance cost, capability, and culture. Here’s what that really means for the year ahead.

 

1. Cost vs. Capability: Finding Value, Not Just Savings

It’s natural for leadership teams to view hiring through a financial lens, especially in periods of economic uncertainty. But focusing narrowly on salary bands can result in missed opportunities and hidden costs.

What’s Shifting:

• Compensation expectations are still elevated, especially for high-demand roles like operations, finance, IT, engineering, and senior-level sales. Mid-level leaders, such as controllers, HR Managers, and sales managers, are in particularly high demand and hard to find.
• Candidates increasingly assess total value: salary, bonus/incentives, flexibility, purpose, career growth, not just base pay.

The Risk:

• Under-hiring or over-hiring for a role can be equally costly.
• Hiring someone who is “affordable” but lacks the strategic horsepower or adaptability you need may result in lost momentum or repeated turnover. Salary surveys don’t necessarily reflect the reality of hiring a high performer.

What to Do:

• Invest in role clarity. Build outcome-based scorecards, not just task lists. What must this person deliver in year one?
• Think total cost of value, not just total compensation. A $20K higher salary may be well worth it if it accelerates your revenue, reduces risk, or raises the bar on team performance.
• Balance compensation decisions with internal equity, but don’t let outdated pay structures drive bad hiring. Be cautious about losing top performers on your team who may be underpaid compared to the market value. The cost of replacing someone should be factored into compensation decisions.

Hiring Tip: During interviews, ask candidates to describe the value they created in prior roles, not just responsibilities. Look for scalable impact.

 

2. Experience vs. Adaptability: Who Can Grow with You?

Traditionally, companies sought candidates who had “done it before.” However, in a world of constant change, the ability to grow, learn, and adapt is just as, if not more, important than experience.

What’s Shifting:

• Many mid-sized companies are restructuring, digitizing, or expanding and the jobs of today may look quite different in 18–24 months.
• Experience alone doesn’t guarantee success. The most impactful hires are often those who can solve new problems, lead change, and bring fresh thinking.

The Risk:

• Over-indexing on industry tenure or technical credentials can result in stagnant teams or hiring for the past.
• Hiring “proven” talent without assessing learning agility may limit your team’s ability to respond to change.
• Over-stacking people with similar DISC traits may align in some ways but innovation, creativity and culture will depend on having some balance among the team.

What to Do:

• Prioritize potential and problem-solving in interviews. Ask about how the candidate has navigated ambiguity, led transformation, or learned new skills.
• Consider a 70/30 rule. Hire someone who meets 70% of today’s needs but shows 100% of tomorrow’s potential.
• Align on the strategic trajectory of the role. Is this a steady state position or one that will need to evolve?

Hiring Tip: Use scenario-based questions in interviews to assess how candidates think, flex, and collaborate, not just what they’ve done.

 

3. Culture Fit vs. Culture Add: Building the Next Chapter

Culture can be a powerful retention driver when viewed in the context of the company’s evolution. Hiring for “fit” doesn’t mean sameness. It means alignment with your company’s purpose, values, and ways of working while still making space for new energy and ideas.

What’s Shifting:

• Businesses are more conscious of protecting and evolving their culture, especially amid growth, generational change, workplace trends, technological advancements and a greater than ever need to adapt.
• Candidates are looking for purpose, flexibility, and values alignment, not just job security.

The Risk:

• Hiring only people who feel familiar can create cultural stagnation or groupthink.
• Ignoring cultural misalignment (in the name of “skills”) can erode morale, disrupt teams, or dilute trust.
• Family businesses often value personality fit over other key intangibles. Look to increase the weight put on qualities such as curiosity, agility, critical thinking skills, and initiative in the hiring process.

What to Do:

• Define the culture you want to sustain and the culture you need to evolve. Are you building for continuity, innovation, scale, or all three?
• Assess values alignment and team dynamic fit, not just personality. Can this person bring diversity of thought and shared purpose?
• Involve cross-functional team members in later-stage interviews to test how the candidate interacts across your culture.

Hiring Tip: Ask candidates what type of culture helps them do their best work and what kind of environments they struggle in. Then listen closely.

 

Final Thought: Strategic Hiring Is Critical Work

As the labor landscape evolves, hiring isn’t just an HR issue. It’s a strategic decision-making process that deserves the time, attention, and alignment of your executive team.

In 2026, your ability to balance cost, capability, and culture won’t just determine who joins your team; it will shape your ability to grow, compete, and lead in a shifting world.

So, as you move into Q4 planning, ask yourselves:

• Are we hiring to solve today’s needs or shape tomorrow’s business?
• Do we know where to invest, where to stretch, and where to take a risk?
• And most importantly…are we building a team we’re proud of, not just a team we can afford?

Best of luck building your team of the future!