Business Casual is Hard - Page 3

This.

Nobody here really knows the specific atmosphere and culture of your work environment so we really can't answer your question. Only you know the answer. Is your CEO the type of person that would be impressed with you wearing a suit? Or is he the type of person that would think you are over-doing it or trying to hard by wearing a suit? What do other department heads do when they make similar presentations?

No offense, but wool trousers + polo shirt = bad look.

As the OP said, he is defending his dept. budget. He has people's jobs, and lives on the line for what he is going to be presenting. He is basically interviewing for his department's position and how company resources are going to allocated. It may very well be that his own future with the company could be affected by how well he handles this event.

Ultimately, the material that he presents is the most important aspect of this meeting. It must be correct, and he must be able to defend his position, his people, and size of the piece of corporate pie that they deserve. In todays market, once you start giving up money, it is very hard to get it back. You do not want to be 2nd string to any other person with whom you are competing.

In buisness be this!




Not this guy!

My co-workers all wear business casual up until the Director level (square toe shoes, black polyester blend slacks, shiny colorful shirts from Express, no tie) so I like to step it up a notch, especially since I work on the client site. Slacks, sportcoats, ties, and nice shoes are a way to step it up. The most important thing is fit; Get to know your tailor!

Today I'm wearing gray incotex wool pants, brown suede punch caps - Stuart's Choice, a blue gingham shirt from TM Lewin, a deep red and navy paisley tie by E. Zegna, and a nicely tailored J. Press navy DB jacket with smoke MOP buttons and a blue/gold PS.

I always put more thought into my dress than co-workers, while I stand out a little, everyone knows this is how I dress. Some have actually have been trying to emulate it, with varying degrees of success. I know many directors and VP's have complimented me on my professional and sharp attire.

If no one else is wearing a suit to that meeting, including the CEO, then I wouldn't wear one. A sharp sportcoat, slacks, nice shoes, and perhaps a tie should look good without overreaching.

This attitude has always been what I find. People appreciate the fact that you care enough to treat something with enough respect to deem it worthy of your best effort. Showing up with your "A" game has never been a bad thing.

I second the advice for sportcoat. It's easy to pass it off as outerwear before temperatures have truly plummeted. Add a tie if your work environment is not excessively informal (jeans and sneakers), you can always remove it if you're uncomfortable or out of place.

Tieless jacket is a chameleon look, wear it most days.

Slim trousers have no inherent superiority to full trousers. The crucial thing with slimmer pants is not to exchange ill-fitting full pants for ill-fitting slim pants. Pulling at the crotch is a fit problem. So is puddling fabric at the shoe, and so is visible sock when standing.

right, navy blue suit w/ no tie is a decent option as well

Excel within the confines of the context, if you overdress you have either problems correctly appraising the situation or you put your own ego before everything else. Neither of these work in favour.

I like this type of thinking, and more people need to think like this as opposed to "I can't wear this or that (an item that is usually acceptable) for fear it might offend someone at work or give them the wrong impression".

this

buy a $30-50 shirt and put in $20-50 to get it tailored

why wouldn't you just add a sportcoat here?

Wear a suit.

1. good to see you posting Kai

2. I hate business casual, too

3. when I think of jobs that would allow one to dress differently from the rest of the office, in house council seems to be close to the top of the list. somehow, I seem to remember that that is what you do, but I might be mistaken

4. I tend to suit up when I present to my CEO, too.