Telecommuting and Administrative Work Output: Evidence from Selected Federal Institutions in Abuja During and After COVID-19

This study examines the relationship between telecommuting and administrative work output in selected federal institutions in Abuja during and in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic-induced shift to remote work created an unprecedented natural experiment in Nigerian federal administration, offering unique empirical insights into telecommuting viability, productivity implications, and institutional readiness. Using a professional retrospective survey design, the study targets administrative officers who participated in telecommuting arrangements during the 2020-2021 period in six federal institutions. Structured questionnaires, work output performance records, and retrospective experience surveys form the data collection toolkit. The Remote Work Framework and the Technology Acceptance Model provide the theoretical grounding, with literature from 2020 to 2024 on telecommuting in Nigerian public administration informing the analysis. Dimensions examined include administrative output quality, task completion rates, communication effectiveness, technology infrastructure adequacy, and supervisory management challenges. The study also assesses institutional policy responses and their effect on telecommuting governance. Recommendations target the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation and the National Information Technology Development Agency. Keywords: telecommuting, administrative work output, COVID-19, federal institutions, Abuja