Comfort Means Productivity
When our middle-management fathers left each morning for work, they wore polished shoes, slacks, collared shirts, ties, and sports jackets. A meeting with upper management often required a suit. Women who worked wore dresses and high heels.
It wasn't that the workplace was making a fashion statement; it was just the way things were. Dress was a sign of respect, an indicator that what went on in the office was serious work. What you wore to work also signaled your station in the work world. Ties and jackets or skirts and heels were the uniform of middle management. Work was hierarchical; it was important for everyone to know who had what status.
While some companies maintain formal dress in executive offices, most have gone decidedly casual. This reflects the recognition that people who are comfortable are also more productive. It also demonstrates a much-diminished emphasis on status and its inherently divisive qualities, as well as a redirection to focus on collaboration and teamwork.
Many middle managers today are working managers — not only do they manage a work group or department, but they also share in the team's workload. The manager of a training department often designs and delivers training programs as well as provides guidance and support for employees doing the same kind of work.
Clothes still symbolize status, of course; that will never change. But the symbolism is far more subtle and less directly related to job or occupation. The man or woman striding down the corridor in jeans and day hikers could be the mail clerk or the vice president of finance.
The move toward casual attire in the workplace gained momentum in the late 1980s, when companies began implementing “casual dress Fridays” to build employee morale and reward hard work. The idea was to create a not-quite-a-day-off atmosphere. As it became clear that employees worked no less productively on casual dress days (and in fact, often more productively), casual dress became the standard any day of the week. Some companies now invite employees to participate in “formal Mondays.”
For managers, the casual office can raise some issues. While some companies have explicit policies that define the workplace environment, many do not. This leaves department and work group managers responsible for setting and upholding standards. How do you determine what attire is appropriate? Here are some questions to consider:
Does the work environment have special safety concerns? Loose clothing, long hair, jewelry, and even long fingernails can present hazards in work areas where there is moving machinery.
Do employees have direct contact with customers or clients? If so, the rule of thumb is to dress as the customers dress, within reason.
Are employees dressing in ways that are distracting, inappropriate, suggestive, or offensive? Older customers (internal or external) might not consider a young person wearing jeans to be competent or to have the appropriate authority, for example.
How do employees want to dress? A standard that your work group mutually agrees upon is much easier to monitor and enforce than one that “management” imposes.
What employees wear to work and how they conduct themselves can be concerns for managers even when there are detailed policies in place. It's human nature to push the curve of individuality.
As much as possible, it's usually more productive to support that curve. Do your employees wear uniforms? If so, why? Some companies like their employees to present a homogeneous image. This makes it clear, to employees and customers alike, that each employee represents the company at all times when wearing the uniform. In such situations, individuality is not as important (for the corporate good) as consistency. Compliance is fairly easy to monitor and enforce.
Other organizations such as medical facilities require uniforms because clothing can become contaminated or damaged. In such situations, there is often greater latitude in accommodating individuality — some people might prefer plain colors, others like bright patterns and designs, yet all can be in compliance. And in some work environments, regulations and rules (federal, state, and industrial) dictate attire.
