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HR's growing strategic impact is increasing employers' demand for senior professionals, new data on salaries and hiring trends suggests.

In particular, HR business partners who can lead workforce planning and change are in high demand, along with specialists capable of helping employers navigate evolving regulatory requirements, according to Robert Half's 2026 HR salary guide.

"Over the past year, HR salaries have generally held steady, with the strongest upward pressure concentrated in senior, specialist and hard-to-fill roles rather than broad-based lifts across the function," says Robert Half Sydney HR director Emma Sestic.

"What we're seeing in market is employers being more selective and disciplined on remuneration, but increasingly prepared to pay a premium where the role is business-critical or the skill set is genuinely scarce," she tells HR Daily...