Recently news outlets reported that layoff announcements have reached pandemic levels, which is highly concerning, but certainly not unforeseen. At the beginning of 2025, the World Economic Forum reported that 41% of organizations were planning to trim their workforces in the face of rapidly advancing AI. In the second half of the year, six in 10 business leaders were planning headcount reductions. But while trimming headcount cost may have been the most publicized strategy for surviving macroeconomic volatility, it wasn’t the only one.
The Upwork Research Institute has identified a segment of companies that is maneuvering differently, poised to overtake enterprise organizations in innovation and resilience in 2026.
Our research found that small- to medium-sized businesses, or SMBs, employing between 10 and 499 people, largely avoided the large-scale layoffs that dominated headlines. Instead, they used AI to change the scale equation, applied experimentation, and invested in flexible talent to address the disruption surrounding them. And they’ve come out as stronger powerhouses of innovation as a result. In fact, nearly half of SMB leaders maintained high confidence throughout 2025’s economic shocks – underscoring that their approach wasn’t just different, it was more resilient.
