What HR REALLY wants for Christmas this year…

What HR really wants for Christmas this year in summary:

HR has had a full-on year. From hybrid working debates and rising compliance demands to AI anxiety and stretched teams, this festive blog explores what HR professionals really want for Christmas – with humour, honesty and zero novelty mugs.

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December has arrived, and the festive season is now truly upon us.

The office is pretending to wind down, calendars are suspiciously “blocked for planning time”, and HR is once again acting as therapist, referee, policy translator and unofficial Christmas party risk assessor. Because while everyone else is counting down to mince pies and annual leave, HR is closing out a year that’s been… well, a lot.

Over the past 12 months, HR teams have been juggling hybrid working debates that refuse to die, growing pressure to prove their value with data, an ever-expanding list of compliance expectations, and a workforce that quite rightly wants flexibility, fairness and meaning – ideally all at once. Add in managers who still need “just one more chat” about performance conversations, and systems that don’t always make life easier, and it’s fair to say HR has earned its festive break.

The role of HR – and indeed payroll – has never been more visible, more strategic, or more stretched. From navigating pay transparency conversations and AI anxiety, to keeping engagement alive in teams that rarely sit in the same room, HR has spent the year quietly holding things together while everyone else argued about where they should be working.

So, as the fairy lights go up and the out-of-office replies start multiplying, it feels like a good moment to ask: what does HR actually want for Christmas this year?

And, spoiler alert: it’s not another novelty mug, a last-minute policy exception, or a “quick question” asked at 4:58pm on the final working day of the year…

Fewer “quick questions” (that definitely aren’t quick)

HR would love a Christmas miracle where “just a quick one” really is quick. Or better yet, where people check the policy before asking. Bonus points if managers stop saying: “I promised them this already, can you just make it work?”

No. No, we cannot.

Systems that actually talk to each other

This year, HR’s festive wish is simple: technology that works without horrendous work-arounds or bodges. That means:

• No more spreadsheets pretending to be systems
• No more re-entering the same data five times
• No more panicked payroll-adjacent moments in December

Just one, reliable HR system that doesn’t require a PhD, three browser tabs and a whispered prayer.

Honestly? Santa could stop there.

Managers who manage

HR would very much like a stocking full of managers who:

• Have performance conversations before there’s a crisis
• Understand absence policy
• Don’t wait until Christmas Eve to flag a “small issue”

Training helps. Accountability helps more. Mulled wine does not – unfortunately – count as development.

A bit less firefighting, a bit more strategic thinking

HR didn’t join the profession to spend their days chasing missing forms and calming last-minute panic. What they really want is time to focus on people strategy, not constant admin triage.

Because HR works best when it’s:

• Planning, not reacting
• Supporting growth, not patching holes
• Helping the business look forward, not constantly back

Festive wish: fewer emergencies. Or at least emergencies that aren’t entirely avoidable.

Employee engagement that goes beyond pizza

Yes, people like pizza. But no: it is not a culture strategy. HR would love engagement initiatives that:

• Actually reflect how people work now
• Include remote and hybrid employees properly
• Don’t rely solely on “fun” while ignoring workload, clarity and trust

Turns out people want to feel listened to all year, not just bribed in December.

Useful data (not just more data)

Another thing on HR’s list? Insight, not information overload. Dashboards are great. Metrics are lovely. But what HR really wants is:

• Data that tells a story
• Insights that support better decisions
• Evidence that HR is driving real business value

Less “here are 47 charts”, more “here’s what we should actually do next”.

A budget that acknowledges reality

HR doesn’t expect miracles. But a budget that:

• Matches the expectations placed on them
• Covers essentials without heroic negotiation
• Doesn’t vanish every time things get tight

…would be warmly very welcomed indeed. Preferably wrapped and labelled “approved”.

Final wish: a calm December (we know, we’re dreaming)

More than anything, HR would love a festive season with:

• Fewer last-minute crises
• Reasonable expectations
• A bit of genuine appreciation

And maybe – just maybe – a Christmas break that actually feels like a break.

From everyone here at Cezanne, we’d like to wish all our customers, followers, and amazing HR & payroll professionals a relaxing and happy Christmas.