Do i need to wear a tie in a new job.

I like a nice tie. A suit doesn’t look right without one.

There’s a nice, easy way around that 🙂

To be honest I am looking forward to ties coming back into fashion. The way some folk dress at work is disgraceful and unprofessional. I am old enough to remember when even the postman looked smart with the correct outfit and tie. Call me old fashioned if you will but I will always go to work in a suit wearing a tie with my black shoes nice and shiny, because I actually like to be smart and it makes me feel good. And guess what the ladies like a smart looking guy in the office so you know what to do guys to get the ladies attention!!

I guess it’s down to the job you do really. I get paid to invent stuff. Dressing smartly doesn’t aid my productivity or make things work.

porcaro – Member
To be honest I am looking forward to ties coming back into fashion. The way some folk dress at work is disgraceful and unprofessional. I am old enough to remember when even the postman looked smart with the correct outfit and tie. Call me old fashioned if you will but I will always go to work in a suit wearing a tie with my black shoes nice and shiny, because I actually like to be smart and it makes me feel good.

If it help you do your job better then fair enough but this bullshit dress up or the worst “smart casual” for jobs or time when you are not facing customers is stupid. If you feel that dressing up help you then do it, if not then it’s a pointless requirement.

And guess what the ladies like a smart looking guy in the office so you know what to do guys to get the ladies attention!!

Not spouting bullshit works for me.

And guess what the ladies like a smart looking guy in the office so you know what to do guys to get the ladies attention!!

Not spouting bullshit works for me.

Really? When I was in the market I found spouting bullshit was a better method of attracting ladies than looking rich. Although to be fair both methods were bending the truth.

I get paid to invent stuff. Dressing smartly doesn’t aid my productivity or make things work.

Well since by your own admission you’re dressed like a man on holiday, you must have been extra productive today. What have you invented so far?

Ties are for ****

I was the only one in my old office who wouldn’t wear one, didn’t make a blind bit of difference to my ability to do my work.

What do you do again, Loddrick? 😉

loddrik – Member
Ties are for ****

I was the only one in my old office who wouldn’t wear one, didn’t make a blind bit of difference to my ability to do my work.

Cor! What a rebel!

If I’m visiting a customer for the first time I’ll pop a tie on. I’m not a suit man though. I think the suit with no tie can sometimes look like you’ve just left a club. If done right, & on the right person, it can look good, but for eg: a suit with a white shirt & no tie on a chubby bloke looks like somethings missing. We’ve had customers come in & I’ve been left gobsmacked that folk can turn up as a representative of their company in jeans & a scruffy polo shirt. If I’m going in front of the board/SMT I’ll generally try & look my best. It just feels better.

If I’m visiting a customer for the first time I’ll pop a tie on. I’m not a suit man though. I think the suit with no tie can sometimes look like you’ve just left a club. If done right, & on the right person, it can look good, but for eg: a suit with a white shirt & no tie on a chubby bloke looks like somethings missing. We’ve had customers come in & I’ve been left gobsmacked that folk can turn up as a representative of their company in jeans & a scruffy polo shirt. If I’m going in front of the board/SMT I’ll generally try & look my best. It just feels better

wot he said.

Ties are for ****

comments like that normally come out of a ****

If they don’t provide them and it is required at work you should be able to claim a very small amount against tax. I get my shoes offset against tax IIRC

That is the most impressive piece of tax avoidance I have ever heard off. You sir, are a genius.

That is the most ridiculous piece of cod tax avoidance I have ever heard of and will inevitably end up in an HMRC investigation at some point. You sir, are an idiot.

random jeremy – it is not actually in the case of nurses there are agreed allowances – see here for shoes and stocking which is really what TJ is claiming for and here for workwear for other areas. However, there is no way you would be able to claim a tie as a deduction – see Mallalieu v Drummond [1983] 57TC330

We’ve had customers come in & I’ve been left gobsmacked that folk can turn up as a representative of their company in jeans & a scruffy polo shirt.

I honestly wouldn’t care. What you are wearing is not important, it’s what comes out of your mouth that is.

What you are wearing is not important, it’s what comes out of your mouth that is.

That is why I wear a suit and tie, at least I’ve got a chance.

Shorts, t-shirt and flipflops is not office attire.

Im wearing shorts and a t-shirt in my office, I did wear flip flops after I had a couple of toenails removed. Nobody cares that I wear this. However if I am having a meeting or going out to see a customer I will put Jeans or a shirt and tie depending on the occasion, its very relaxed here.

wearing a tie doesnt change my capabilities, it changes the perception of them held by my customers

in my line of work a suit is therefore “compulsory”
no “the man” cannot make me, but i will leave that worthwhile battle to you renegades, thanks.

dress for the job you want not the job you have

work in an IT dept and there’s a big mix of dress styles. I go for the more casual end of the spectrum, no tie and trainers with a pair of chinos\cordy jean things.

I’m not called on to meet clients unless they’re already a customer of ours and if I’m called on it usually involves crawling about under a desk or behind a video wall etc. Work doesn’t pay for my clothing so I’m not going to ruin a perfectly good suit\shoes scrabbling about on the floor etc.

I’m slowly trying to become even more casual, would love to wear shorts\short sleeved shirt in the summer but think that’s prob pushing it . . . . .

(I did wear crocs for a month after breaking my foot though as they were the only thing I could get on. that was a particularly good look but it didn’t catch on for some reason)

It’s casual here, but really frigging warm so I really would love to wear shorts. Some folk do, but not enough so I feel comfortable. However if it gets much hotter I’ll have to play the ‘women are allowed to wear whatever they want’ card.

What you are wearing is not important, it’s what comes out of your mouth that is.

And if you can’t get through the front door to enlighten the good people?

And if you can’t get through the front door to enlighten the good people?

