Web Development World... Professionals?

Published: December 15 2010

Do you expect your web solution provider to dress for success or is it just an old fashioned business idea that needs to die?

An article today in the Wall Street Journal discusses a large multi-national bank and their 43 page dress code. The message as I understand it from the article is that one must dress for success and clients feel better when they meet with people that have a polished appearance.

The banks have had the image tarnished in the recent years with improper accounting, rouge trading and numerous other scandals. It appears UBS is going back to basics to repair the loss of public trust in their business model.

Let's face it, appearance while it may not be everything, is a major component in hiring staff, choosing your spouse, and choosing who you do business with. It may not apply in every circumstance, but it surely has the lion's share. You may not have the ability to control what you can afford to wear, but in our society there is no excuse for being unclean or unkept in the workplace.

When I started with a CA firm 20 years ago, our dress code was white shirt and tie while working and you put your suit jacket on when meeting with clients. There was no exception to the rule. One of the other top students that received an interview for the firm when I was being interviewed never stood a chance I learned later. He had an earring. He was done the moment he walked in the door.

I know of another instance with a past Vancouver Canuck where a CA firm sent over a young CA that had an earring to do some work and he was told to leave and not ever enter his office wearing that kind of...

We are much more accepting to be sure in the workplace now, I see lots of metal in the faces of employees, the last time I went through the Winnipeg Airport security, one of the agents there had close to 15 piercings in his face. How did he get through the detectors?

The question posed though in the title of this article is about web development companies and their need to dress as professionals or can they piggyback on the relaxed atmosphere of the software industry such as Microsoft and such where it is laid back. The developers look like they just rolled out of bed and couldn't find any clean or perhaps ironed clothes.

But software developers hide in the back rooms, eating pizza and drinking coke and rarely meet with clients.

I strongly believe that if you are meeting or interacting with clientele that you must portray a positive image, you need to be clean and be polished. If you don't have pride in your appearance, why would you have pride in your work.

Dress for success is a message that has been handed down through the ages and probably you heard your mother say it often. Try it and see how people treat you differently. I have been wearing suits for over 20 years and there is a big difference in the way I am treated when I am not wearing one.

I believe any business or group that want to call themselves professionals, need to dress the part. It shows their level of attention to detail and their commitment to quality and service.

Below is small snip from the Wall Street Journal article and the link to the full article. I welcome your feedback, I am sure some will say I am way off base and need to go back to the stone age, but they will likely be the ones that are too lazy to dress the part they say they are playing.

Jim Csek, CMA

"First impressions count. This is the message Swiss bank UBS AG is sending its Swiss retail banking staff with a 43-page code dispensing advice on how to impress customers with a polished appearance.

Echoing rules applied at Swiss boarding schools, UBS's guidelines go beyond a list of dress "do's" and "don'ts" by providing hygiene and grooming tips often dotted with aphorisms worthy of fashion and beauty magazines.

The move is part of a test UBS is carrying out in Switzerland across five pilot branches. It follows a recent advertising campaign aimed at re-establishing confidence in the Swiss bank's brand and mending relations with clients.”

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704694004576019783931381042.html