Coffee badging, quiet quitting, mouse jigglers … there’s really no need for another term to describe today’s workforce. But each of those phrases could fall under the umbrella of “fauxductivity,” or fake productivity.
Productivity has been one of the top workplace issues discussed among experts this year, with companies fearing the effects of “the great detachment.” Fortune 500 CEOs even ranked “low productivity” as their top organizational challenge for the year, according to software firm Atlassian.
And while the majority of employees are not exaggerating about their productivity, according to a Workhuman report, 48% of managers say that faking productivity is a problem on their team. But the call may be coming inside the house: 37% of managers surveyed in the report admitted to faking their productivity, compared to 32% of non-manager employees. Even more C-suite executives admit to participating in “fauxductivity,” with 38% saying they do.
It’s clear that employees aren’t the only ones faking their productivity—their bosses are doing it, too. The phenomenon could be part of larger “always-on” workplace cultures.
“Managers especially are in the position to promote a workplace culture that allows employees to be human and say when they’re struggling—not turn to performative productivity,” Meisha-ann Martin, senior director of people analytics and research at Workhuman said in the report. “Managers themselves need to resist the urge to keep up appearances and instead be vocal about when they’re taking a break.”
Happy reading, and hope you have a lovely week!
