Does it really matter what contact centre staff wear? I am torn between the two sides of the debate and I guess even now, I am sitting on the fence.
We hire based on experience, knowledge and skills, so why should we care what they wear or even how people do their hair?
My definition of corporate dress standards may differ from others. So, for the purpose of my blog, this is how I would define casual/mufti dress: jeans, short skirts, strappy or strapless tops or dresses worn by ladies, jandals, beach shorts and t shirts and running shoes.
On the mufti side of my fence my argument is as follows: Years ago, I had a team that was incredibly successful on days that we were dressed in causal or smart casual clothes. We achieved our daily sales targets and we had fabulous days and it created a great team culture. Unsurprisingly I was always an avid supporter to have more mufti days.
Now as I shift my weight over to the other side of the fence. As a Contact Centre Manager, I had a wonderful response when we gave corporate dress shirts to our staff. It looked great in the centre, and I believed it increased our centre’s culture. There’s nothing better than senior management acknowledging how great their contact centre staff look. I think the benefits did out way the costs. Again, I think it created a nice work environment and helped with the overall performance of the centre.
So at the end of the day, the questions I have are:
Does it matter what you wear, as long as you have a high level of performance every day and team culture remains positive?
Does working in a contact centre where you are not visible to the customers, mean that dress standard is irrelevant?
Or, is corporate dress something that should remain and reminds us about the team or business values?
Happy to hear what happens in different centres, maybe it will help me get off the fence!