Get started
Get started
Dark theme

Fokals reportHiringOctober 2026

Hiring Report

What companies hired for as the year turned: seasonal roles and brand builders up, support roles and internships down, measured across the job postings they publish.

4 findings · 1 table · 5 charts · 8 companies named2 of 4 findings open · Free with an accountPublished 26 October 2026

38.8%of travel and hospitality companies' postings are hospitality and food roles
+18%in the share of postings for brand marketing, in two weeks
−17%in the share of postings for customer support, in two weeks
3.9%of job postings are internships, the lowest share of the month

A company's job postings say what it is building before anything else does. This edition reads four changes in the mix of roles that companies opened on their own career sites in October: the seasonal roles of the holidays, the brand and design roles gaining ground, and the support roles and internships receding.

Every figure is a share of the postings companies opened in the 30 days to 18 October, set against the 30 days to 4 October, across all companies and within each industry.

The momentum map: Holiday Hiring Begins, 4.8% of companies, +45%; Brand Builders Wanted, 1.45% of companies, +37%; Support Hiring Recedes, 6.5% of companies, −35%; Fewer Internships, 3.9% of companies, −22%0%+4%−4%+10%−10%+25%−25%+50%−50%+100%0.5%1%2%5%10%25%50%100%Breaking outGoing mainstreamNicheEstablishedHow common: share →How fast: growth a month →Support Hiring Recedes: Falling, 6.5% of companies, −35% a month, signal 6.6 (locked)6.6Support Hiring RecedesFewer Internships: Falling, 3.9% of companies, −22% a month, signal 6.7 (locked)6.7Fewer InternshipsHoliday Hiring Begins: Rising, 4.8% of companies, +45% a month, signal 7.17.1Holiday Hiring BeginsBrand Builders Wanted: Rising, 1.45% of companies, +37% a month, signal 7.47.4Brand Builders WantedThe momentum map: Holiday Hiring Begins, 4.8% of companies, +45%; Brand Builders Wanted, 1.45% of companies, +37%; Support Hiring Recedes, 6.5% of companies, −35%; Fewer Internships, 3.9% of companies, −22%0%+4%−4%+10%−10%+25%−25%+50%−50%+100%0.5%1%2%5%10%50%100%Breaking outGoing mainstreamNicheEstablishedHow common: share →How fast: growth a month →Support Hiring Recedes: Falling, 6.5% of companies, −35% a month, signal 6.6 (locked)6.6Fewer Internships: Falling, 3.9% of companies, −22% a month, signal 6.7 (locked)6.7Fewer InternshipsHoliday Hiring Begins: Rising, 4.8% of companies, +45% a month, signal 7.17.1Holiday Hiring BeginsBrand Builders Wanted: Rising, 1.45% of companies, +37% a month, signal 7.47.4Brand Builders Wanted
This edition at a glance

4 findings, by how common and how fast

Each finding is placed by how many companies do it and how fast that is growing. The bigger the point, the stronger the signal. How to read a report

  1. Brand Builders WantedRising · Breaking out · +37%7.4
  2. Holiday Hiring BeginsRising · Breaking out · +45%7.1
  3. Fewer InternshipsFalling · Niche · −22%6.7
  4. Support Hiring RecedesFalling · Niche · −35%6.6
RisingHiring

Holiday Hiring Begins

Hospitality and food roles rose from 3.9% to 4.8% of job postings in two weeks, and to 38.8% of postings at travel and hospitality companies.

Signal score7.1/10Clear signal
TrendRisingMore companies are doing it
How common4.8%of job postings
How fast+45%a month · Breaking out
Strongest in
  • Travel and hospitality
  • Food and drink
  • Entertainment and media
Hospitality and food roles as a share of each industry's postingsShare of job postings
  • 30 days to 4 Oct
  • 30 days to 18 Oct
Travel and hospitality38.8%+10.1 pts
Food and drink29.4%+6.1 pts
Entertainment and media27.3%+0.4 pts
Health and wellness2.9%+0.2 pts
Finance and insurance0.8%+0.3 pts
All industries4.8%+0.9 pts

Share of the postings opened in each 30-day window, by the industry of the company.

Show the numbers
30 days to 4 Oct30 days to 18 Oct
Travel and hospitality28.7%38.8%
Food and drink23.3%29.4%
Entertainment and media26.9%27.3%
Health and wellness2.7%2.9%
Finance and insurance0.5%0.8%
All industries3.9%4.8%
38.8%of travel and hospitality companies' postings are hospitality and food roles

Hospitality and food roles, from cooks and servers to hotel staff, made up 4.8% of the job postings companies opened in the 30 days to 18 October, up from 3.9% in the 30 days to 4 October.

The rise holds within the industries that hire for them: at travel and hospitality companies these roles went from 28.7% of postings to 38.8%, and at food and drink companies from 23.3% to 29.4%.

