Why Your Career Might Depend on Being Seen in the Office
The remote work debate has split into two camps:
Those who swear by WFH productivity
Those who demand everyone back in the office
Most leaders struggle to explain why showing up matters. On the other side, employees enjoy the comfort of flexibility and work-life-integration, not realising the hidden cost of the lack of visibility.
Some leaders act like attendance police. Others, like me, didn’t want to waste time tracking who’s in the office, but ended up watching attendance fade. We couldn’t convince people either way.
Flexibility does have its benefits, but it also has hidden costs. That’s why visibility is more than just showing face, and here's why.
1. Visibility
This is the lowest hanging fruit. Visibility matters for your growth, your salary increment, your promotion. If you're not seen, how can you expect people leaders to know and remember you?
Being physically present builds connection and trust in ways video calls just can’t. You become real, not just a name on a screen.
Remote work has its place, but it’s not a substitute for real interaction. Trust me, it’s different when you’re physically present in discussions with your team.
2. Learning by osmosis
The office is a goldmine of soft skills training you won’t get working in isolation.
There’s so much to absorb just by being in the open office. You overhear how people speak in meetings, how they handle tough discussions, and what other teams deal with daily.
I remember a colleague under huge stress, trying to balance construction progress with code compliance. His tough conversations with stakeholders were overheard by others nearby. One teammate later joked she could become a compliance specialist just by listening in. That’s the kind of casual, unplanned learning you only get in person.
Some of the best conversations don’t happen in meetings, they happen over lunch. Once, an engineer shared a problem he was stuck on. The whole table started brainstorming, and within minutes he had a solution. No calendar invite. No formal meeting. Just colleagues helping over the lunch table.
Remote work cuts away these moments. Relationships become flat and transactional.
3. When remote work slows you down
WFH fans talk about focus and deep work. They’re not wrong, but that’s not the full story.
When my team had a bid deadline, every second mattered. I sat right next to them. No Teams messages, no waiting. We had quick, constant check-ins. We delivered on time because we were together. That’s team efficiency you can’t replicate remotely.
Remote often turns thirty-second questions into hour-long threads. It adds up.
4. Out of sight, out of mind, literally
The slow career killer:
When you’re always remote, you’re not part of the flow of office conversations. Opportunities pop up in discussions you’re not in. Problems get solved without you. Your name isn’t raised because you’re not there. It’s not intentional. It’s just how people’s minds work.
What this means
Visibility is not just about optics, it’s about opportunity. I used to undervalue being in the room. Over time, I realised face-to-face trust and connection can’t be replaced by emojis or green dots on Teams. You learn from tone, body language, even small side comments.
This is what I tell younger engineers: if you want visibility, start simple by showing up. Don’t disappear behind your laptop. Don’t just be a status icon. If you’re not seen, you’ll be forgotten, and the opportunities will go to someone else.
For leaders: stop being vague. If you want people in the office, explain why. Don’t just say this is an office wide policy/requirement. Talk about learning, trust, speed of decisions.
For team members: flexibility is valuable, but if you’re early in your career or starting out in a new firm or aiming for leadership, staying away too much will cost you more than you think.
The office is still one of the best tools we have for visibility, learning and building relationships. Use it wisely, or let others take advantage of what you’re leaving on the table.