Quick question. When you hear HR, do you picture policies nobody reads, a spreadsheet that ruins your afternoon? And a meeting invite that says quick catch-up? But your stomach drops anyway. If you just nodded, don't worry, Hazel did too. She's not just the office dog, she's our head of well-being. She's basically a furry HR barometer, a morale monitor, and the only one in the business who can interrupt a meeting without anyone asking her to pop it in the chat. If the vibe is off, she knows before anyone's even opened their laptop, and her feedback is mostly delivered via intense staring. Because if HR has felt like paperwork, process, and panic, you're not imagining it. Loads of businesses only pay attention to HR when something's already gone wrong. But HR done properly isn't admin. It's not the forms department, it's the difference between a team that's quietly checking out and a team that actually cares. It's the difference between small issues being handled early and those same issues turning into expensive drama later. And yes, sometimes it's the difference between a calm conversation and a tribunal-shaped headache. So if you want HR that works in real life, not just on paper, you're in the right place. Hello and welcome to Buzzing About HR. I'm Kate Underwood, and this is the podcast for people who want HR to be simple, sensible and genuinely useful. Kettle On. Cake Optional. Let's get buzzing. This podcast is for small business owners who didn't start a business to spend their lives managing drama. It's for managers who were promoted because they're brilliant at the job and then handed a team and told, good luck. It's for HR people who want to modernise, simplify, and stop being treated like the office police. And it's for anyone who's ever thought, I just want to do the right thing. But I don't actually know what the right thing is. On Buzzing About HR, we talk about the stuff that really comes up at work: performance problems, and how to deal with them without avoiding it for six months. Sickness and absence, and how to be human and consistent. Conflict, awkward conversations, and the reality of they don't get on. Hiring without accidentally recruiting the same problem in a different outfit. Keeping good people, building a decent culture, and why Pizza Friday is not a strategy. And we'll cover what's changing in HR and employment law without the jargon or the doom. This isn't theory, it's practical. It's the sort of advice you can actually use on a Tuesday between payroll and someone asking if they can just have a word. So why me? I started out in HR in 1996, which was absolutely only a few years ago in my head. You can do the maths. I've worked across everything from the NHS to carnival cruises, and I've supported businesses of all shapes and sizes, big organizations with layers of process, and small businesses where the HR department is basically one stressed person, a laptop, and a strong cup of coffee. And here's the honest truth. For a lot of my clients, I'm not just HR, I'm the sounding board, the reality check, the person they ring when they've got no one else to bounce things off, and they're spiralling at 10 pm. Because someone's resigned, someone's upset, and they're thinking, have I completely messed this up? I'm basically their unofficial therapist because being the owner can be weirdly lonely. You can't always offload to your team, you don't want to worry the people at home, and sometimes you just need someone neutral to help you sort the facts from the feelings and make a sensible decision. And I'm also very operational and commercial. I'm not your usual HR type, and I get called that a lot, usually as a compliment. I care about people, obviously, but I also care about the business actually working. What's realistic, what you can afford, what's fair, what reduces risk, what keeps things moving. Because in smaller businesses, you don't need HR that looks impressive in a folder. You need HR that works when real life happens. When someone's off sick again, two people aren't speaking, your best performer has suddenly gone a bit quiet, and you've just had an email that starts with, I want to raise a grievance. Most workplace mess doesn't start big, it starts small. A bit of frustration, a tone in an email, a missed deadline, a manager avoiding a conversation because it feels awkward, someone doing just enough because they've checked out but they're still turning up. And because everyone's busy and British and allergic to awkwardness, it gets parked. And then it escalates. Suddenly you're dealing with resignations you didn't see coming. Long-term sickness, gossip that's turned into factions, or a performance issue that's been left so long it's now ten times harder to fix. And the worst bit is it's not just stressful, it's expensive. In time, in momentum, in morale, and sometimes in actual money. What I bring is a mix of proper HR experience, plain English advice, and the let's deal with this before it becomes a nightmare mindset. I'm not here for drama, I'm here for clarity. I'll tell you what matters and what doesn't, what needs documenting, what you can say in the moment, and how to handle things in a way that's fair, consistent, and doesn't leave you lying awake at 3 a.m. thinking, did I just make that 10 times worse? And I'm big on building workplaces that people actually want to be part of. Not perfect, not Pinterest, just healthy, well run, and clear. Because when people management is solid, everything gets easier. Performance improves, issues get dealt with earlier, and you stop feeling like you're constantly reacting. That's what this podcast is about. Helping you get ahead of the people stuff. With practical steps that fit real businesses and real humans. I'm also a big fan of HR Tech when it's done properly, not shiny systems for the sake of it. I mean tools that save time, reduce mistakes, and take the stress out of the basics. Onboarding that doesn't feel like a scavenger hunt. Performance check-ins that happen regularly, not once a year in a panic. Clear records so you're not relying on memory when things go wrong. Processes that run smoothly without you chasing everything. Because if your HR lives in 10 documents, three inboxes, and someone's head, it's not a system. It's a risk. Basically, it's like having an HR assistant who doesn't need a lunch break and doesn't mysteriously lose the holiday spreadsheet. And sometimes I'll bring in guests too. Different perspectives, different experiences, and practical insights you can actually use. So here's the promise. If you listen to this podcast, you'll get clear, plain English guidance, practical frameworks you can use straight away, realistic advice that works for smaller businesses, and support to handle the messy people stuff with confidence. No fluff, no corporate nonsense, no circle back energy. Before you go, here's your quick challenge. Think about your workplace right now. What's the one people issue you keep pushing down the list? Where are you relying on common sense instead of clarity? If someone resigned tomorrow, would you be shocked? Or would it make an uncomfortable amount of sense? No judgment. It happens, but if you want to get ahead of it, you're in exactly the right place. Make sure you subscribe so you don't miss an episode. And if you've got a burning question, a topic you want covered, or an HR horror story, drop me a message at buzz at kateunderwoodhr.co.uk. Thanks for listening to Buzzing About HR, KettleOn, Standards Up.