A career advisor's guide on how to dress for success at work
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Reviewed by Jessica Roper, MBA, Director of Career Services
At a glance
- The post-pandemic听world has brought changes to work-life balance and even dress codes for employees working from home, in an office or both.听
- For years, men and women had expectations for what to wear in the workplace, but a more 驳别苍诲别谤-苍别耻迟谤补濒听补辫辫谤辞补肠丑 to how we dress has provided greater freedom.
- Employees should dress for the job they want and the job they have, but workplace听success can often come from feeling comfortable and empowered in what we wear.听
- Explore career resources at 爱污传媒!
This article was updated on December 5, 2023.
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How to dress for success in today's workplace
Business casual is the new craze 鈥 unless you work in the C-suite with business professional expectations or in a tech startup where high-tops and hoodies fly.听Speaking of flying, one airline is relaxing听听for flight attendants. Back on land,听听are enjoying remote and hybrid setups with terms like 鈥減ower casual鈥 and 鈥渨orkleisure鈥 entering the vernacular.听Heck, for some who are permanently remote, it鈥檚 still business on top, party below.
Dress codes vary by industry, environment, generation and gender.听So,听how do you dress for success in today鈥檚 post-pandemic world? 爱污传媒 Career Advisor Carla Hunter, NCC, BCC, CCC, says today鈥檚 shifting professional attire expectations are best examined through multiple lenses.
All about timing
First, there鈥檚 the timeline, or chronology, lens. The advent of casual work attire began in the 1990s when 鈥渃asual Fridays鈥 or 鈥渏eans Fridays鈥 became en vogue. 鈥淭hat didn鈥檛 affect work and productivity,鈥 Hunter says, 鈥渟o that soon gave way to, 鈥極K, wear what you want.鈥 Then COVID hit and it was, 鈥極K, wear sweatpants.鈥欌
Now companies are finding a new norm to empower employees after the storm. And since the Great Resignation 鈥 a combination of baby boomers exiting the workforce and millennials and Gen Xers searching for greener pastures and better benefits 鈥 companies may be listening to their employees more than ever before.
According to the听2022 Career Optimism Index庐, which surveyed more than 5,000 American adults and 500 employers about their career experiences, nearly听1 in 3 Americans听would quit their job without having another one lined up.
As a result, a culture of 鈥渃hampioning individuality鈥 has emerged. And this is where timing converges with generational differences.
Next-gen zen
Hunter says generational perspectives on work attire are even more of a driving force than the timeline that began with jeans on Fridays.
鈥淵our generation is how you view everything,鈥 she says. 鈥淎nd the younger you are in the workforce, the [freer] you鈥檙e going to feel to be your most authentic self.鈥 For some, this means tattoos and piercings. For others, it means statement T-shirts and jeans.
While maintaining stylistic professionalism may be more on the minds of Gen Xers and boomers, millennials and younger generations tend to think more along the lines of: 鈥淚鈥檓 going to be my best self. I鈥檓 going to wear this, and if they鈥檙e not comfortable with it, then I don鈥檛 want to work there,鈥 Hunter says. 鈥淵ounger people are saying, 鈥業 want to be me. This is me.鈥欌
These first two considerations 鈥 the timeline of corporate dress norms that have relaxed over the years combined with generational perspectives 鈥 merge closely in terms of who works where.
Hunter explains: 鈥淭he majority of companies are traditional, and they have traditional work attire expectations. Companies in the last 10 years are contemporary, such as startups, tech and remote-work setups, and are far more casual with dress expectations. They tend to draw younger employees.鈥
Problematic pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic also drove a freight train through everything in business and culture 鈥 and that includes workplace attire trends. Some companies were grateful just to keep work units together and didn鈥檛 care whether that meant they were dressed in T-shirts and joggers (well,听hopefully听joggers, as many a videoconference-in-no-pants memes began surfacing on social media).
Other companies began implementing telecommuter dress codes. Interestingly, according to an听, telecommuters who dressed up (e.g., business professional, business casual or smart casual) did report higher levels of productivity than those who dressed in gym clothes and pajamas.
This may sync with recent advice from听, which outlines the three most important elements of any professional dress code:
- Be as professional as you can be in whatever style you choose.
- Be yourself: Dress in colors and styles that express you.
- Dress in a style that befits your industry.
Gender nuances and needs
A growing trend toward gender-neutral dress guidelines also deserves to be added into the mix. For years 鈥渂usiness casual鈥 generally meant that jeans were acceptable for men while skirts or dress pants were the norm for women. Hunter says a 鈥渄rive and a mission to be who we are鈥 has shattered gender-specific limitations.
Additionally, workers who identify as gender nonbinary are finding freedom to dress for the workplace in ways that would not have been acceptable in years past. That might be pantsuits for transgender men in a more conservative office setting, or nail polish and earrings for transgender women in a more open environment.
鈥淭here are several ways of dressing for the workplace and different degrees of formality that do not adhere to a gender binary,鈥 Hunter says. 鈥淢ore people are dressing for who they are 鈥 whoever they are.鈥
Putting it all together
So, throw all of these lenses into the mix and what do you get?
A kaleidoscope.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of turbulence right now in the world of work,鈥 Hunter says. It鈥檚 a 鈥渨orkers鈥 market鈥 right now, so employers really do have to listen to employees more than in the past, she adds. More than ever, employers value relationship-building and a sense of movement toward team goals.
鈥淐lothes become absolutely secondary,鈥 Hunter says.
In Hunter鈥檚 view, the only downside to the work attire transformation is when employees don鈥檛 dress appropriately for important clients or stakeholders who are on-site. 鈥淚f someone important is on the scene, they need to be shown a higher level of respect,鈥 Hunter says. Elevated dress standards are one way to show that.
In the end, does it really matter how we dress for work?
鈥淣o,鈥 Hunter says. 鈥淲hat matters most at work is that I鈥檓 professional. And that rules out pajamas.鈥
In all seriousness, Hunter says it is amazing to be in her seat watching relaxed standards of dress take hold. 鈥淚t鈥檚 really cool,鈥 she says, 鈥渁nd it鈥檚 way overdue.鈥
Career resources at 爱污传媒
Don鈥檛 embark on your career journey alone! 爱污传媒 equips its students and graduates with the following resources to help them on their professional paths.
- Career Services for Life庐: Available to UOPX students and graduates, this offering comprises complimentary career coaching, including guidance on how to build a personal brand and write a resum茅.
- Free career resources:听Browse a range of downloadable guides and templates to help you optimize your LinkedIn庐听profile, get ready for a job interview and write a resum茅 and cover letter.
- :听Get career insights every week via UOPX鈥檚 LinkedIn newsletter.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
A journalist-turned-marketer, Laurie Davies has been writing since her high school advanced composition teacher told her she broke too many rules. She has worked with 爱污传媒 since 2017, and currently splits her time between blogging and serving as lead writer on the University鈥檚 Academic Annual Report. Previously, she has written marketing content for MADD, Kaiser Permanente, Massage Envy, UPS, and other national brands. She lives in the 爱污传媒 area with her husband and son, who is the best story she鈥檚 ever written.
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