CSP Engagement Report October '26 | The Final Stretch of 2026

Hello & Happy Fall!

I have often shared that the employment market has been anything but predictable in recent years. Since Reentry Tuesday, however, one thing has been clear: we have been busy.

There are likely several factors contributing to that activity. Some organizations are focused on completing key hires before the holidays.

Others are evaluating budgets as year-end approaches and clarifying where to invest in their teams. And as leaders look toward a new calendar year, most want to feel confident that they have the right colleagues in place to move their organizations forward.

Whatever the motivation, we have seen a renewed sense of purpose in our conversations around hiring. With the final stretch of 2026 underway, there is still meaningful work to do and opportunity to build momentum for the year ahead.

Always happy to connect, feel free to jump on my calendar at any time.

— JB

Quotes & The Stories Behind Them

"Every conversation is an opportunity."

- Steve Cornblatt

You know how, over the course of your professional travels, some clients become friends? Well, I get to pull this quote from one of them.

Steve Cornblatt is well known in the Baltimore commercial real estate community. I’ve been fortunate to partner with Steve, Art Putzel, Rene Daniel, Jerry Trout, and others over the years. As those relationships have grown, our conversations have often gone beyond the day-to-day work that first brought us together.

During one of those conversations a few years ago, Steve said, “You have to remember, every conversation is an opportunity.”

It has stayed with me because there are so many ways to apply it.

Every conversation can teach you something. Someone might share an experience you haven’t had, offer context you were missing, or challenge an opinion you felt pretty confident about. But you have to be willing to listen. If you enter every conversation focused only on what you want to say, you can miss what the other person has to offer.

I also think about Steve’s words when we talk about helping younger professionals build their networks and grow their books of business. In the years since COVID changed how we work and interact, creating opportunities for conversation takes more intention. You can accomplish a lot through email and scheduled video calls, but there is value in the conversation that happens before the meeting starts, after an event ends, or when you pick up the phone and spend a few minutes catching up.

Those moments help people get to know you. They also give you the chance to understand what matters to them.

For someone early in their career, that can take some pressure off the idea of “networking.” You don’t need to walk into every room with a perfect pitch. Introduce yourself. Ask a question. Be curious about the answer. You may learn something about an industry, discover a shared interest, or meet someone you’ll stay connected with for years.

And while I think about this in the context of younger professionals, it applies just as much to those of us who have been doing it for a while. Experience doesn’t mean we’ve met everyone we should know or heard everything we need to hear.

Some conversations lead to business. Some lead to a useful introduction or a different perspective. Some, as I’ve been fortunate to experience with Steve and others, lead to friendship.

You rarely know where a conversation will go when it begins. That’s a good reason to make the time, pay attention, and give it a chance.

The Work.

The activity we are seeing at CSP continues to unfold against a measured national employment market. The U.S. economy added 29,000 jobs in September, while unemployment edged up to 4.2%. July and August job gains were also revised downward by a combined 60,000, reinforcing how uneven the pace of hiring remains.

For employers, that backdrop makes clarity especially valuable. A larger pool of available professionals does not automatically make the right hire easier to find. Understanding what a role needs to accomplish, aligning decision-makers, and providing timely feedback remain essential to a productive search.

The conversation also extends beyond who we hire to how we work together. I recently attended a seminar exploring the implications of five generations working alongside one another: Traditionalists, Baby Boomers, Generation X, Millennials, and Generation Z. That breadth of experience creates opportunities for mentorship, fresh perspectives, and shared learning. It also asks leaders to be thoughtful about differences in communication, feedback, flexibility, and career expectations.

My takeaway: building a strong culture requires curiosity about the individuals on our teams. Generational context can help inform a conversation, but it should never replace one. Clear expectations, mutual respect, and a willingness to learn from one another give colleagues at every career stage a stronger foundation for success.

Chesapeake HR Solutions™ is also seeing an uptick in activity as organizations evaluate their needs for the year ahead. Whether adding fractional HR leadership for 2027, investing in leadership development and coaching to strengthen their teams, or providing outplacement support for employees affected by difficult organizational decisions, leaders are seeking thoughtful guidance. Led by Jason Nemoy, this part of our business is engaged in a growing number of conversations about how to support both organizations and their people through what comes next.

See all opportunities

Featured Searches

The following engagements represent trusted partnerships with clients who have asked us to align closely with their leadership teams on critical hires. These searches reflect strategic commitments where we are deeply embedded and fully accountable for delivering a successful experience for all parties.