Opinion

Email traffic is no indicator of productivity, Manchester United’s new owner should know better

Manchester United co-owner Jim Ratcliffe found a new excuse for ordering employees back to the office, and it highlights something business leaders consistently get wrong about productivity

Manchester United Return To Office

Employers’ justifications for returning to the office full-time are typically vague. For example, when Boots CEO Seb James called workers back into the office five days a week, he simply said it was a “much more fun and inspiring place” for people to work.

The latest feeble rationale for banning home-working has come from the new Manchester United Football Club co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe. In a recent message to the club’s employees, he bemoaned the “disgraceful” untidiness in the office and called an end to the flexible work-from-home policy which has been in place since the pandemic.

For those that were unwilling to comply with his new diktat, Ratcliffe had a simple response: “If you don’t like it, please seek alternative employment.”