If employees are expected to swipe into the office, chances are some people are doing this.

Theres a word for your covert strategy: coffee badging.

This new workplace lingo was popularized by videoconferencing company Owl Labs.

A man in business casual attire uses an access card to enter an office while holding a smartphone. Two colleagues are seen discussing work in the background

The companydefinedit as showing face at the office and then leaving.

Amanda, a Chicago-based IT project manager for a health insurance company, is one of them.

The feeling of having her attendance tracked does make her uncomfortable.

A person uses a blue key card to access a modern turnstile gate in an office lobby with yellow seating in the background

I dont want to be here.

I can do this from home, Amanda said.

They wanted to promote the people who had the longest hours at the office.

Two colleagues, one woman holding a tablet and one man, in a discussion in a modern office setting with two other employees working in the background

So they looked at keycard swipe-in data, Schellmann said about this company.

But to be clear, your badge swipes are a flawed signal of your performance at work.

So why are employers so tempted to find deeper meaning with badge logs despite the clear flaws?

Three colleagues, one man and two women, discussing by a coffee machine in an office lounge area. One woman is gesturing with her hands

It might be because it is part of a growing field of people analytics.

Its all about impression management, she added.

The latter can be a helpful attitude adjustment.

A person with glasses and curly hair is sitting at a desk, intently looking at a computer screen in a modern office setting, with another person blurred in the background

Bharathans advice to fellow coffee badgers is to find ways to make the time in office productive.

She suggested scheduling meetings on in-person days.

Ask yourself: Are those who spend more time in the office delivering stronger results?

Are they coming in for meetings and collaborative spaces?

Or are they simply spending time commuting to sit on Zoom calls from the office instead of home?

suggested Bonnie Dilber, a recruiting manager with app-automation company Zapier.

Heres a word to the wise: Coffee badging is not an accurate signal of someones performance.

Busyness is not the same as accomplishment.

Seeing a co-worker physically typing at their desk next to you does not mean they are actually working.

Take it from Amanda.