In two weeks time I am leaving the UK for the Netherlands. I am new to Dutch academia and while, for the most part, it seems to be much like UK academia, I am curious about, for lack of a better term, the level of managerial oversight over Dutch academics for day-to-day comings and goings and decisions about scholarly activities.
In the UK, it was expected that I work roughly 9ish to 5ish, 5 days a week, but more or less was up to me. Working from home did not need to be reported to anyone and if one was where one was meant to be when one was needed, it didn't really matter what happened at other times. I did not need to seek permission to attend conferences or workshops or to say yes to academic activities or opportunities.
What is managerial oversight like in the Netherlands? I don't want to either anger people by not asking when I should, or annoy people by asking often when I don't need to.
I know that to some extent this will be institution specific, but I believe that those here with Dutch experience would be able to speak to what the general expectation of reporting to and permission from line managers is compared to that, generally, in the UK.