The signs show up before the resignation letter lands: cameras off, ideas thin, meetings that end with nothing decided, and work kept tightly to the job description. We call it quiet quitting, but what’s really happening is a rational response to fuzzy goals, uneven workloads, and stalled growth. I unpack why disengagement is data, not defiance, and share a simple toolkit to turn the trend without cheesy pep talks or another all-hands. We start by naming the three big gaps that drain teams—clarity, fairness, and growth—and trace how they appear in shops, salons, agencies and field crews. You’ll hear why stretch work quietly becomes someone’s permanent job, how status theatre bloats Slack, and why pizza fixes backfire when rotas shift with no notice. From there, I lay out five-minute tests you can run today: a calendar autopsy to kill meetings with no owner, a chat health check to replace status with decisions, and a customer lens that exposes flow problems masquerading as people problems. Then we build a light weekly rhythm that compounds: a three-question pulse with visible follow-through, fifteen-minute one-to-ones that actually remove snags, and a short Friday wins roundup that rewards shipping, collaborating and mentoring. I answer the tough questions along the way—how to separate a disengaged person from a broken process, when and how to tie engagement to rewards, how to protect high performers from burnout, and what to do when the bare minimum is dragging the team down. If you’re a micro business, you’ll get the scaled-down version: one pulse, one meeting killed, one visible win, one hour of protected deep work. Disengagement doesn’t need a gimmick; it needs small, honest levers pulled with consistency. If you’re ready to swap posters for progress, tune in and take these moves straight into your week. If you want a hand turning the dial in your team, book a discovery call with me so we can pick one quick win and sketch your next two weeks. Subscribe, share with a manager who needs it, and leave a review to help more teams trade apathy for momentum. Thank you for tuning in to Buzzing About HR with Kate Underwood! If you enjoyed today’s episode, don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and leave a review—your feedback helps us grow and reach more people like you. 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!
