There was a time when deep expertise in a single discipline was enough to build a successful career. Today, that’s no longer the case.
What Employers Are Looking For
Across Design, Product, Engineering and Marketing, I’m seeing the same pattern emerge. Employers are placing increasing value on people who are curious, commercially minded and willing to step outside their traditional remit.
The candidates creating the most opportunities today are the ones who continue to adapt. They’re learning new tools, experimenting with AI, getting closer to data, understanding how products are built and taking ownership beyond their immediate role. It has less to do with the length of their CV and more to do with their willingness to keep learning.
Who’s Finding The Market Difficult?
Candidates who are reluctant to evolve, or who have become too far removed from the day-to-day of their craft, are finding the market challenging. The mid-to-senior candidates who’ve built careers on managing rather than doing are struggling more than they were a year ago.
Honestly, this isn’t a new observation. The pace of change has accelerated over the last twelve months, and the gap between adaptive and static candidates has widened.
How Do You Stay Adaptable?
The professionals who continue to invest in themselves, embrace change and stay close to emerging technology will help shape where the market is heading. In practice, that looks like:
- Learning new tools, especially AI ones, and having a view on where they add value and where they don’t
- Getting closer to the data and understanding how decisions are being measured
- Understanding how products are built, even if you’re not the one building them
- Staying curious rather than defending old ways of working
Adaptability isn’t about knowing everything. It’s about how quickly you can learn what you’ll need next.
FAQs
Why is adaptability more valuable than deep expertise?
Deep expertise still matters. On its own, it’s no longer enough. Employers are placing greater value on candidates who continue to learn, adapt to new tools and technologies, and step outside their traditional remit when the business needs them to.
What does adaptability look like in practice?
Learning new tools (especially AI ones), getting closer to how decisions are measured, understanding how products are built, and staying curious rather than defending old ways of working. A genuine willingness to evolve, more than deep specialist mastery.
Which candidates are finding the current market most difficult?
Mid-to-senior candidates who’ve become too far removed from the day-to-day of their craft, or who’re reluctant to evolve their skills, tend to find the current market most challenging.
Does this apply to all disciplines, or just design?
All of them. I’m seeing the same pattern across Design, Product, Engineering and Marketing. The specifics differ by discipline, but the underlying expectation of continuous adaptation is the same.
Liam Pietzka
CEO and Founder, Brightbox Consulting
Design | Creative | Research
Last updated: July 2026
Meet our top talent this month
Every month, I share a shortlist of candidates worth knowing about.
Not job ads, and not everyone on the market. Just a small group of people I’ve genuinely spent time with, who I’d back to make an impact on the right team.
Take a look at who’s on the showcase this month.
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2026 Salary Guide
The 2026 Brightbox Salary Guide covers salaries, market trends, what motivates people to move, and what keeps them from leaving across design, product, data, digital marketing, and engineering.
