In this article we'll explore C&C Search's expert insights into trends we've experienced and observed during Q3.
TREND 1: The Disconnected Employee Is a Business Risk, Not a Mood
What we’re seeing (Q3) : Burnout, trust gaps with senior leadership and “checking out while staying put”. Managers remain the single biggest shaper of day-to-day experience, yet many are mediating policies they did not set.
Why it matters to PE and professional services: Disengagement shows up as slippage in client responsiveness, missed details and lower cross-sell, which means revenue leakage.
Moves to make before Q4:
Rebuild the psychological contract, prioritise safety, wellbeing, fair pay and clear manager comms before perk-like EX initiatives.
Manager as lifeline, give managers scripts and micro-skills, empathetic listening, escalations, clarity around “why” of decisions.
Listen where it hurts, survey on the uncomfortable topics, RTO rationale, restructure fatigue, then show “you said, we did”.
Metrics to watch: Manager eNPS, team-level retention risk, SLA adherence, client satisfaction on responsiveness and accuracy.
Trend 2: AI - From Hype to Measurable Impact
What we’re seeing (Q3): Enterprises moving from pilots to scale, boards now ask for ROI by use-case, not anecdotes. Employees save time, leaders expect more output, tension rises.
Why it matters to PE and professional services: The competitive edge is speed to analysis, proposal quality and cycles closed per FTE.
Moves to make before Q4:
Pick three value drivers, for example proposal velocity, interview quality, data hygiene and rank AI use-cases against them.
Instrument ROI by design, define baselines, measure cycle-time, errors, and win-rates pre and post AI.
Time dividend policy, state explicitly how saved time should be used, quality upgrades, skills, backlog catch-up, to avoid trust erosion.
Metrics to watch: Minutes saved per task, cost-to-hire and time-to-hire deltas, proposal win-rates, quality rework rates.
TREND 3: Skills Strategy - Balance Beats Purism
What we’re seeing (Q3): “Skills-based everything” is over-rotated, the pragmatic mix is about 70% skills and 30% other signals, values, context, track record. Pay and recognition are the missing levers for sustained upskilling.
Why it matters to PE and professional services: You need rapid re-tooling, AI literacy and data storytelling, without breaking cohesion or identity.
Moves to make before Q4:
Right-fit skills approach by function, some areas go skills-led, TA and analytics, others skills-included, client service and leadership.
Put money where the learning is, tie specific upskilling to recognition and retention-minded rewards, for example RSUs or bonuses with vesting.
AI literacy for all, baseline the firm, certify to a minimum standard this quarter.
Metrics to watch: Skills coverage vs target roles, L&D uptake tied to rewards, internal mobility, bench strength for critical accounts.
TREND 4: DEI&B - Quiet Retreats vs Integrated Delivery
What we’re seeing (Q3): Some firms double down, others narrow to inclusion or embed efforts into core people practices.
Why it matters to PE and professional services: DEI&B positioning affects applicant pools, offer acceptance, and client alignment, especially with institutional LPs and global corporates.
Moves to make before Q4:
Pick a lane, public or embedded, either declare your stance and roadmap, or embed outcomes into hiring, promotion, pay equity, accessibility.
Focus on leverage points, multigenerational policies, neuro inclusion, digital accessibility, family-friendly benefits.
Prove it, track pipeline mix, time to promotion, pay equity by cohort, report to ExCo quarterly.
Metrics to watch: Offer acceptance by segment, referral rates, promotion velocity, attrition disparities.
TREND 5: Hybrid - Commit to Outcomes, Not Optics
What we’re seeing (Q3): RTO mandates vs flexible hybrids are now set, the question is impact on culture, innovation and retention. Flex-positive firms are extending autonomy into job design, task choice and sequencing.
Why it matters to PE and professional services: In-office days only pay off if collaboration, learning and client creation measurably improve.
Moves to make before Q4:
Evidence the bet, compare pre and post policy scores on innovation proxies, idea flow, cross-team deal support, culture, and regretted attrition.
Autonomy 2.0, let teams craft how they deliver outcomes with clear guardrails.
Make office days high value, codify office-worthy work, live client war rooms, training, feedback loops.
Metrics to watch:Innovation tickets closed, cross-functional deal assists, regretted attrition, office-day NPS.
ACTION POINT: Create a One-Page Action Plan for Q3 to Q4
Set three firmwide people bets, for example reduce time to proposal by 25%, lift manager quality index by 10, achieve baseline AI literacy for 90% of staff.
Name owners and measures, HR partners with Ops, Finance and Service Line Heads, review monthly.
Communicate the contract, what employees can count on, fair pay, safety, clarity and what the firm expects, quality, responsiveness, learning.
Looking to be part of the conversation? Contact hello@candcsearch.co.uk to discuss your training and recruitment needs!
