Don’t underestimate the power of your appearance
Lesen Sie hier, wie wichtig das richtige Outfit im internationalen Geschäftsleben ist. Nur so können Sie sicher gehen, immer richtig angezogen zu sein.
This month we will take a look at the kind of clothes you are expected to wear for work.
Rules on how to dress at work in the international business environment have changed drastically over the past years.
Some companies – banks, brokers, attorneys for example – still sometimes require employees to wear business dress, but most companies have relaxed their dress code and now tend toward business casual.
But in the USA in particular, dress code is stricter than it is in Germany. You should never underestimate the power of your appearance. By wearing the wrong clothes, you can send out the wrong messages. This is important to remember when you have visitors from the US.
But what exactly is dress code?
There are four categories:
Category 1 – “business professional”
- Men – business suit, shirt with collar , tie, dress shoes
- Women – business suit with skirt or trousers, blouse, dress shoes and nylons, conservative jewellery
Category 2 – “almost a suit”
- Men – jacket or blazer, good quality shirt, tie, tailored trousers, leather dress shoes.
- Women – good quality trousers, skirt, coordinating jacket, blazer, dress and jacket, hosiery to match skirt or trousers, leather shoes with a closed toe, conservative jewellery
Category 3 – “business casual”
- Men – sports jacket, sweater or sweater type shirt, tailored trousers or softer trousers, shirt without a tie, loafers
- Women – sweater twin sets, trousers or skirtU
Category 4 - “clearly casual”
- Men – khakis, sport shirt, polo shirt.
- Women – skirt, casual trousers or jeans, cotton blouse, sweaters