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Casual dress code may work best for creative engineer

November 9th, 2011 Leave a comment Go to comments

I am an engineer who was raised and educated in England and came to this country three years ago. I have been working for the same firm since my arrival and recently have moved into the executive ranks.

As a working engineer in our firm, the uniform of the day was jeans or slacks and a casual shirt. Some of the members of my research team dressed a tad more formally, but others dressed as if they were on their way to the beach, and no one ever complained, least of all me.

I ran a research team of these very informally dressed engineers for the last three years, and I must tell you that I was pleasantly surprised by the professionalism and quality of their work.

I ran similar teams in England, and although the team members were as well-trained, they were not as productive or innovative.

I appreciate the casual, open, egalitarian management style in American high-tech companies. It produces results.

In spite of all this, I always dressed formally, and no one objected. I believe the reason they didn’t object is they thought Englishmen should dress formally. Although I was in charge of part of the operation, everyone knew that my suits were a personal choice, not a management statement. My boss wore jeans most of the time.

Next month I am going to be running a new research project. I will have six times the number of people working for me that I do now, and we will be physically separated from the rest of the company.

Because of this, I believe my dress will have a great impact on the way people working for me dress and how the new employees will see the company. I’m wondering if being boosted upstairs means that I should continue to dress formally, or I should relax my dress and look a little less British. – English Engineer

The rule for engineers about to enter the executive ranks is to dress more conservatively.

You are the exception that proves the rule. As you pointed out, you are now going to be the person who sets the standard, at least in your department, and I can assure you that many employees, particularly new ones, will assume that your dress is an indicator of your management style. This will affect your department’s image.

If you change your department’s image from casual to formal, you will find it more difficult to draw or hold some of the most talented creative engineers.

Since you will need them to succeed, I suggest that you change your style instead. Start by replacing your pleated English suits with American models. You do not have to do it all at once; you can do it gradually over the next two or three years. If you are wearing three-piece, pinstripe or chalk-stripe suits, you cannot wait three years – leave them home as soon as you move to your new job.

You can continue to wear dark blue suits, but you must limit your grays to medium and light shades and fill out your suit wardrobe with beige and brown two-piece models.

Replace your starched, strong-patterned English shirts with solid blue and white button-downs, and when you work with your people, take off your coat and loosen your tie.

The reason you have to change is many of the best and most creative people in America will refuse to work for a company with a formal dress code.

In spite of the research that shows there is no correlation between the way men and women dress and how creative they are, the fact is many creative people believe that a casual or even avant-garde style is a sign of creativity. If you want to keep them happy, you must let them dress in any style they choose.

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