Workforce Intelligence · Market Pressure Index · Q2 2026

PM Scarcity Rankings.

The hardest U.S. markets to hire construction Project Managers — ranked by a composite index of workforce availability, compensation velocity, project demand, and counteroffer activity. 0 = no constraint, 100 = functionally unavailable.

Q2 2026 · Updated monthly 50 markets analyzed Composite of availability, compensation pressure, project demand & counteroffer activity AlphaHire Workforce Exposure Index™
Scarcity bands
Critical 81–100
Severe 61–80
Elevated 41–60
Stable 0–40
Construction PM Scarcity Index · Full Ranking

Hardest markets to hire a construction PM.

01
Ashburn
Data Center
93/100 Critical ↑3 pts QoQ
02
Northern Virginia
Data Center
91/100 Critical ↑4 pts QoQ
03
Phoenix
Semiconductor
90/100 Critical ↑6 pts QoQ
04
Columbus
Data Center
89/100 Critical ↑7 pts QoQ
05
Dallas
Data Center
88/100 Critical ↑4 pts QoQ
06
Austin
Semiconductor
86/100 Critical ↑5 pts QoQ
07
San Jose
Mission Critical
84/100 Critical ↑3 pts QoQ
08
Bay Area
Mission Critical
84/100 Critical ↑5 pts QoQ
09
Los Angeles
Healthcare
82/100 Critical ↑2 pts QoQ
10
Houston
Industrial
81/100 Critical ↑3 pts QoQ
11
Atlanta
Commercial
80/100 Severe ↑4 pts QoQ
12
Boston
Healthcare
80/100 Severe ↑2 pts QoQ
13
Seattle
Healthcare
79/100 Severe ↑3 pts QoQ
14
Nashville
Healthcare
78/100 Severe ↑4 pts QoQ
15
San Diego
Healthcare
78/100 Severe ↑2 pts QoQ
16
Orange County
Healthcare
78/100 Severe ↑4 pts QoQ
17
Reno
Data Center
77/100 Severe ↑5 pts QoQ
18
Washington DC
Institutional
77/100 Severe ↑2 pts QoQ
19
Raleigh
Healthcare
76/100 Severe ↑3 pts QoQ
20
Chicago
Heavy Civil
75/100 Severe ↑2 pts QoQ
21
Denver
Renewable
75/100 Severe ↑3 pts QoQ
22
Salt Lake City
Data Center
74/100 Severe ↑4 pts QoQ
23
Charlotte
Commercial
74/100 Severe ↑3 pts QoQ
24
Orlando
Heavy Civil
73/100 Severe ↑3 pts QoQ
25
Las Vegas
Commercial
73/100 Severe ↑3 pts QoQ
26
Portland
Semiconductor
72/100 Severe ↑4 pts QoQ
27
Philadelphia
Healthcare
72/100 Severe ↑2 pts QoQ
28
Omaha
Data Center
72/100 Severe ↑4 pts QoQ
29
Tampa
Commercial
71/100 Severe ↑3 pts QoQ
30
Miami
Commercial
70/100 Severe ↑2 pts QoQ
31
San Antonio
Healthcare
70/100 Severe ↑4 pts QoQ
32
Baltimore
Institutional
70/100 Severe ↑4 pts QoQ
33
Minneapolis
Healthcare
69/100 Severe ↑2 pts QoQ
34
Sacramento
Institutional
69/100 Severe ↑3 pts QoQ
35
Greenville
Industrial
69/100 Severe ↑4 pts QoQ
36
Indianapolis
Industrial
68/100 Severe ↑3 pts QoQ
37
Inland Empire
Logistics
68/100 Severe ↑3 pts QoQ
38
Tucson
Industrial
68/100 Severe ↑4 pts QoQ
39
Kansas City
Data Center
67/100 Severe ↑2 pts QoQ
40
Detroit
Industrial
67/100 Severe ↑3 pts QoQ
41
St. Louis
Healthcare
67/100 Severe ↑3 pts QoQ
42
Jacksonville
Logistics
66/100 Severe ↑3 pts QoQ
43
Cincinnati
Healthcare
66/100 Severe ↑3 pts QoQ
44
Richmond
Institutional
66/100 Severe ↑3 pts QoQ
45
New Orleans
Heavy Civil
65/100 Severe ↑3 pts QoQ
46
Milwaukee
Industrial
64/100 Severe ↑2 pts QoQ
47
Pittsburgh
Healthcare
62/100 Severe ↑2 pts QoQ
48
Birmingham
Healthcare
62/100 Severe ↑3 pts QoQ
49
Oklahoma City
Energy
60/100 Elevated ↑2 pts QoQ
50
Des Moines
Commercial
58/100 Elevated ↑2 pts QoQ

Scarcity scores are directional composites from AlphaHire's Workforce Exposure Index™ — workforce availability, compensation velocity, project demand, and counteroffer activity. Q2 2026.

Fastest-Rising Pressure · QoQ Movement

Markets tightening fastest.

Largest quarter-over-quarter PM scarcity increases — markets where hiring conditions are deteriorating fastest and where pre-positioning has the highest operational urgency.

QoQ movement measures quarter-over-quarter change in composite scarcity score — not absolute hiring activity. Markets with high delta and high score warrant immediate workforce pre-positioning.

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