What is fauxductivity (and why do you need to know)?

According to the stats, the UK has had a workplace productivity problem since 2008, but a new HR buzzword has emerged, linked to employee engagement, that makes the productivity puzzle even harder to crack.

Fauxductivity describes employees who exaggerate how much work they do or have to do. This ‘work’ is often tasks that don’t help businesses increase productivity or profits.

It has hit the spotlight due to recent mandates from major employers such as Amazon and Barclays ordering workers to return to the office. The trend links to another,‘the great detachment,’ characterised by employees not feeling invested in their roles and coasting as they are not required or directed to focus on specific tasks.

Recent research by Workhuman of 3,000 UK, US and Irish full-time employees found 67% deny they fake activity, but 48% of managers say faking activity is a common issue on their team. That still means 33% of workers admit to fauxductivity, perhaps unsurprising when 37% of managers and 38% of executives also fessed up!

Below, we examine what is fauxductivity, why is it happening, can managers spot fauxductivity and how can fauxductivity be reduced.

What is fauxductivity?

Fauxductivity is the phenomenon of workers presenting the appearance of barrelling their way through productive activities at the expense of efficiently completing real work.

The term has close associations with another manifestation of modern workplace culture, presenteeism, which also impacts productivity. Presenteeism is when workers continue to work but do so in an unproductive way.

Fauxductivity can manifest itself in workers conducting surface-level activities and avoiding getting to the central part that solves the task.

Why is fauxductivity happening?

One theory is that with more people working from home during the pandemic, workers got into fauxductivity habits and are finding it difficult to break them. Back at the office, co-workers and managers spot fauxductivity and those still working remotely continue to follow some fauxductive traits, which managers don’t notice.

Some experts believe fauxductivity is influenced by workplace culture rather than worker’s habits. A worker’s lack of enthusiasm can be caused by a lacklustre workplace culture and uninspiring bosses who don’t outline a career path for them. Therefore, the worker just treats their job as way to earn an income before their next career step.

Can managers spot fauxductivity?

It can be difficult to spot because employees can exaggerate, even fake their workload. Some managers avoid or don’t have time to identify the real situation.

It is not a great employee retention strategy to micromanage your team or follow them around like Sherlock Holmes, but there are clues that suggest people could be indulging in fauxductivity.

• Do they regularly broadcast how busy they are while at the watercooler?
• Do they ‘go through the motions’ of replying to emails out of hours without solving anything?

And what about the managers themselves, who can be just as prone to fauxductivity?

• Do they stumble from email to email, meeting to meeting, without achieving results and solving problems?
• Do they obsess over process at the expense of results or create layers of bureaucracy that hinders problem solving?

How to resolve fauxductivity

Companies can improve company culture to drive productivity. Employee engagement and teamwork, through mentoring, one-to-one manager/worker sessions and social activities can help achieve this.

Offering employees a vision of where the company is going, how they can be a part of it and be rewarded can motivate staff to really achieve and be productive.

Managers can also maintain work schedules, check carefully about what productive work employees have, ask to see it, create deadlines and request staff to report specific outcomes. SMART objectives or OKRs are an excellent way to motivate employees and get results delivered.

Managers themselves should focus on outcomes rather than processes. They can be creative in tackling problems and be open to suggestions from employees, so they feel part of solving productivity rather than being a cause.

Conclusion

Fauxductivity is an actual thing. It is the exaggeration of work so a worker looks productive.

What causes it is less clear, but poor communication and unclearly defined staff roles contributes, alongside some employees’ willingness to go through the motions at work, if they get paid for it.

Solving fauxductivity requires companies to offer employees vision and show the steps staff can take to be rewarded for performing well. Employers should focus on employee wellbeing, engagement, outcomes and providing workers with targets and structure to their roles.

Benjamin Salisbury - business journalist

Benjamin Salisbury is an experienced writer, editor and journalist who has worked for national newspapers, leading consumer websites like This Is Money and MoneySavingExpert.com, business analysts including Environment Analyst, AIM Group and written articles for professional bodies and financial companies. He covers news, personal finance, business, startups and property.