I think the issue is coordination costs. In fact, Coase's entire theory of the firm is predicated that they exist to minimize coordination costs. I think it is

I think the issue is coordination costs. In fact, Coase's entire theory of the firm is predicated that they exist to minimize coordination costs. I think it is interesting to think about this shift (and the remote from work phenomena as a whole), as adaptations that are essentially following a drastic reduction in coordination costs. More of our work can be asynchronous, done from disparate places, communication tools are infinitely better, etc. If you take the theory seriously, all else equal, you'd expect smaller company sizes, remote work weeks, and more generous time off. But that you'd still have a sense of needing to know "when it happens" equally makes sense given that coordination costs for a lot of these scenarios haven't reached zero (i.e. I can decide to work Tuesday but if I need Bob and he's decided to not work Tuesday that's a problem. Yes, maybe we could work something out individually, but if this happens enough times, and with enough people, its more efficient for the company as a whole to dictate a schedule when we can reasonably expect folks to be available)