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Dressing For Women in Authority in Business, Especially Job Interviews

post #1 of 16
9/18/11 at 1:25pm
Thread Starter 
I almost took another thread off in a tangent, but I think this is worth its own discussion...and I do not believe I have seen this discussed here in depth before:

So we have all seen countless posts about dressing as conservatively as possible for an interview and "not out-dressing the boss" in any case, but what about when the person in authority is a woman? Is it possible that a woman would actually prefer seeing a guy who can really coordinate different colors and patterns well (let's say a pinstripe suit, windowpane shirt and a solid tie) and takes the time to use French cuffs and a PS? Or wears brown or burgundy shoes as opposed to the basic black? And is a woman interviewer going to be as well-versed in the rules and standards that are argued here, such as don't wear a PS or wear French cuffs? Or is she going to go with her gut instinct looking at a guy's entire outfit and say to herself, "well...he look sharp/ nice/ professional."

And on the other end of the pecking order (and I really don't want to sound sexist...but....), what about the man-hungry, Sex and the City-addicted young female receptionist who is the first and last person you probably encounter when going to the firm for an interview? A smart interviewer will ask the support staff "how were they" to see if their manners and best behavior only applies to the interviewees superiors. If a guy takes the time to show some flair and stand out...frankly, making oneself more attractive to women would it not probably inspire Miss Bubblehead to say "Oh yeah...I really LIKED him!"


?????
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post #2 of 16
9/18/11 at 2:27pm
You might as well flip a coin.

For every woman who sees a sharp dressed guy who looks great thinks "I wanna have someone like that on my team" there will be one who thinks "That jerk thinks he's god's gift, screw him".

I'm not sure you can plan for it.
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post #3 of 16
9/18/11 at 2:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Blackhood View Post

You might as well flip a coin.

For every woman who sees a sharp dressed guy who looks great thinks "I wanna have someone like that on my team" there will be one who thinks "That jerk thinks he's god's gift, screw him".

I'm not sure you can plan for it.

+1
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post #4 of 16
9/18/11 at 2:37pm
Same rules: You do not know the interviewer so just act normally for the situation.
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post #5 of 16
9/18/11 at 4:26pm
Asking a forum full of men isn't going to help you. You need a woman's perspective. I suggest you post this question over at our 'sister' site Purse Forum. If you actually do post this question over there please post a link here so we can all follow along. You can even post fit pics of your prospective interview outfit to gauge their reaction. That should be interesting.

And dressing conservatively will never hurt you in an interview. Why take any chances?

Trying to dress in such a way as to attract the amorous attention of the opposite sex, as you seem to indicate in your example of
Quote:
the man-hungry, Sex and the City-addicted young female receptionist

is simply playing with fire. Imagine how you would react if a woman shows up to be interviewed by you in a low cut top, push-up bra and a short tight skirt along with sky-high heels. It's simply not a good idea and at the very least calls into question your sense of judgement or lack thereof. Remember, you want to stand out from the field of other candidates in a good way.
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post #6 of 16
9/18/11 at 4:41pm
Thread Starter 
OK, so then wearing a three-piece suit with lapels on the vest with French cuffs, a Hermes PS and a tie bar AND a collar bar with spats and then boning the horny, cute receptionist is NOT a good idea?


All kidding aside, your points are well taken. But dressing with a bit of flair is not quite equivalent to putting boobs on display and wearing hooker heels. I guess the male version would be dressing like this?


262
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post #7 of 16
9/18/11 at 4:49pm

Every girl's crazy 'bout a sharp dressed man.
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post #8 of 16
9/18/11 at 5:02pm
You're assuming that she knows what she's doing. Most of the highly successful women I have met are just as clueless as their male counterparts when it comes to style (or even fashion).

Now that may be the result of me working in a science and engineering field, but i think it's broadly applicable (read stereotype, but whatever).
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post #9 of 16
9/18/11 at 5:48pm
It should not be an issue, male or female. Would one dress to impress a male interviewer hoping on the off chance he is gay?

Dressing to impress a woman interviewer in the hope she feels attraction and may bias a decision in your favour is ....

A sign of an implicit weakness, be it you are not so good at your job, you have a weak resume / profile and are compensating, or perhaps your self confidence is shot to shit. All this reflects badly on you, perhaps other people will not perceive it, but you will know deep down you are trying to swindle your way into a job. Why swindle your way in - is that a deep indicator that perhaps deep in your inner sanctum you believe you are not good enough to get the job on merit alone?

If a person sincerely valued themselves, not only as a person, but as a professional as well, such dress related outcomes are not strongly considered - particularly regarding the attempted biasing of an interview outcome based on sexual appeal.

It is natural to dress to impress, there is nothing wrong with it and it is strongly encouraged / compulsory in our society. Dressing beyond the standard deviation to attract a mate is acceptable in nightclubs, but not in the professional world. Man or woman, should make no difference the way you dress - do the same for both. Unless you find the woman interviewer is hot for you and your clothes and gives you a beeline to stoke her breasts everytime you wear a $4K plus POW plaid DB Suit.

EDIT ---- The "you" is third person, not specifically to the OP or anyone else on this forum.
Edited by Klobber - 9/18/11 at 6:13pm
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post #10 of 16
9/19/11 at 8:37am
Thread Starter 
I am thankful not to be the official "You!" And I am certainly not prescribing what I posted...just wondering about this in theory.
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post #11 of 16
9/19/11 at 9:08am
Women don't know a damn thing about men's clothes. Why should they? They don't wear em.

Just make sure to shave, bathe, comb your hair, put on a clean suit and avoid stuffing an avocado down your pants.
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post #12 of 16
9/19/11 at 9:15am
I work for a woman boss. she runs the business development, sales and marketing for company of 600 people, and she really is the only strategic visionary of the company. I think that she is looking for neat, conservative, not too focused on how you look type of dressing. she has commented, in a very light joking manner about my DB and 3 piece suits. but she is all about getting things done, not how you look doing it.
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post #13 of 16
9/19/11 at 9:20am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Klobber View Post

It should not be an issue, male or female. Would one dress to impress a male interviewer hoping on the off chance he is gay?

Dressing to impress a woman interviewer in the hope she feels attraction and may bias a decision in your favour is ....
.[/I]

Why do you suggest a gay man might value clothes any differently from a hetrosexual? Your point is not valid to that degreee although I would agree with much of what else you write.
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post #14 of 16
9/19/11 at 10:12am
Quote:
Originally Posted by MrDaniels View Post

I am thankful not to be the official "You!" And I am certainly not prescribing what I posted...just wondering about this in theory.

That is precisely why I edited the post to suggest I was not talking of anyone specific - you raised an interesting issue and I already knew that you would not have prescribed to it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by GBR View Post

Why do you suggest a gay man might value clothes any differently from a hetrosexual? Your point is not valid to that degreee although I would agree with much of what else you write.

Ahh, I was swinging on the angle of dressing from point of view that sexual attraction may swing favor in an interview situation. Not suggesting a gay person has any better or worse sartorial values than a heterosexual. I dont buy into the fictional hollywood steriotypes.
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post #15 of 16
9/19/11 at 10:20am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Klobber View Post

Ahh, I was swinging on the angle of dressing from point of view that sexual attraction may swing favor in an interview situation. Not suggesting a gay person has any better or worse sartorial values than a heterosexual. I dont buy into the fictional hollywood steriotypes.

I do. 80% of gay people I know are reasonably well dressed (not sf approved, but understand fit and colour). 5% of straight people I know are reasonably well dressed. Its not a slur in either direction, but it certainly seems to be a prevailing trend.
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