Dress Code and Entrepreneurs…Necessary?

  A post at VentureBeat, by Michael McKean ("5 Challenges Entrepreneurs Never Expect") notes:

Lesson learned: Laying down a few ground rules for attire doesn’t make you uncool, just more professional.

Michael K. McKean is the CEO and Director of New Product Development for the Knowland Group, a provider of business development solutions for the global hospitality industry; a board member of the Washington D.C. chapter of the Entrepreneur’s Organization (EO); a regular contributor to Hotel News Now, Hotel Business Review, and Hotel Interactive. Where Mr. McKean is based has something to do with his outlook on business and attire, yet his advice does apply "beyond the Beltway" (outside of Washington, DC) in business, in general.

A commenter to his post stated, "Your comments on dress code are nonsense. Have you seen SV recently? Dress-codes are anathema to many talented people – particularly engineers. Dress code is only appropriate when people are customer-facing. I'd be very concerned if my employees were measurably more effective when they tucked their shirts in."

My thought is that work environments where customer contact is rare may find personal expression in clothing to be quite appropriate. My "however" in this is that rarely is a workplace completely absent of customer contact. Potential clients or investors may seek to tour a workplace to see with whom they are planning to do business. While creativity may not be enhanced just because shirts are tucked in, if a business seeks to project an image worthy of large investment dollars or contracts, that image is reinforced by employees' appearance. "Casual" does not have to mean sloppy, just as "professional" does not have to mean suit-and-tie. A code that consists of "polo shirts or similar collared shirts; clean jeans with no holes and patches or similar khakis or pants; blouses or other upper garments that fully cover suggestive areas (for women); closed-toed shoes" is professional for creative environments.

What is sometimes missed in dress code interpretation is that how we dress and look directly impacts how we feel and perform. When we know we look good, we have an attitude that is different from when we just "slum it". Likewise, when we know we look professional, we are more prone to act professionally. A creative environment is a business.