In the week to 18 October alone, 6.2% of new postings were hospitality and food roles, the highest share of the four weeks.

Who’s doing it

  • Maison Metier

    Opened room attendant, server and guest services roles across its hotels

  • Nando's Australia

    Opened a team member role in Casuarina

  • Mayflower Seafood & Chicken

    Opened multiple roles at its Wilson restaurant

  • ClearSky Health

    Opened a dietary aide role in Lancaster

What it means

For sellers

A company hiring seasonal staff in volume needs scheduling, payroll and onboarding tools now, before the first shifts.

For investors

Seasonal hiring by hospitality employers, read week by week from their own postings, is an early read of the demand they expect.

RisingHiring

Brand Builders Wanted

Brand marketing roles rose from 1.23% to 1.45% of job postings in two weeks, led by software and media companies.

Signal score7.4/10Clear signal
TrendRisingMore companies are doing it
How common1.4%of job postings
How fast+37%a month · Breaking out
Strongest in
  • Entertainment and media
  • Software and SaaS
  • Finance and insurance
Brand marketing roles as a share of each industry's postingsShare of job postings
  • 30 days to 4 Oct
  • 30 days to 18 Oct
Entertainment and media4.1%+1.0 pts
Software and SaaS3.5%+0.9 pts
Finance and insurance1.5%+0.3 pts
Professional services1.4%+0.3 pts
Real estate1.1%+0.5 pts
Health and wellness1.4%−0.1 pts
Automotive0.7%−0.1 pts
All industries1.5%+0.2 pts

Share of the postings opened in each 30-day window, by the industry of the company.

Show the numbers
30 days to 4 Oct30 days to 18 Oct
Entertainment and media3.1%4.1%
Software and SaaS2.6%3.5%
Finance and insurance1.2%1.5%
Professional services1.1%1.4%
Real estate0.6%1.1%
Health and wellness1.5%1.4%
Automotive0.8%0.7%
All industries1.2%1.5%
+18%in the share of postings for brand marketing, in two weeks

Brand marketing roles, the ones that look after a company's name, voice and campaigns, made up 1.45% of the job postings companies opened in the 30 days to 18 October, up from 1.23% in the 30 days to 4 October.

The rise is widest at software and SaaS companies, from 2.6% of postings to 3.5%, and at entertainment and media companies, from 3.1% to 4.1%. Design roles rose beside them, from 0.53% to 0.60%.

In the week to 18 October, 1.8% of new postings were brand marketing roles, the highest share of the four weeks.

Who’s doing it

  • M Booth

    Opened brand marketing and influencer strategy roles

  • Inquis Medical

    Opened a marketing and communications manager role in Menlo Park

  • Mineralys Therapeutics

    Opened an associate director of marketing role

  • TailorCare

    Opened a senior manager of marketing operations role

What it means

For sellers

A company hiring for brand is about to spend on it: the moment for agencies, research, creative production and media.

For founders

Software companies are hiring brand marketers: a brand research or creative tool built for software teams has more buyers this month than last.

The full report is locked

Unlock 2 more findings and 1 table, free

2 of 4 findings read

Create your free Fokals account to read every finding, chart and company in this report, and every report we publish. It takes a minute, and there’s nothing to pay.

Unlock the full report

Already have an account? Sign in

How we measured

Shares are of the job postings companies opened on their own career sites in the 30 days to 18 October 2026, by job function and seniority, across all companies and by the industry of the company.

Growth compares each share with the 30 days to 4 October and is stated a month; the weekly figures are of the postings opened in each seven days. Every posting is dated when it is first seen.

Pay is the middle of the range a posting states, on one annual US-dollar scale, for the postings first seen from 1 to 25 October 2026.

Each finding's signal score, out of 10, states the strength of its evidence. The full methodology is shared on request.

Every finding is read the same way: its trend, its signal score, and where it stands by how common it is and how fast it is growing. How to read a report · Methodology overview

Cite this report

Quote and chart any figure in this report. Credit Fokals and link to this page, or to the finding itself.

Fokals, Hiring Report, October 2026. https://www.fokals.com/reports/hiring-2026-10
More reports

Keep reading

Fokals ReportsMonthlyFokals MonthlyOctober 2026Fokals MonthlyOctober 2026Free to readFokals ReportsSignals indexSignals IndexOctober 2026Signals IndexOctober 2026Free with an accountFokals ReportsSales teamsSales Teams ReportOctober 2026Sales Teams ReportOctober 2026Free with an accountFokals ReportsCompany activityCompany Activity ReportOctober 2026Company Activity ReportOctober 2026Free with an account

Get the companies behind every chart

Connect your assistant

Connect Fokals to Claude or ChatGPT and ask for the companies in any finding. You pay only for the companies you get.