If you don't have measurable inputs and outputs (i.e. Tickets, service requests, widgets, cases, etc), you typically lose productivity. Not necessarily because of the employee, but also because of managers who don't function well with out of sight people.
Personally, I think in many cases you'd get better outcomes out of sending people home at noon on Fridays than having them telework.
Of course if you're not giving employees anything to do, you'll get reduced productivity. That's also true if you force them to sit in a chair in the office and do nothing. If you can't come up with anything for them to do (slow season, sales pipeline stalled) maybe let them pitch ideas for things they'd like to work on and give the ok on some.
Either way, if they have something to do and you keep in touch with them on how things are going, things should keep moving even without specific granular measurements. But why not use tickets or tasks or something to make it visible?
> also because of managers who don't function well with out of sight people
Those people probably shouldn't be managers, at least not working with remote workers. Communication is critical. A remote team should feel like they're communicating at least as much as an in-office team, if not more.
Neither are people being highly productive without "adult supervision."
In all seriousness, I find your comment incredibly insulting. I gave an opinion based off of experience, that doesn't mean that I'm some sort of child that needs to be supervised.
> the specific type of person who ends up working where you work
I typically prefer to keep my comments here civil, but seriously? Fuck you.
It also doesn't mean you're an expert. Next time you give your opinion, try not being insulting, and help us understand why you have that opinion. You gave one sentence that painted everyone working from home as lazy, and stated it as a fact.
I work from home when I need to be more productive. The office has too many coworkers with ad hoc questions that apparently aren't important enough to ask online.
Stop and think about that for a second. Many of us here are 100% remote. How are we to interpret your general statement, except as insulting?
A little self-awareness would be far more helpful to you than lashing out in anger.
This may be true, but it's frustrating when that just gets assumed.
Assuming that's comparable to a true remote work policy is silly.
So, with forewarning, I'm not the only person like this, and if a manager or executive wants to make this kind of decision and expect productivity to not suffer, they're being... stupid.
Looking at a slide deck listening to people talk can be done everywhere.
