Robert Walters hikes cost-cutting target after slumping to annual loss

Recruiter Robert Walters has revealed plans to ramp up cost-cutting further after swinging to an annual loss and cautioning the jobs market will remain difficult in 2026.

The firm tumbled to a £19.6 million loss in 2025 against profits of £500,000 in 2024 as net fees slumped 15% to £274.2 million.

It cut its global workforce by around 15% as part of a cost savings drive to offset tougher trading, with the UK hit hardest as it slashed fee earning roles by a quarter.

Robert Walters said it would continue to make further “meaningful” cost cuts this year as it hiked its savings target to at least £12 million a year by 2027, up from £10 million previously.

The group said: “The overall backdrop for hiring markets globally remains volatile.

“As such, the cautious client and candidate sentiment observed in 2025 is expected to remain a factor in 2026.

“The board’s planning assumption therefore remains for 2026 group net fees to be slightly below 2025.”

The market is pencilling in for Robert Walters to post net fees falling 3% to £265.4 million in 2026.

The firm has moved to slash costs in the face of a declining jobs market, with firms reluctant to commit to permanent hires and candidates also cautious to take on new positions amid wider economic uncertainty and the roll out of artificial intelligence (AI).

Toby Fowlston, chief executive of Robert Walters, said 2025 was “a third challenging year for global hiring markets, with client and candidate sentiment still cautious given the considerable macro and geopolitical volatility of the first half of the 2020s”.

He added: “The resultant decline in group net fees, over half of which was offset through cost actions, resulted in a loss for the year.

The financial result, which includes restructuring costs, is unsatisfactory to everyone at Robert Walters – but 2025 was not defined by it.

“In the face of the challenging conditions, we continued to implement self-help measures, focused on ensuring a robust balance sheet and moved to further position the business to address the significant long-term market opportunity.”

He said AI is also re-shaping the world of work.

Mr Fowlston said: “Though the advent and adoption of AI brings the prospect of further accelerating the speed of change in how work is done, and in how hiring is done, we continue to believe this will present opportunities for our business – not least with the World Economic Forum forecasting net job creation of 78 million roles by 2030 due to AI.”

In the UK, which accounts for 17% of group net fee income, saw operating losses widen to £7.5 million last year from £1.4 million losses in 2024 as net fee income fell 6%.