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Does Dress Matter For The IT Job Interview?

People seem to differ strongly on what is the "right way to dress" for that interview. Unfortunately unlike resume formatting, there’s no standard here to follow. What may be honey for one job may be poisonous for another. And if it’s an IT job that you’re aiming for then the entire dress question takes on a special dimension.

But regardless of whether its a software company or a dotcom startup, you need to first realize in what category -- marketing, content, administration, technical-- and what level -- junior, senior -- the applied for job falls. Apply your brains and check the work culture of the target company. Some employers advocate smart casuals. Others would prefer if you wore to conventional suits or sober sarees and salwar kameez.

If you were doing what I’m doing, you could wear anything and no one would bat an eyelid. That's because my boss and his boss both like dressing casual. Their standard wear is shirts, jeans and running shoes. So how do you decide what to wear when applying for a job in the age of startup grunge? The best way to figure out the situation is to share some insights offered by people in the industry who have gone through similar unsettling experiences.

When Monica Ortiz walked into the USENIX Association offices in Berkeley, California, last year, she wore a professional three-piece black suit. She had her hair pulled back, makeup in place and resume stashed inside her briefcase. Ortiz quickly surmised that she was overdressed. Her interviewers at the Unix user group organization wore jeans and T-shirts. "Someone asked if I were going to the cemetery afterward," Ortiz, (now USENIX marketing manager) recalls, chuckling. She hadn't realized that she was dressed so severely. That she did get the job, shows that attitude and your ability to remain unfazed in the face of embarrassing situations go a long way in securing a job.

Meg Garrison found herself in a similar situation 10 years ago for an interview with Digital Equipment Corporation (now Compaq Computer) for a senior software engineer position. She wore a skirt and sweater, but the software engineers interviewing her were clad in their traditional garb of jeans and T-shirts. Garrison, now a Principal Software Engineer with Compaq says, "It didn’t bother me. I just felt better dressed than the rest." Now, if that’s the extent of your self confidence and positive optimism then you will go places!

However, you must always remember that no matter how you dress up, the consequence should be Success. Which brings us back to the question of Conventionality. Unless you’re dead sure or you didn’t give a damn, it’s best to tread the familiar path and dress as suitably as others would expect you to do.

Ortiz dressed appropriately, despite her prospective employers’ outfits. In fact, if there’s any question about what to wear for IT job interviews, the expert response is that job applications should always tend toward the conventional.

That’s also the generally agreed view held by IT professionals and job hunters. As Dan Bass, training project manager in Applied Materials' IT department says, "When you first meet someone, if you’re (dressed) too conservative, you can always step back. But if you’re (dressed} too liberal, you can never step back to conservative." It’s possible to dress down (by loosening your tie) if you’re dressed up, but it’s almost impossible to dress up if you’re already dressed down.

Some people feel more professional when dressed smartly. All you job seekers out there should heed this small act of what may appear as feeding your ego. It definitely goes a long way in making lasting impressions. Job seekers must still make a good first impression and "look fairly put together."s

Of course, every rule has exceptions. It’s safer to be overdressed than under dressed for an IT interview. But candidates shouldn’t be too formal and stodgy. That can signify an outdated applicant who’s resistant to change and slowly stagnating by adhering to the old rules.

Freshers can still get away with wardrobe blunders. Recruiters are likely to overlook that aspect assuming the inexperience of the job seeker. Young people out of college look uncomfortable in three-piece suits especially in informal environments. It’s not a major faux pas, but inappropriate unless that’s the environment you’re in. You don’t want to come overdressed. Overdressing may be unsuitable in some situations. Yet dressing down is almost never acceptable. It’s inappropriate to be totally sloppy and disrespectful. Because even the most creative IT companies that allow for extremes in dress are team environments and may not be the best places for making fashion statements.

It’s best to know your environment and when hunting for jobs always research prospective employers, including their corporate cultures, to learn what acceptable attire encompasses. Dressing for interviews with startup Internet companies may allow for more casual attire than a traditional corporation. And if you get too overdressed for an interview, it may indicate you’re not necessarily aware of the rhythms of a startup company.

Even then, consider 'business casual' like collared shirts, blazers and khakis for men, and slacks and nice blouses for women. In the Indian scenario, sarees are definitely formal, while salwar suits fall into the category of both formal and casual, thus acquiring an ambiguous status. However, it’s best to remember that business casual means different things to different companies. And remember to leave that form-fitting, hip-hugging dress in the closet.

Plus, there are always exceptions. A well-known technology ‘guru’ in the midst of a career transition appeared for an interview with a leading networking company wearing ‘a ponytail to his waist,’ he was picked up in a month because people recognized who he was.’ But fresh IT applicants are never in that position. For them, it’s critical to fit in with the environment. It’s difficult to overcome the first impression of sticking out.

A particular position may also determine what a job applicant should wear. Managers, CIOs and customer-facing employees must dress more formally than software engineers, programmers, content managers and Webmasters. The last set doesn’t always need to be the best-dressed bunch. You’d be surprised to know that even in startups, people comment on whether you’re wearing jeans or skirts, whether you have purple hair and ten earrings. Even the colour of your nail varnish makes a lot of difference.

Another important aspect of IT jobs is to remember that your daily network is the interview. It helps if IT candidates dress for networking and informal, informational discussions as they would for actual interviews.

It’s true that dress is only part of the overall package that an IT job applicant is selling to prospective employers. But what you wear goes a long way toward creating the all-important first impression with an interviewer. And as we all know, first impressions tend to be lasting impressions.

Amrita Ghosh
[email protected]

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