Buzzing About HR
🎙️ Buzzing About HR
Straight-talking HR for real businesses.
By Kate Underwood HR & Training, this podcast makes people management make sense.
Hosted by award-winning HR expert Kate Underwood, each episode cuts through the jargon to share practical tips, real business stories, and smart ways to handle the people stuff that keeps you up at night.
From tricky conversations to team motivation and staying on the right side of employment law, Kate gives you what you actually need — no fluff, just advice you can use today.
If you run a small business, lead a team, or simply want to make your workplace a little less stressful and a lot more human, this is your weekly caffeine hit of HR wisdom — powered by cake, coffee, and the wisdom of Hazel, our resident Wellbeing Officer.
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Buzzing About HR
From Cake Crumbs To Fair Perks: How To Spend HR Budget Where It Works
A birthday cake, a messy keyboard, and a very pleased office dog set up a sharper question: are your perks pulling their weight or just glossing over deeper problems? We dig into a clear, UK‑focused approach to benefits that actually help people work and live better, starting with the truth that pay must be right before perks can shine.
We share a simple framework that keeps teams included and spending tight. You’ll hear why small health wins like flu jabs, eye tests and a real person on the end of a phone beat glossy portals. We talk through time as a benefit, from flexible working where possible to occasional paid life admin, and we focus on modest money support such as late‑shift meals, safe travel home and useful discounts. Along the way we unpack compliance basics most leaders overlook: tax transparency, national minimum wage guardrails, and the risks of changing contractual perks without consent.
The heart of the episode is a practical playbook. Start with one short survey asking which three perks people would use. Choose impact over novelty, then pilot one or two perks for three months with one‑click usage and one‑line claims. If a group can’t use a benefit, add an equivalent to keep it fair. Track cost per person per month, measure usage and usefulness, and check sick days and leavers before and after. We also tackle common traps—the empty gym discount, the noisy ping‑pong table, and the surprise tax on pay slips—and offer cleaner swaps like a small monthly wellbeing pot, better coffee and quiet chairs.
By the end, you’ll have a one‑page policy you can actually run: what the perk is, who gets it, how to use it, when it ends and when you’ll review it. Start small—£10 to £15 per person per month can work—and apply the same rules to full‑time and part‑time staff to avoid favourites. Fix the basics first—pay, workload and kit—then fund one or two benefits that earn their keep. If this helped, follow the show, share it with a manager who buys shiny toys, and leave a quick review to tell us your best and worst perk.
Thank you for tuning in to Buzzing About HR with Kate Underwood!
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Have questions or need HR advice? Reach out to Kate Underwood HR & Training at www.kateunderwoodhr.co.uk, email us on buzz@kateunderwoodhr.co.uk or follow us on social media for more tips, resources, and updates.
Until next time, keep buzzing and take care of your people!
Picture this. It's Tuesday, 14th of October. There's a birthday cake on my desk. Under the desk, Hazel, our German short haired pointer and wellbeing officer, is quietly helping herself. I'm looking at the crumbs thinking, is this a benefit? Or just a sticky keyboard? Here's the real question. Are perks a waste of money compared with pay? Or can the right ones be worth it? Welcome. Hello, I'm Kate. This is Buzzing About HR. Today, perks or pointless. What to offer, what to drop, and how to keep it fair and simple. UK only. Plain English. No faff. Kettle on. Let's crack on. Why this matters? It's around International Week of Happiness at Work. Good time to ask what actually helps people at work. Some perks hit the spot. Some sit on a shelf. If pay is clearly too low, fix pay first. Perks won't hide that. What works versus what doesn't. When perks work, you get fewer sick days, happier teams, easier hiring and less turnover. When perks don't work, you get money wasted. Perks instead of pay grumbles. People who can't use them feeling left out. Simple rules to stay safe. Keep it fair. Don't design perks that exclude night shifts, part-timers, or remote staff. Keep it simple. If it's hard to claim, it isn't a perk. Tax exists. Some perks are taxed. Say so up front and run it properly. Pay law exists. Any give up pay for a perk deal must not take someone below the national minimum wage. If a perk sits in contracts, get agreement before changing it. If a perk uses health info, collect as little as possible and keep it private. The rule of three good bets. Health. FluJab vouchers, eye tests, a simple advice line to talk to someone. Time. Flexible working where you can. Paid time for key life admin now and then. Money, small, fair help with meals on late shifts, safe travel home, useful discounts. How to pick perks without waste? Ask first. One short survey. Which three perks would you use? Choose impact, not novelty. Health, time and money beat shiny toys. Pilot. Try one or two perks for three months. Clear start and end, make it easy. One line to claim. One click to use. Keep it fair. If one group can't use it, add an equivalent. Know the cost. Work out cost per person per month. Check tax and pay rules before launch. Avoid pay slip surprises. Explain the why. You ask for X. We're testing it. Use it or we'll swap it. Measure simply. How many used it? Was it useful? Decide. Keep it, fix it or drop it, and tell people write it down. One page what it is, who gets it, how to use it, when it ends. Review once a year, keep two or three winners, bin the rest. What to drop usually? Toys that are fun for a week, then gather dust. Perks with forms longer than a shopping list. One site treats that ignore remote or field teams. Anything used to dodge the real fix. Fair pay, decent kit, good managers. What to keep, usually. Small health wins, jabs, eye tests, someone to call. Food and travel help, a snack on late shifts, a safe ride home. Learning. Short job useful courses with a quick yes no. Mini dramas and quick fixes. The empty gym deal. You buy a gym discount. Night shift can't go. Hardly anyone uses it. Fix. Swap to a small monthly well being pot. People can spend on any gym, an app or walking shoes. The ping pong problem. You buy a table, space goes, noise goes up, work goes down. Fix sell it. Buy decent coffee and a couple of quiet chairs. Better mood. Fewer grumbles. The surprise tax. Nice perk. Then a tax hit shows on pay slips. Fix. Say it up front. This is taxed. Offer a non-taxed option for those who want it. Quick QA. Perks or pay. Which first? If pay's undermarket, fix pay first. Big perk or small vouchers. Small flexible vouchers usually win. More people can use them. How do we avoid favorites? Write who gets what and why. Apply the same rules to full time and part-time. What's a sensible budget? Start small.£10 to£15 per person per month can be enough if it helps keep people. Do we need a policy? Yes. One page. What it is, who gets it, how to use it, when you'll review it. How do we show value? Count how many used it. Ask, was it useful? And check sick days and levers before and after. What about cake? Always nice. Just don't call it your well-being plan. Hazel strongly agrees. Practical takeaways. Ask people what they'll use. Pilot two perks, not ten. Keep it fair and easy for every shift and location. Check tax and pay rules before you launch. Review once a year, keep winners drop duds. Back to the cake box. Hazel looks very proud of her benefit. I'm happier with a PERP plan that actually helps people, not just a photo for the newsletter. Fix the basics first pay, workload, kit. Then add one or two perks that earn their keep. I'm Kate. This is Buzzing About HR. Kettle On, Standards Up. See you next time.