If their fashion based prejudices stop them from listening, go elsewhere.

Wear tie on first day
If nobody else in the office is wearing one, take it off and say “Thank **** for that, I was worried this might be the sort of place that makes you wear a tie
If everyone else in the office is wearing one, improvise.

If their fashion based prejudices stop them from listening, go elsewhere.

That’s a fine recipe for business success! Hope you have no plans on doing business with any of the major Japanese companies, or any major bank, or any major anything, actually.

If their fashion based prejudices stop them from listening, go elsewhere.

What area of business are you in where this attitude is successful?
Should I be worried that I find myself agreeing with CFH more and more? 😕

Happens to everyone, Don! 😉

I work in space industries, and thankfully it is an industry that values what a person does, rather than what fashion they follow.

The major banks brought the world to its knees with their incompetence, and Japanese companies are still massively protected and subsidised by the government following years of false accounting and actions that would be considered fraud by international standard.
Perhaps you could find some better examples to show why fashion should be considered so important rather than those that display the dangers of such misplaced business values.

MSP: You may be right about Japanese companies & the banking sector, but if you actually want some business from them, you need them to respect you and that means agreeing to common business terms and appearances.

Yes, even creative software companies know that selling to the Man requires thinking outside the standard-sized box of non-conformism. You will even find that your employer’s representatives will wear suit & tie when bidding for the business that pays your wages. Why not call them up on the internal and ask? Tell us tomorrow.

I don’t think you can blame the tie for the global financial crisis! You appear to be giving far too much credit to the humble tie, personally I would give more weight to good shoes, well polished. I have seen lots of bankers wearing suede shoes, I think this could be the problem.

I just think that enforcing a tie wearing policy is indicative of poor management practices.

And I don’t think that sales roles are the most important in business.

There are many roles in business which are equally important.
I’m pointing out that in your industry the people who make the deals to build the products which keep you employed, will be suited & booted.

However, a company with excellent sales & marketing and a poor product will do well; whereas an excellent product with bad sales & marketing will get completely nowhere.

However, a company with excellent sales & marketing and a poor product will do well; whereas an excellent product with bad sales & marketing will get completely nowhere.

I see it the other way around, its the people who make the products and deliver the services that keep the suited and booted deal makers in employment.

Good products sell themselves, sales and marketing can only go so far when the products are bad, get a bad reputation and no sales team will save you.

Why does one have to be more important than the other? No wonder companies have to spend a fortune on team building exercises. Neither is more important than the other but you both need each other for the company to function. The sooner you understand the other side and get on, the better for everyone. It’s not a competition, you work for the same team…

I see it the other way around, its the people who make the products and deliver the services that keep the suited and booted deal makers in employment

Not really.

You need both, much as it would pain most of us to admit it. The best products ever sometimes die because of lack of market support. Betamax was technically better than VHS IIRC.

Betamax was technically better than VHS IIRC.

That was a strategic decision with regard to licencing, IIRC, and not a marketing or sales problem.

If they don’t provide them and it is required at work you should be able to claim a very small amount against tax. I get my shoes offset against tax IIRC

Ooooh – TJ’s wrong! (although this isn’t a dig as it’s a common misconception). In order to claim an item as tax deductable, it has to be “solely and necessary for [your work]”.
I.e. I could claim for a (replacement) stethoscope, but not suit, tie, shoes, or uniform, as I could wear it out of work…

DrP

MSP, I’ve been on both sides.
Here’s a thought experiment.

Let A invest in & build a fantastic product and put it on a shelf.
Don’t tell anyone about it (that’s sales & marketing)

Let B build something that’s only half as good, but invest in literature, salespeople, publicity.

After 3 months, who has the revenue?

I agree that all other things being equal you need a great product & service – but the sales process HAS to be there.
I’m pointing out that even in the space idustry which you think is pure and bullshit-free, there is a need for the suit & tie to bring in your wages.

As a rufty-tufty technical person the number of days I’ve had to spend wearing a suit for work have been very limited (confined mainly to a 1 month rotation to the office during my apprenticeship and a six month secondment to a office based project (that wasn’t every day either). I have to say I quite liked wearing a tie, you can express yourself a bit if you know what you’re doing. If a shirt and tie is uncomfortable – you probably have the wrong sized collar.
If I had the luxury of sitting around a nice clean air conditioned office, the least I could do was make the effort of a bit of sartorial elegance, though I don’t think the girls in the office gave much of a toss.

I work in a school that’s a bit alternative. Kids wear what they want and whilst some of them do a damn good job of creating themselves a uniform of their own there are also some pretty eccentric dressers out there which the rest of the school really value for their individuality. No piss taking. I dress in jeans and a casual shirt or tee shirt most days and occasionally jazz it up with a smarter pair of jeans and a jacket and my least worse shirt if I’ve got visitors or parents to meet. The kids also call the staff by the first name but that’s by the by in the context of the thread.

I spent 10yrs in state education having to tell kids off for not having their ties the right length, not doing their top buttons up and tucking their shirts in – it seemed to be a constant battle. I frequently got bollocked by senior management for the state of dress of the sprogs in my charge. Thinking about it now from a distance it seems pathetic, especially considering how many of you lot don’t wear ties in the work place. If boys are to be encouraged to be boys in their spare time and actually run around a bit I’d almost consider them a health hazard by current standards. Who didn’t get peanutted good n’ proper at some point as a kid?

After 5 years of not wearing a tie to work I’d find it hard to go back – I didn’t even wear one to my own wedding.

It’s casual here, but really frigging warm so I really would love to wear shorts. Some folk do, but not enough so I feel comfortable. However if it gets much hotter I’ll have to play the ‘women are allowed to wear whatever they want’ card.

@Mol – might wanna check your contract for your proposed new job …