Are a majority of workers just pretending to be busy?

Many managers have suspected that their employees are putting in less work than they claim to. Employee recognition software company Workhuman set out to find whether that assumption is fact or fiction.

Workhuman surveyed 3,000 full-time employees in the U.S., U.K. and Ireland about work habits and performance: 67% of respondents deny that they pretend to be busy or "fake activity" during work hours. And yet, nearly 50% of managers believe faking activity is a common issue on their team. So, where does the disconnect come from? Lynette Silva Heelan, consulting practice lead at Workhuman, believes it comes down to leaders confusing being busy with being productive. 

"Do we care if people are busy, or do we care if they're delivering?" asks Heelan. "Results come from someone who is productive, not someone who shows that they're busy."

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Ironically, Workhuman found that leaders fake activity at a higher rate than individual contributors — 38% of C-suite and 37% of managers admitted to pretending compared to 32% of non-managers. Heelan didn't necessarily find this surprising, noting that leaders are not immune to the top three drivers of faking activity: the desire for better work-life balance, feelings of burnout and not having enough work. Overall, leaders may be struggling to connect with their team, unsure of how much of a presence they should have in their team's day-to-day, says Heelen.

And while no one likes to be micromanaged, 62% of employees who reported that they had frequently involved managers said that type of management style helped them do their job, according to Workhuman. 

"This is not somebody making sure your mouse is moving," says Heelan. "An involved manager will sit down with you and help you think about everything on your plate. They say, 'How do we adjust? What does that need to look like so that you can be your most productive self without being burnt out or stressed?'"

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Heelan advises managers to put aside their concerns about how busy employees are and focus on what employees can deliver. If they're falling short, then managers need to step in, recognize why an employee may be struggling and help them better manage their responsibilities. Heelan warns managers against assuming that employees are doing poorly because of sheer laziness, or becoming more paranoid about whether an employee is working. Those responses don't typically lead to improved productivity. 

"When any human operates from a point of fear, worry or concern, we're never going to perform or produce at our highest levels," says Heelan. "Involved managers communicate, involved managers prioritize, and they care about their people's well-being. 

The good news is that faking productivity is likely not the root cause of poor performance. In fact, 69% of employees who report faking activity say it doesn't impact their work, and 48% say they are still above-average workers, according to Workhuman. Instead of worrying about how active someone is on their company's communication platform, Heelan urges managers to place their focus on recognizing their team for their efforts and checking in so they know what their team needs. 

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This can be as simple as telling an employee that when they did "X," it helped the manager or team achieve "Y," says Heelan. 

"We're not just pushing pencils, reading reports, building PowerPoints and Excel spreadsheets," she says. "We're delivering something important, and when we can tell people that in a meaningful way, it reduces stress and burnout, and it increases productivity and engagement."