What Fashion and Beauty Professionals Want From Employers

In the five years since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, the fashion and beauty industries have navigated significant transformation amid ongoing geopolitical unrest, a turbulent economic climate and the mounting climate crisis.

Such change is ushering in a workplace reckoning, with employees across the world reassessing where their professional priorities lie. Needs have changed with the global introduction of remote and hybrid working, a demand for transparency and values-based company missions and goals.

To examine these shifts, BoF Careers conducted a survey of our global community from May to June 2025, to better understand what talent is looking for as well as which companies they would most like to work for — and why.

More than 1000 members from the global BoF community in 74 countries and territories, representing a variety of seniority levels and age groups, shared their needs and expectations in 2025.

The survey finds today’s workforce seeks fair compensation and career progression opportunities, greater transparency and ethical leadership, a strong company culture and flexibility over a prestigious name or social capital. The workforce is increasingly holding current and prospective employers accountable for meeting their professional needs — and loyalty is no longer guaranteed.

Some 45 percent of working professionals surveyed say they are actively looking for a new job outside of their current employer, and only 15 percent say they are satisfied with their current role. This mirrors broader workforce sentiments from the 2025 State of the Global Workplace report by workplace consulting and research firm Gallup, which found 50 percent of currently employed workers say they are watching for or actively seeking a new job.

Moreover, there are now up to five generations in the workplace, with Gen-Z — those born roughly between 1997 and 2012 — often most closely associated with ushering in new expectations and workplace demands. The report deep dives into each cohort’s needs today, providing key generational insights, while dispelling stereotypes around the cohorts shaping the workforce today.

We combine proprietary survey data with insights from global HR leaders at Prada Group, Adidas, Patagonia and L’Oréal Groupe, as well as expertise from strategists, writers and consultants specialising in leadership and HR.

This report is split into 3 sections:

Chapter 1: The Macro-Context

Explores the broader trends impacting the workplace and driving change in employee behaviour, needs and expectations.

Key Insights:

• Globally, job dissatisfaction is rife — 45 percent of working professionals surveyed say they are actively looking for a new job outside of their current employer.
• The new digital era is having a profound impact on global workplace operations and the psychology of today’s workforce.
• Constant changes in business priorities amid rapidly shifting macroeconomics and socio-politics leaves the wider workforce uncertain of strategic goals and is leading to employees feeling disengaged.

Chapter 2: Talent Expectations

Presents the qualitative and quantitative findings from our exclusive survey, offering a detailed view of current employee expectations.

Key Insights:

• Brand prestige captures the attention of prospective talent, but it is not enough to convert candidates further down the talent acquisition funnel — pay and company values are the most important criteria when assessing an employer today
• Those aged 20-29 — from the Gen-Z cohort — typically register more positive sentiments around pay compared to older professionals.
• The most important benefit, according to 65 percent of respondents, is “flexible working policies.” Some 52 percent prefer a hybrid working schedule, with 2 or 3 days in the office.
• Seventy percent of respondents say transparency is the most important component of an employer’s approach to career progression.

Chapter 3: Employer Strategies

Provides actionable advice for employers and HR teams on how to meet those expectations today to drive recruitment, improve retention and boost productivity.

Key Insights:

• Consistent company values provide clear reasons behind business decisions, setting a stronger guidance for the workforce.
• Segment employees by mindset, not generation, when appealing to a workplace that consists of five generations with nuanced, complex needs.
• Employees want their workplaces to engage in critical conversations and community causes. Workplaces should carefully consider what their company can meaningfully commit to, and engage with these topics in an authentic way.
• Mission statements and inclusive hiring language in job descriptions are not sufficient in convincing talent of a company’s commitment to its community. Individuals need to see it to believe it.

BoF Careers is our hiring and employer branding platform. We partner with fashion and beauty companies to help them hire and showcase their unique employer brand to our community of top fashion, luxury and beauty professionals.

Get in touch with Thesia Yomalita to find out how BoF Careers can support your business.