In a Confusing Labor Market, HR Teams Are Turning to Brokers

As economic uncertainty clouds hiring and workforce planning, HR teams are not reacting to a downturn, but rather preparing for one. In doing so, they’re increasingly leaning on brokers to help them navigate what comes next.

According to isolved’s 2026 Emerging Trends for Brokers report, 93% of brokers say clients now seek support beyond traditional benefits services. That statistic reflects a change in the broker-HR relationship as we know it. Employers no longer just need help managing renewals. They want brokers to year-round strategic partners who guide them towards wise decisions on workforce planning, tech adoption, compliance and long-term resilience.

The challenges keeping HR leaders up at night in 2026 are extensive. However, isolved data reveals that three issues top the list: economic uncertainty, technology adoption and data security. Individually, these factors require careful planning. When all three are hitting at once, they create a level of complexity even the most tenured HR teams haven’t seen before.

AI compounds HR’s historic challenges

AI amplifies the pressure on HR today. There is no established guidebook on how to weather a massive global disruption, but when one happens, everyone always looks at HR for an answer. We’ve seen this with the pandemic, geopolitical events, and now with a technology that changes everything. In all these cases, employees are looking at HR and asking, “What do we do?” And even though it’s the first time HR is facing the disruption too, they are still expected to have an answer.

All of this is happening against the backdrop of a labor market where top talent is hard to reel in, on top of organizations having tight hiring budgets anyway. AI is often positioned as the panacea for labor woes, so HR leaders are drafting new usage and governance policies and testing and learning the tech at the same time to see if it really can fill gaps. In response, brokers are becoming AI heroes as they explore how they can use the technology to supercharge their advisory work and help clients year-round. In fact, isolved’s report also found that, in terms of where brokers are leaning on AI most, 53% are using AI to automate compliance monitoring, 50% use it for financial wellness planning and personalization, and 48% use it in recruiting or AI-powered analytics to customize benefits. So, while AI is adding new challenges for HR, it’s also bringing in new opportunities for broker support.

Volatility reshapes the HR playbook

Many say we’re in a “no-hire, no-fire” market, considering 2025 as the weakest year for hiring since 2020, while firing rates are also low. These conflicting factors compound to make workforce planning for the present and near future extremely challenging. For example, an HR team may freeze hiring in Q1, just to experience a talent shortage in Q2. Planning in this kind of environment is essentially impossible, but HR leaders are still expected to chart a path forward. Reacting too quickly to downturn signals can create instability. Waiting too long can create risks. The balance is delicate.

HR leaders must weigh budget constraints against the need to invest in technology and employee experience. Preparing for multiple scenarios requires disciplined planning, clear analysis, and, often, a willingness to rethink long-standing processes.

Complicating matters further, the playbook itself keeps changing. HR leaders are often building new strategies while conditions shift, like trying to build a plane while it’s in the air. That uncertainty makes third-party outsider perspectives even more valuable, as brokers, who can translate broader market patterns into practical guidance, are better equipped to help organizations make measured decisions instead of reactive ones.

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The broker mandate expands

There are many factors causing brokers to become trusted, year-round partners for HR. Compliance is a clear example. In the absence of comprehensive federal AI standards, data privacy and AI-use regulations vary state by state. With that said, HR leaders are stuck in a constant balancing act where they’re navigating a patchwork of evolving requirements, while simultaneously evaluating new technologies. isolved found that managing risk and maintaining compliance is brokers’ top business challenge this year, underscoring HR’s reliance on them.

While AI tools promise greater efficiency and insight, they also introduce more risks. Questions about data governance, bias mitigation and cybersecurity can’t be addressed in isolation. This complexity is pulling brokers into conversations around HCM platform selection, automation strategy, and cybersecurity safeguards, extending their role beyond cost management and into risk navigation and strategic clarity.

With that expanded scope comes greater responsibility, as expectations and stakes grow higher. Now, brokers must have a deep understanding of benefits structures, workforce dynamics, regulatory exposure, and technology ecosystems.

Embedded advisory replaces transactional support

This shift isn’t temporary; rather, it reflects how modern organizations operate.

There is no universal solution that applies across industries or workforce models, as each organization faces a unique combination of regulatory pressure, talent challenges, and technology maturity. Employers need advisors who understand their workforce, culture, and risk tolerance, not just generic solutions.

When brokers are fluent in clients’ unique challenges and opportunities, they’re in a better spot to turn cross-industry data into actionable insight, identify emerging risks before they escalate, and connect workforce trends to broader business planning. That level of partnership cannot be achieved through seasonal check-in.

In periods of volatility, continuity becomes a strategic advantage. Long-term advisory relationships foster stability, enabling organizations to remain focused and disciplined, even as external conditions fluctuate. All of this lends itself to the new reality where the modern broker acts as a strategic extension of the HR teams, with a high-level of technical fluency and deep organizational knowledge.

In uncertain labor markets, employers aren’t searching for additional products. They’re looking for partners who can help them think clearly, plan structurally and act confidently.

About isolved

isolved is a leading provider of human capital management (HCM) solutions that combines modern technology with expert services and support

[To share your insights with us, please write to psen@itechseries.com ]

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