[johnnyanmac]

>Why do we need to measure productivity? No one seems to ask that question.

because the people asking the questions aren't the ones who actually do the work. And timelines are everything to those people (which admitedly falls behind a lot in software due to the nature of the work).

>Do we measure trust (upon which all business is based)?

in an ephemeral way, yes.

[chris12321]

> in an ephemeral way, yes.

So no. Or why not measure productivity in an ephemeral way.

[johnnyanmac]

Glad you asked. Because "trust" is one of the last ways companies can get around being discriminatory in at-will employment without facing lawsuits. In other words, it directly benefits those in power not to directly measure "trust", but quietly base it on the biases of any given manager.

Unless you're in some stack ranked program, lack of trust is the easiest way to be first to be laid off, or on the slower track to be put on a PiP (officially or not). Sadly and ironically enough, "productivity" is one of he few ways to counteract this bias. Having a hard trail of evidence that you met every and all goals, a hard trail that these were the goals to begin with.

I could go on about how you gain trust, and indirect trust or trust via authority, but I think you get the point.