Growing up, I remember seeing my parents going to work every day after sending me off to catch the school bus. My mom worked for a pharmaceutical company and wore dress pants and a company t-shirt, while my dad owned a jewelry store and always had his best suit on to impress his customers. While they both were in the sales industry, their workplace dress varied dramatically. What were the roots of this difference in dress code and how does it affect the environment in which we all work today? While Human Resource departments cannot generalize how productivity in the workplace changes based on clothing, they can explain how workplace attire affects other people’s perceptions of workers based on their dress. According to Dan Ariely, a leading behaviour economist, humans often look at the outward appearance of workers such as salesmen, doctors, lawyers, and UPS drivers, and derive a perception about a company based on what their workers are wearing. Whether it is the newest Gucci or fireman suit, workers can display the respect they have for their company based on how they present themselves.
By looking good and feeling comfortable in their work attire, workers boost their confidence and productivity in the workplace. In the next few blogs, I will explain the do's and dont's of business professional versus business casual and explain how productivity in the workplace is affected by these two types of dress.
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ReplyDeleteTaylor, I find your blog really interesting and nothing like I have ever seen before. Appropriate business attire is something we all struggle with. What's appropriate, what's too much, and how you can show some of your personality are things we all think about when looking through our drab closets of various grey and black suits. Many consumers find that JCrew has the best variations of business casual and professional attire. Also, the consumers appreciate the lines' versatility and how they can switch pieces around. Here is a site you might enjoy: http://www.jcrew.com/womens_special_shops/weartoworkshop.jsp
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, I agree that what you wear as an employee represents the way you are, and how you work. Where I work over the summer, my appearance greatly affects the way the job is done. If I am not comfortable with my outfits, I personally cannot do my job as well. This causes a problem not only for the company, but for the children I teach tennis too because I want to be a role model, and if I don't dress the part, I feel my students will not look up to me. This idea also goes with customer relations. If I am in a department store buying a new dress shirt, or anything for that matter, I will search for an employee who is professionally dressed because they look like they have a lot of experience in the field, and will do a better job helping me with my concerns or needs.
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