We’re meant to be full of hopes and new-year aspirations. People are starting new jobs, and looking for fresh opportunities. It’s “new year, new you” season. I am probably meant to be post-Christmas pumped and powered up to kickstart the year.
But it’s cold; it’s dark; and it’s the prime time for recruitment busyness, a talent director recently told me. (Not that it ever really stops for HR, I’m beginning to understand, as ever-more stats roll into my inbox claiming to quantify the scale of burnout within the profession ahead of Blue Monday… but I digress…)
It’s clear to me that HR professionals must continue to support each other, as well as pressing on with the sterling work they do to support everyone else within their organisations, especially in these dreary winter days. It’s no small task, I know. But I also know that seemingly small actions can make a deep impact: sending a quick, short message to a colleague, asking if they’re okay, can serve to let them know that you care, as well as reinforcing a wellbeing-focused culture that can spur the kind of success we want to see this year, and beyond.
One of the many ways that HR and business leaders are showing that they care is by paying attention to people’s alcohol use, or lack thereof, and adapting organisational culture in response. Our senior reporter and marketer, Dominic Bernard, delves deeper into how employers are flexing their focus on alcohol in this edition’s health and wellbeing feature article.
Whatever your goal – whether it’s completing a qualification, cutting down on drinking, learning a new skill, or doing more of what you love – I hope you’ll find something in these pages to support and inspire your increasingly important work as you journey towards the next success. Be well.
Charissa King is editor of HR magazine
This article was published in the January/February 2025 edition of HR magazine.
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