careers education & placement

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Careers Education & Placement Centre

Dressing for Interview

Date : 31 March, 2000 (Friday)

Time : 1:00 p.m.- 2:00 p.m.

Venue : T7, Meng Wah Complex


Ms Louisa LiDirector

E-mail : [email protected]

Web : http://www.hku.hk/cepc

Careers Education & Placement Centre


Slides from this presentation

• lecture notes are available at the CEPC Enquiry Desk for photocopying

• lecture notes are available at the CEPC homepage:<http://www.hku.hk/cepc>– Students – Services for students – Careers Education Courses – Lecture Notes


To project a CONFIDENT image

• well-groomed

• professionally dressed

• behave appropriately


Dress For work

• wear what the organization expects of you• be part of the team• dark suit for men• fairly conservative for women• project the best possible you• retain personal style• within the boundaries of business conventions• physical comfort as well as style


General

• no causal wear, wear business suit

• clothing must be clean and properly pressed

• no stain marks on collar and cuffs

• shirts should be properly tucked in

• shoes must be polished


Grooming• hair

- is your hair clean and free of dandruff?

• face

- is you face free of oil?

• nails

- are your nails clean?

• personal hygiene

- do you have body odour or bad breath?


photos


AIA cont’d


Cheung Kong Holdings Ltd cont’d


Hang Seng Bankcont’d


KPMGcont’d


KPMG cont’d


KPMGcont’d


MDCcont’d


Standard Chartered Bankcont’d


Standard Chartered Bank cont’d


Samples from shopscont’d


Samples from catalogues


DRESSING FOR INTERVIEWS - WOMEN

• suit - navy, grey, plum, beige, taupe, dark green, claret and cooca are examples of good

colour• matching blouses -

e.g. white, off-white, shell pink• simple style leather shoes, solid colour

e.g. black, brown• thin skin-coloured stockings• matching leather handbag, not too big• elegant watch• wear simple make-up• do not use perfume


DRESSING FOR INTERVIEWS - MEN

• dark business suit - charcoal and navy are the best colour

• white long-sleeved shirt• classic patterned, solid coloured tie, avoid tie with

bright colour or large pattern• tie should reach belt buckle and very close to

collar when tied• black leather shoes• black, dark grey or navy socks• black leather belt, no suspenders


BODY LANGUAGE• Eye Contact

- direct eye contact

- confident but friendly• Voice

- sound enthusiastic, neither too soft nor too loud

• Gestures

- avoid nervous gesture e.g. fidgeting hands or jigging feet

• Postures

- sit, stand and walk up-right


Attitude Survey - Dressing for Interview

Questions• Is it adequate just being neat?• Expect them to look professional?• Expect them to be smart and sophisticated?• Consequences if physical appearance does not

meet the organisation’s expectation?

• Will the negative consequence, if any, be over-compensated for by exceptional performance at work?


Reply 1• reflects sincerity and courtesy

• expect candidate to the neat and tidy

• for administrative jobs

- dresses instead of trousers

- suits that are simple and comfortable

- this can help them to feel more at ease and confident in the interview

• physical appearance, not an important criteria, but an advantage

Attitude Survey - Dressing for Interview …cont’d

cont’d


Reply 1 … cont’d

• if it requires a lot of external contact, it may not be compensated for by performance

Reply 2• expect them to look like a professional at

interviews

• for work, they can dress like other colleagues


cont’d


Reply 3• for work, they can dress like other colleagues

• neat is minimum

• more marks given for professional looks

• show candidate’s respect for the chance of an interview / the company

• smart / sophisticated is not necessary

• each company / industry has its own policy and acceptable dress code, it will not harm to be business like / professional looking


cont’d


Reply 4• dress according to the industry

Reply 5• we are expecting a clean, tidy and polite applicant

(but not only the superficial appearance)

• no need to be too fashionable, perfumed or heavily made up

• attitude more important

- punctuality


cont’d


Reply 5 … cont’d

• attitude more important … cont’d

- responsible (bring along certificates, testimonials, reference letters and present them in a tidy manner)

- politeness (switch off pager or mobile phone, should not use the phone of the potential employer for casual chat.)

- patience (some applicants show poor attitude when kept waiting)

- humble (some applicants declined to do tests, e.g. typing test)


cont’d


Reply 6• a neat and tidy business look

- if appearance does not match our expectation, we will tell them the dress code of our organisation

• purposes- present a professional image and help own

confidence- the person will be representing the company, so

dress code should be in line with industry requirement

- show respect for others



Useful Reference Materials

The Careers Library has a collection of videos and books on the subject, such as:Videos- Looking Sharp : Dressing for Success- Looking Sharp : Grooming for Success- Professional Presence- Projecting the Right Image- Executive Grooming for Female StudentsBooks- The Image Factor- Dressing with Colour- Body Language: How to read others’ thoughts by

their gestures


Questions & Answers


Additional Information


Dressing With Color

• Coordinating Coats and Scarves

• The Color Circle

• Silhouettes

• Collars

• Necklines

• Sleeves

• Glossary


The Image Factor

1. What is the ‘Image Factor’?Personal image and organizational culture

What is an image?

Why is the image factor important?

Elements of personal image

Extented image

Cont’d


The Image Factor … (cont’d)

2. CommunicationFirst impressions and the power of non-verbal communication

The language of clothes

Body language and presence

Reputation and visibility

Self-marketing

Cont’d


The Image Factor ….(cont’d)

3. Projecting a Professional ImageProfessional impact

Image stealers

Business grooming strategy

Professional dressing

Levels of Dress

Cont’d



4. Know YourselfClothes and personality

Colour and personality

Design and personality

Cont’d



5. Organization and PlanningAggressive observation

Personal architecture

Lifestyle

Wardrobe management

Wardrobe maintenance

Budget

Building an appropriate business wardrobe

Cont’d



6. Personal StyleIndividual image

Style preference exercise

Primary style characteristics

Secondary style characteristics

Lack of style - whose fault is it?

Cont’d



7. What to Wear for WhatDress for the event

Preparation and research

Event checklist

Enhancing the message

Why do we wear clothes anyway?


Where to get more informationWhere to get more information

Enquiry Desk - Careers Library

Videos

– Projecting the Right Image (CUHK Press - 45 min)