The market is uneven, and that shapes how teams design their interviews. Businesses spent much of 2025 hiring cautiously against a subdued economy, but demand held up for specialist skills in AI, data, enterprise applications and cyber security Computer Weekly (tech recruitment outlook 2026). So the picture is less about volume and more about depth: teams are running for hard-to-find expertise, not filling seats.
The demand signal is clear in the official data. IT business analysts, architects and systems designers, around 193,000 workers, sit among the occupations in critical demand, with three of five indicators flagged critical in 2025 Occupations in demand 2025, Explore Education Statistics, GOV.UK. Vacancies are moving too: professional, scientific and technical activities saw the largest volume increase over August to October 2025, up by 5,000 ONS – Vacancies and jobs in the UK: November 2025.
There's a real squeeze at the other end of the pipeline. The UK tech sector cut graduate jobs by 46% in the past year, with a further drop projected The Register, and entry-level postings have fallen sharply since generative AI arrived techUK – What's actually happening with entry-level and graduate jobs?. When early-career routes narrow, interview processes lean harder on proving practical skill.
The roles teams are chasing tell you what each interview process is built to test. Cyber security is a good example: the UK workforce sits at roughly 143,000 people, with growth moderately accelerating from 2% in 2022 to 5% in 2024 Cyber security skills in the UK labour market 2025 - GOV.UK. Roles like these often add a scenario or threat-modelling stage on top of the standard rounds.
For most open software roles, the stages settle into a recognisable shape:
Seniority moves the mix. Financial services recruitment, for instance, skews to higher-qualified roles, generally RQF 6 and above rather than RQF 3 to 5 GOV.UK - Temporary Shortage List: Stage 2 report, which usually means an extra design or architecture round. At the same time, entry routes are broadening: apprenticeships rose from 3% of AI hires in 2020 to 19% in 2025 GOV.UK / DSIT – AI Labour Market Survey 2025 report, and those hires often follow a lighter, potential-focused process.
Start by matching the number of stages to the role, not habit. Skills shortages are the backdrop across engineering and tech, with 76% of engineering employers struggling to recruit for key roles Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET). Every extra round is a chance for the person you want to accept another offer, so keep the process tight and the reasons for each stage explicit.
A few practical moves help:
Speed matters because the wider hiring market keeps shifting month to month KPMG and REC, UK Report on Jobs June 2026. A clear, fast process is the strongest signal you can send about how your team works.
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