Some companies don't want more workers — they want better ones

Getty Images; Alyssa Powell/BI

With hiring budgets constrained, some companies are finding a different way to bring in talent: replacing workers with better ones."There is just no appetite for mediocrity anymore," said Brent Orsuga, founder of the supply chain and logistics recruiting firm Pinnacle Growth Advisors. Over the past year, he's seen many of his clients quietly replace employees rather than grow headcount."Everyone was looking at what they have and being like, 'I want the best of the best,'" Orsuga said.Take the example of a company with 10 sales reps that is looking to boost performance, he said. They could expand the team. But it's often more affordable to identify the lowest-performing reps and replace them with better ones — even if the new employees cost a bit more.While upgrading isn't new, Orsuga said that 2025 was the biggest year he's seen for the trend in more than two decades in the recruiting world. He calls it "bullseye hiring.""It's like every seat matters, so I've got to hit a bullseye and get the right person in the right seat," he said.Hiring has slowed in the US recently, due to economic uncertainty, cost-cutting, and AI adoption. In February, the hiring rate fell to 3.1% — a modern low matched only by the pandemic and early recovery from the Great Recession. Three recruiters across tech, marketing, and logistics said that when companies do hire, it can come at the expense of an existing employee.