This is going to be interesting!
Goldman Sachs, a massive bank, has decided that its picky dress code is going to be relaxed so they can get Millenials to work for them. I find this to be fascinating as the tech industry has had a relaxed dress code for 40 years. Why is a huge, stuffy, cranky bank making the change?
Apparently, the potential employees they want to get on board are not interested in working at a place that requires them to wear a coat and tie. I assume they ran out of talent or got turned down too much. The problem may not be only the dress code but also there may be no work freedom. Just a couple of years, they decreed that interns cannot work more than 17 hours a day. How enlightened!
I see all types of commentators raving and applauding this move by Goldman Sachs. Big whoop! I am underwhelmed!
The dress code is a symptom of a problem…not the problem itself.
The relaxed dress code of most companies is just part of an overall pattern of work freedom. It includes work hours shifting and working remote.
Productivity
John Malloy, a researcher who wrote Dress for Success 30 years ago, had found that it did not matter what clothes an employee wore as it didn’t affect their productivity. However, how the employees were dressed around them did make a great difference in their productivity. Therefore, he decided that suits should be worn in the office.
Now, we need to remember that he was referring to the baby boomer generation which had been brought up on their parents wearing suits to work. Therefore, the answers from the surveys made sense. The baby boomer generation was focused on staying employed and working all hours as required.
Now, the current crop of youngins coming into the workplace who aren’t buying into any of that.
Changes Needed
I predict Goldman Sachs will fail unless they make some other changes in their work environment. Clothes options are part of a bigger issue: Work Freedom. Changing just the clothes requirement needs to be part of a more comprehensive plan to give the employee options that blend their personal life with their work life.
Goldman Sachs needs to allow their employees the ability to shift their worktimes for an earlier or later start. Allow the employees to select benefits in exchange for cash. Employees should be given the option to work remotely as a bank can work totally remotely from anywhere in the world.
However, the company executives are all old school veterans and I am sure changes will be slow. What is needed are some upstart commercial banks to start and knock Goldman Sachs off their top perch.
Employers Take Note
Attracting top talent takes more than spinning a vision of the company future. Too many prospective employees have now caught on to promises of a great future with the company and then find out they signed on to a rigid company that wants to micro manage them each day and then toss them aside when they are not needed.
Employees want some flexibility in their work and the work-life balance is very, very important. Changing a clothes rule is a good start but it won’t be enough to attract the best talent!