To think that everyone WFH thinks they are more productive but this view isn’t necessarily shared

[Cucumbertomatoes]

On here, everyone who WFH insists they are much more productive than in the office. However, I’ve noticed this view is rarely shared by others, hence companies wanting workers back. It’s an interesting one as clearly perceptions vary. AIBU to think that while you might think you’re more productive you may not be?

@Spendonsend "I think some people are efficient and contientious wherever they work and others are a bit lazy and crap wherever they are.

But i reckon its easier to manage crap people you can see."

100% this!

I was in the office yesterday and was playing musical chairs all day. Office chairs are really uncomfortable.

If employers really want people to be in the office they've got to sort the furniture out. And I have a nice employer with a new office. Chairs are still crap especially in the "focus" rooms. Maybe that's so people won't hog them all day :)

The problem is most of the people who are big return to the office fans are not actually doing evidenced based observation of productivity. What they are doing is judging someone else's productivity simply by their availability for the person doing the judging. For more senior people, having junior staff in the office means they are more available and that generally makes the senior person's job easier because they don't have to plan as much, are more likely to have last minute requests actioned in time, etc. So when they are faced with a situation where they have to plan more and have to accept more of a lag time in response to their requests they don't like it. They don't care that those staff are actually being more productive in their day to day tasks because it is rarely visible to them. I was there during the pandemic and saw how it affected our directors and CEO (I reported directly to the board at the time) and how difficult they found to not being able to wonder around the office interrupting people to get what they needed at the last minute.

That is not to say I don't see the value of the office - training, workshops, relationship building all work better in the office, but focus work like reviewing reports etc. is much quicker at home with fewer distractions. My colleagues interrupt me far more in the office than anyone does at home. I'm now in a technical role and being at home is really important for me to get through my workload. I've been in the office 3 days this week and there is focus work piled up that I've had to work through on the home work days, not because I am being lazy in the office but because office days are full of "Oh can you just..." and "Could you give me 5 minutes for some advice on..."

From a really basic point of view, if WFH was genuinely more productive for a business as a whole then that business would be making more profit and the directors and shareholders would be encouraging it. At the end of the day for most businesses it comes down to money. Say what you like about ineffective middle managers, or big landlords etc putting pressure on government, but most businesses ultimately don’t care about that, they care about what’s going to be most profitable for them. If wfh was more productive and therefore more profitable they would be doing it.

For some it is, and they are - so the opposite can also be true!

I think it depends on the person.

DH has ADHD and works much better in the office as there are less distractions

I definitely work better from home because I am a talker, so being at home don’t get caught up in the coffee room for twenty minutes asking how Sandra’s son’s girlfriend’s dog is.

I'm staying WFH and have no time or interest in what 'people' think. It doesn't matter. I prefer working in peace. It's entury suitable for me

Also a lot of “sit at this desk at this computer all day rather than the one in your home” thinking isn’t about productivity at all it’s about fancy office space that some very rich people own and are don’t like this new eco, work/life balance, forward thinking way of working if it hits their bottom line.

no actual real workplace has ever said wfh was less productive in my knowledge its
just a myth. Working without already spending an hour in rush hour traffic/ on a commuter train means you are much fresher and ready for the day rather than decompressing from the commute and eating your breakfast in the break room at
work.

There's loads of evidenced research showing how WFH can benefit both employer and employee. As always it's an individual thing, there are piss takers in all walks of life and no one-size fits all. Common sense required.

I fanny about when in the office - I start before everyone else so I open the building turn on the lights printers etc- I have lunch with my friends we talk about random crap at various intervals we spend time making coffee and filling our water bottles I fix the printer that someone always leaves jammed I change the toner cartridges empty the shredder bin because everyone else just leaves it full I help new starters work out the stupid printer log on I spend time helping visitors who arrive before reception opens see also couriers - just because I sit nearest the door - non of this is even remotely related to my job but I can lose a whole day a week just being engaged with the people in our building and doing odd jobs.

But I do have a dedicated office space in my home with a very good set up that I invested a fair amount of money in. If I had to work in a communal space in my home I might find it less productive.

Same here

I'm as productive in the office as at home, my workload is 50%, I used to be PT but the boss wants me FT even if I'm not busy to be on hand to answer any query or produce a report which isn't very often tbh. The difference in being at home is that I can get on top of home chores instead of sitting bored at my desk clock watching to home time before crawling in traffic for 45mins to travel 7miles and then do all the home chores.

I think it depends on the job role, type of work, workplace culture etc. I've worked in offices where presenteeism is important.