Buzzing About HR
🎙️ Buzzing About HR
Straight-talking HR for real businesses (the kind where you are doing payroll, sales, and playing therapist before lunch).
From Kate Underwood HR & Training, this podcast makes the people stuff make sense, without the corporate jargon and “synergy” nonsense.
Hosted by award-winning HR expert Kate Underwood, each episode is designed for real life. You know, the moments nobody prepares you for:
- The employee who is brilliant at the job but chaos in the team
- The manager who avoids tough conversations until it turns into a bin fire
- The “it’s only a small issue” grievance that suddenly becomes a formal complaint
- The sickness pattern that is suspiciously linked to Mondays and payday
- The resignation that makes you think, “Wait… what did we miss?”
This is practical HR for small businesses and busy leaders. We talk performance, absence, hiring, retention, culture, motivation, and how to stay on the right side of UK employment law without turning your business into a paperwork museum. Expect straight answers, real examples, and steps you can actually use the same day, not theory that only works in perfect-world HR departments with unlimited budgets.
It’s also a permission slip to lead like a human. Clear standards, fair boundaries, decent communication, and less drama. The goal is a calmer workplace, fewer sleepless nights, and a team that actually wants to stick around.
And yes, Hazel the office dog pops up too, because nothing says “people management” like a judgemental stare from a Wellbeing Officer who has never written a policy in her life.
☕ Start here: Take the FREE HR Health Check and see where your risks (and quick wins) are hiding.
Buzzing About HR
Latest Episodes
Day One Rights Turn Week One Into Your Highest Risk Window
In this episode of Buzzing About HR, I am talking about day one rights and why they change the rhythm of employment for small businesses.Because day one is no longer just about laptops, logins, uniforms, and trying to remember whe...
The Friday Flu: Sickness Patterns That Catch Small Businesses Out
In this episode of Buzzing About HR, we are talking about sickness absence. Not the tidy policy version where everyone follows the rules and no one texts at 6:58am saying they are not coming in. The real small business version. The one w...
Don’t Paste That: The AI Mistake That Could Leak Your Client List
In this episode of Buzzing About HR, I am talking about one of the quietest risks sitting inside small businesses right now. Not hackers. Not competitors. Not some dramatic cyber attack.Someone on a deadline, with good intentions,...
Stop Playing HR Cluedo: How to Run an Investigation Properly
If someone says “Can I have a quick word?” and your stomach drops, last week was about grievances. This week is what comes next.Investigations.And this is where most small businesses wobble a bit.Not because you’re doing an...
“Can I Have a Word?” What to Do When Someone Raises a Concern
If someone in your business says, “Can I speak to you privately?”, most leaders feel a small jolt of panic. Are they resigning, raising a grievance, or about to report something serious?In this episode of Buzzing About HR, Kate br...
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