Slashdot Mirror
Ask Slashdot: Is There a Professional Geek Dress Code?
First time submitter KateKintail writes "I'm being promoted to be a director of a computer/web services department at work with staff members (not yet hired) working under me. My workplace doesn't have a dress code 95% of the year. Is this the end of my days of jeans and enjoyably geeky t-shirts? Is there a way to dress professionally in the workplace as a boss (the kind that doesn't need to be defeated at the end of a level) while still showing my Browncoat or Whovian love as I crawl under cobwebby desks to check that equipment is properly plugged in?"
Mission control, 1960's, shall forever be the exemplar of true nerd fashion. However, in a bow to modernity, the pocket slide rule could probably be replaced with a smartphone.
If you don't know where you are going, you will wind up somewhere else.
... for any workplace when it comes to dress:
Look at how your boss dresses. Your normal, "I'm not meeting with clients" work wear should NOT be dressier than your boss on a typical day, but shouldn't be significantly trashier either, unless you have filthy work duty* that your boss doesn't participate in.
Actually this rule of thumb applies to behavior, handling of issues, manner of answering the phone, all kinds of things. Check how your boss and your peers around the company do something, assume it to be the corporate norm, and adapt that corporate norm to your specific situation.
*poking around through a raised floor/dropped ceiling and the like
"Flame away, I wear asbestos underwear"
Ignore all the "it doesn't matter what you look like" comments you are bound to receive on slashdot.
Dress like the role you want next
Yes, you can wear t-shirts and jeans and stay exactly where you are today.
Dress like an adult. This generally means khakis and a button down shirt or polo shirt.
Sure, sometimes you can slide in jeans, but have nice ones.
No t-shirts. no sandals ever.
go to jcrew, banana republic, etc.
and stop asking slashdot for clothing advice
Look at your peers. How do fellow managers dress? If you are meeting external people (clients, vendors) how do they dress. How does your boss dress? I had a point haired boss who gave me 1 good piece of advice, don’t dress for the job you have, dress for the job you want.
Be neat. Clean, well-fitting cloths go a long way. Some people can pull of a professional look in jeans, t-shirt and jacket. Some people can’t pull this off, but there are a lot of geek polo shirts floating out there.
Be subtle. Be more like Howard Wolowitz then Sheldon Cooper from the Big Bang Theory. Sheldon’s t-shirts tend to scream. Howard always a little geek around him (belt buckets, pins, etc.)
To the submitter: Is there a way to dress professionally in the workplace as a boss (the kind that doesn't need to be defeated at the end of a level) while still showing my Browncoat or Whovian love as I crawl under cobwebby desks to check that equipment is properly plugged in?"
You shouldn't be crawling under desks. The people you will be supervising should.
I'd say, ask you boss what is required for you to wear. If he's ok with jeans and tshirts, go for it.
Free Martian Whores!
I'd say, ask you boss what is required for you to wear. If he's ok with jeans and tshirts, go for it.
No. If you boss recommends jeans and t-shirts, because that's a company culture thing, then and only then go for it. Otherwise dress at least one step up from those you supervise, or better yet at an equivalent step to what your new supervisors are wearing.
People are visual animals and a very large portion of behavioral queues are completely sub-conscious. The phrase "clothes make the man" may be disturbing from an intellectual standpoint, but it's entirely accurate from a human-reality standpoint. Do some experimentation - attend various service locations in differing levels of dress and pay attention to the body language and other sub-conscious queues you're given.* You should want those you supervise to unconsciously look up to you, and you may also want your new supervisors to think of you as one of their peers. It's the uniform of the professional - it's not very different than the blue coveralls a mechanic wears in the shop. Sorry, but the days of this are gone.
* You might want to check your jurisdiction's laws before experimenting much with a negative control.