Is in office attendance tracking helpful

Office managers are caught in the middle of the in office attendance tracking thing. On one side, leadership wants reports and on the other, employees feel watched the moment any of it gets measured (like Big Brother), and you're the one who has to implement it either way. 

I don't want to turn this into a rant in either direction, because I've seen it work well and I've seen it breed resentment so I'm curious what makes the difference. Both sides welcome! If attendance tracking has worked at your company, what made it feel fair? And if it's been a daily battle, what specifically made it go sideways?