Trend #1: A real recovery, but highly contrasted across sectors
Temporary employment reached 681,540 full-time equivalents in May 2026, up 0.5% year-on-year, marking a turning point after more than three years of decline, according to Prism'emploi. However, this recovery masks opposing trajectories: services are up 6.2% and industry is up 1.4%, while construction is down 5.8%, retail is down 3.2%, and transport-logistics is down 1.4%.
For a multi-site agency, this means that in the same week, one branch may be overwhelmed with candidates to interview in the service sector, while another struggles with client meetings in the declining construction sector. A uniform approach to scheduling, lacking the capacity for local adaptation, becomes a liability.
What this concretely implies for a network:
- The ability to quickly absorb spikes in candidate interviews in growing sectors (services, industry);
- Differentiated prioritization of client meetings based on the sectoral and regional dynamics of each agency;
- Management capable of reallocating reception resources from one agency to another based on these disparities.
Trend #2: Digitalization is advancing, but not yet fully convincing
Nearly 70% of companies state that the adoption of digital solutions has accelerated their recruitment performance over the last two years, according to the 2025 Cegid Barometer cited by Cegid. However, only 1 in 3 HR managers says they are fully satisfied with the candidate experience and the return on investment of the tools deployed, according to the same source.
This gap reveals a simple reality: digitalization is not enough if it does not translate into a concrete, well-prepared interview at the right time with the right consultant. A high-performance ATS cannot compensate for a poorly organized interview or a poorly qualified client meeting.
What this concretely implies for an agency:
- Online appointment scheduling that extends the digital experience seamlessly through to the in-person or video interview;
- Automated candidate interview scheduling that frees up consultant time for human interaction;
- Client meetings prepared in advance using information already collected during the booking process.
Trend #3: Persistent recruitment challenges in specific sectors
68% of companies in the construction sector report recruitment difficulties, compared to 40% in manufacturing and 36% in services—a historically low level for the latter, according to the DARES report cited by Cegid. In this climate, every qualified candidate interview is doubly important: a sought-after profile who waits too long for a slot, or who encounters an unprepared consultant, will head straight to a competitor.
What this means for an agency in practical terms:
- Offering candidate interviews quickly after application for high-demand roles;
- Automatic assignment of the right consultant based on the sector and specialty required;
- Tracking the time elapsed between application and the first interview, agency by agency.
What it looks like in practice
A European leader in specialty retail, operating over 1,700 points of sale across a hybrid network of company-owned and franchised stores, has digitized its expert appointments: automatic assignment by skill and location, automated reminders, and consolidated management across more than 100 sites. The result: over 50,000 appointments booked annually, fully automated, allowing teams to spend less time on the phone and more time with their contacts.
This isn't a temp agency; it’s a major player in the nature, pet supply, and wellness retail sector—but the principle is directly transferable: high-value appointments (candidate interviews, client meetings) in a multi-site network, where skill-based assignment and reminders make the difference between a confirmed appointment and a candidate or client going elsewhere.
In summary
Frequently asked questions
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