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MARKETING A SUPPLEMENT OF THE ZWEIG LETTER
B E S T P R A C T I C E S
CEO fashion: What’s your passion? Dressing for success is no longer defined by a strict dress code; here’s what leaders in the AEC industry are wearing.
By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent W hen Dress For Success came out in 1975, it set rigid rules for executive attire, but today, the game has changed. While it’s still important to look put together, dressingfor successnowmeansfinding the look that works best for you, and sticking to it. “There’s a power to looking consistent,” Jon Pat- rick, creative director of men’s custom clothier J. Hilburn, says. “It makes you seem focused.” “I can’t remember the last time I wore a tie to work and did not have some very important meeting.” STICKING WITH TRIED AND TRUE. Sam Schwartz, CEO of Sam Schwartz Engineering (New York, NY), a 100-person interdisciplinary transportation engineering and planning firm, says that the “uni- form” for many engineers, including him, is a blue
blazer, gray slacks, light-colored shirt, and conser- vative tie. “I always travel with those items,” he says. “If I want to go out and wear jeans, a blue blazer still looks good. When I have an important meeting, it’s the navy suit. I wear black suits if I’m partying and want to feel chic. If I’m only having office meetings, the tie comes off, although I always keep extras (and a blue blazer) in my office closet.” Douglas McKeown, CEO of WOODARD & CUR- RAN (Portland, ME) – an 850-person integrated engineering, science, and operations company – says that most days he tries to dress business ca- sual, but the firm does allow a more relaxed dress code in the summer months. “Shorts are not uncommon, but most of us don’t have the legs to allow that ... it really needs to align with the schedule that day, and whether any clients are coming in who I have to meet with,” he says. See FASHION, page 12
THE ZWEIG LETTER OCTOBER 26, 2015, ISSUE 1125
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