Illusion of Dress Code
WHY THE ILLUSION OF A DRESS CODE ?
When I left Infosys to pursue my MBA, I was told there’ll be a lot of things that would change. Sure indeed , a lot DID change in my life … the whole ambience of college life brought back a relieving freshness to my life . But I guess there are some things that never change.. certain illusions that never seem to stop haunting you.. like the illusion of a ‘DRESS CODE’.
Now for those who are not aware, Infosys is a company with perhaps the most stringent DRESS CODE policies. Each and every employee needs to be impeccably groomed…nay….dressed in formals. And it is to be followed to the extent that you might miss a meeting , loose a client ,miss a flight , may not be able to reach the doctor or whatever.. but can’t go inside/outside the office even if it’s a small matter like your tie being a bit loose !!
So clearly, I thought leaving Infosys would bring me freedom from the aforementioned autocracy of DRESS CODE. But little did I know, that I was counting my chickens way too soon.. Even in the BSchool , you are expected to be wearing the so called ‘institute formals’ ( which to my horror I realized constituted of not only a formal shirt, a trouser and a tie , but also a hefty BLAZER!!) . And you are expected to wear this crap on.. wait for it.. every day you roam around in the summer visiting companies , every day you sit in an interview , every day your friend sits an interview, every time your institute hosts one out of a galaxy of seminars and events and conferences , every time you have to give a Corporate Finance presentation …and the list is endless. And every time I have to wear it..this one question keeps buzzing in my head.. why this illusion of a dress code?
It’s not that a guy wearing a coat will be able to memorize and recite the whole of Phillip Kotler, solve all numericals in I.M. Pandey and rip apart every other soul in a placement GD. And some other dude, who’s wearing a tee, would not be even able to add 2+2. The
When I left Infosys to pursue my MBA, I was told there’ll be a lot of things that would change. Sure indeed , a lot DID change in my life … the whole ambience of college life brought back a relieving freshness to my life . But I guess there are some things that never change.. certain illusions that never seem to stop haunting you.. like the illusion of a ‘DRESS CODE’.
Now for those who are not aware, Infosys is a company with perhaps the most stringent DRESS CODE policies. Each and every employee needs to be impeccably groomed…nay….dressed in formals. And it is to be followed to the extent that you might miss a meeting , loose a client ,miss a flight , may not be able to reach the doctor or whatever.. but can’t go inside/outside the office even if it’s a small matter like your tie being a bit loose !!
So clearly, I thought leaving Infosys would bring me freedom from the aforementioned autocracy of DRESS CODE. But little did I know, that I was counting my chickens way too soon.. Even in the BSchool , you are expected to be wearing the so called ‘institute formals’ ( which to my horror I realized constituted of not only a formal shirt, a trouser and a tie , but also a hefty BLAZER!!) . And you are expected to wear this crap on.. wait for it.. every day you roam around in the summer visiting companies , every day you sit in an interview , every day your friend sits an interview, every time your institute hosts one out of a galaxy of seminars and events and conferences , every time you have to give a Corporate Finance presentation …and the list is endless. And every time I have to wear it..this one question keeps buzzing in my head.. why this illusion of a dress code?
It’s not that a guy wearing a coat will be able to memorize and recite the whole of Phillip Kotler, solve all numericals in I.M. Pandey and rip apart every other soul in a placement GD. And some other dude, who’s wearing a tee, would not be even able to add 2+2. The