Our latest research profiles the fastest-growing companies by headcount. Detailing every senior decision-makers from CMOs to Chief People Officers, and CEOs to CFOS.

To make the list, a company must be:

• 50 to 1,000 employees with 100% or more headcount growth, or
• 1,000+ employees with 25% or more growth

Here's some standouts and why they are still hiring.

Structural growth, not hype

Workdry
Scaling engineering and digital teams off the back of the PR24 water investment cycle and a major refinancing.
2026 outlook: Long term, regulated demand for infrastructure upgrades.

Navantia UK
Hiring skilled labour and apprentices to deliver the Fleet Solid Support ship programme after a 115 million pound shipyard investment.
2026 outlook: Strong defence pipeline, focused on ramping up new automated shipbuilding tech.

Hitachi Vantara
Staffing one of the largest corporate AI programmes after Hitachi committed 300 billion yen to generative AI.
2026 outlook: Big growth in digital projects, constrained by global AI talent shortages.

Kraken Technologies
Spun out of Octopus Energy and hiring engineers, data teams and international sales to grow its utility operating system.
2026 outlook: Preparing for a potential 15 billion dollar IPO, with revenue and scale under close investor scrutiny.

OnlyFans
Building out compliance, creator support and infrastructure teams as the platform matures and explores strategic options.
2026 outlook: Continued user and revenue growth with ongoing regulatory risk.

Influencer
Growing platform and client services teams as social commerce spend accelerates.
2026 outlook: Well placed for an acquisition or to consolidate others in a busy creator tech market.

Snap Inc.
Investing in AI, AR and monetisation teams to support user growth and new product launches.
2026 outlook: Strong product roadmap, heavy competitive pressure in short form video and social.

The M&A Scale Ups

We've included companies growing by either merger or acquisition - these companies are hiring fast, restructuring teams and make major buying decisions during integration phases. Some of them include:

Evri
Merged with DHL eCommerce UK and is now hiring heavily in warehousing, logistics and leadership to support more than 1 billion parcels per year.
2026 outlook: Big upside if integration and service quality hold through peak periods.

Turner and Townsend
Integrated CBRE’s project management business and doubled UK headcount, especially in project and programme management.
2026 outlook: Huge global opportunity, but talent scarcity in infrastructure remains a key constraint.

Baker Tilly International
A 7 billion dollar merger with Moss Adams is driving demand for advisory, tax and technology consulting talent.
2026 outlook: Network scale and an IPO funded UK member firm support further deals, but culture and integration work is critical.

Why this list matters

Headcount growth is a clear signal of intent. These companies are hiring to deliver on multi year infrastructure mandates, mega mergers, AI buildouts, IPOs and potential sales. They are not just optimistic, they are committed.

Honch’s new list profiles 200 of these UK companies and the senior decision makers behind them, so your sales and marketing teams know exactly where to focus next.

Access every company and every decision maker

Want to target companies that are actually growing? Honch gives you every company on this list plus the senior decision makers behind the hiring, funding and expansion. From newly funded firms to teams bringing in new leaders or ramping up headcount, Honch keeps your pipeline focused on the fastest growing and highest spending organisations in the UK. Try Honch today to access the full list.