# Mind the Gap: On the Relationship Between Automatically Measured and Self-Reported Productivity

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2012.07428 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2012.07428/

## Key facts

- Cited by 3 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 14 Dec 2020.

## Built on by (most cited first, 3 of 3)

- [Productivity Assessment of Neural Code Completion](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2205.06537/) (2022)
- [Time Warp: The Gap Between Developers' Ideal vs Actual Workweeks in an AI-Driven Era](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2502.15287/) (2025)
- [The Impact of LLM-Assistants on Software Developer Productivity: A Systematic Review and Mapping Study](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2507.03156/) (2025)

## Abstract (arXiv)

To improve software developers' productivity has been the holy grail of software engineering research. But before we can claim to have improved it, we must first be able to measure productivity. This is far from trivial. In fact, two separate research lines on software engineers' productivity have co-existed almost in complete isolation for a long time: automated product and process measures on the one hand and self-reported or perceived productivity on the other hand. In this article, we bridge the gap between the two with an empirical study of 81 software developers at Microsoft.