Consider introducing casual, dress-down Fridays.

Dress-down Fridays are one of the strategies that companies are constantly implementing in order to boost staff engagement and organizational efficiency. The study offered here offers insight into the Consideration of Introducing Informal, Dress Down Fridays. The first segment is an overview that discusses the idea of dress-down days as they are introduced in organizations. The second segment discusses the reasons that businesses consider to ensure a successful introduction of dress-down Fridays in order to prevent employee opposition. The third section provides an indication of the impact on the companies which have effectively embraced the culture such as improved employee morale and productivity. The fourth section reveals the impact noted on companies which not effectively implemented the best industrial methods. The fifth section of the review outlines real life examples of companies which have effectively implemented the presented culture within the workplace and the derived benefits.

Consideration of Introducing Informal, Dress Down Fridays

Introduction

Many firms are increasingly adopting the dress-down Friday approach which allows employees to wear more casual clothing when reporting to work on Fridays. The approach has proven to be a way of motivating employees within the workplace since they are provided with an opportunity to wear comfortable clothes rather than their normal office attire. Fortune et al. (1995) indicates that dress down Fridays is highly common in businesses which have an office premise rather than other employee groups. Over the past three to four years, the dress-down Friday has continually been incorporated in different workplaces across the globe. Most companies have allowed dress down only for Fridays while the workers yearn that it could be for the weekend. The main aim of this approach is focused on ensuring the employees take work less seriously and in turn enhance their morale and increase their productivity in the workplace. The presented approach has achieved this by improving on the communication levels between the workers and the managers, creating a sense of togetherness, and easing tension that the employees experience when in the workplace. Apparently, the employees picture the dress-down as a break from their normal workplace routine which is directly related to an increased level of autonomy.

What a company should do to ensure effective work implementation of Informal, Dress Down Fridays

Introducing informal dress-down Fridays within the workplace is considered as a way of implementing change within the workplace. The fact that the employees were never allowed to wear casual clothing to work before communicates a message of the fact that the move in question means change implementation within the workplace. Furthermore, implementing change within the workplace can be characterized by a high level of resistance. Therefore, to effectively ensure the implementation of the informal dress-down approach, various factors should be taken into consideration. Businesses are considered to be dynamic in nature. As a result, various changes will always be implemented to ensure that tasks continue to run smoothly within the organization as well as to ensure that the employees in the firm continue to be motivated by the activities that they undertake in the industry. Organization change is the activity which involves reviewing and modifying the structures of the management and business processes. Small businesses are expected to adapt and survive against the strong rivals in the market so as to exhibit an increased growth rate.

The organization’s management is expected to communicate the need for change to employees. Communicating the need for change will reduce the level of resistance when it comes to implementing the identified approach within the workplace. During the presented instance, the management can engage the employee in communication to gather their perspective on the vision of the organization and what it expects to gain from the implantation of the dress-down Friday. Communicating the need for change will make it easier for the employees to understand why the organization needs to include a day when they are allowed to wear casual clothing and also understand that the benefits that company and the employees will derive from the implementation of the informal dress-down Friday.

Additionally, to ensure the implementation of the identified action, the management of the organization should consider empowering the action. The presented factor can be achieved by doing away with the factors which may inhibit the implementation of the dress-down Fridays approach. Empowering the action can also be achieved by getting rid of the change structures which make it difficult to achieve the vision of implementing the dress-down Fridays. Furthermore, the approach can also be implemented effectively by creating a short-term wins arising from the implementation of the process. For instance, an improved level of communication between the staff and the management and an enhanced level of employee motivation can be considered as some of the short-term wins which can be derived from the implementation of the informal dress-down Fridays.

Diagnosing resistance is also an important factor of consideration in the presented scenario of organization change since the situation can be chaotic. It remains a fact that when the managers fail to consider the needs and decisions of the employees when implementing the change process, it is highly evident that the members of the organization will become suspicious of the intentions of the top management and hence resist the suggested change by the organization. It is the obligation of the management to be aware of the various forms of resistance that the management is likely to experience when it comes to organization change implementation. Furthermore, it is also mandatory that the management should have all it takes to address the presented resistance to avoid the drastic implications which may arise in the long run.

Impact on the company that effectively implements best industry methods on Introducing Informal, Dress Down Fridays

Increased Productivity

Dressing down has a great potential of increasing the rates of productivity in the company which has effectively implemented the approach. Evidently, casual dress days within the workplace have played a significant role in creating a more relaxed environment. The relaxed environment further boosts the morale of the workers in the workplace as well as increased creativity since it allows the employees to feel more comfortable and happy. Apparently, the casual wear makes workers feel more powerful and ready to handle higher level abstract thinking within the workplace which in turn increases the productivity levels of the firm (McPherson, 1997). Various scholars have argued that informal clothing within the workplace has cognitive consequences in that it forces employees to think concretely and abstractly which is also directly related to an increased level of productivity in the workplace. Apparently, offices which have casual Fridays have reported a positive mood shift which comes along with a shift in attire.

Improved Performance

An improved workplace performance is also an important factor evident in organizations which have effectively implemented the dress-down culture. An improved performance of the employees as a result of the dress down day comes about as a result of an improved employee morale, an increased productivity, lack of cost to the employer, and cost saving based on the fact that casual wear is less expensive than business wear. The fact that dressing casually results to a better attitude of the workers means creating a feeling of freedom for the workers as well to a point that the workforce feels more productive and flexible. With this, an improved relations will be noted among the workers hence the enhanced productivity in the workplace. Many firms are increasingly encouraging dress down with an aim of cultivating a casual work culture (McPherson, 1997).

Impact on the company that does not effectively implement best industry methods on Introducing Informal, Dress Down Fridays

A company which does not implement the best industry method is likely to experience negative consequences. For instance, a decline in work performance may be noted at this instance. It is a fact that the rise of the casual dress code within the workplace has created casual attitudes in organizations which have not effectively implemented the method therefore resulting to a lack of office decorum. Biecher, Keaton and Pollman (1999) argue that in such environments, productivity of the workers is not promoted in any manner. Furthermore, it is also evident that in such a case scenario, it is evident that abusing a business-casual dress code is also easy based in the fact that the attire could lead to an increased sloppiness and laziness among the employees hence a decreased professionalism level in the long run. The presented factor is highly evident as the attention of the workers will be transformed to other factors of less importance in comparison to their jobs such as fashion.

Fortune et al. (1995) indicates that dressing casually has an increased potential of ensuring that the employees remain less focused within the workplace. Apparently, a wearer will always adopt the features associated with the garment he/she is wearing. Various clothing has symbolic meaning for the people. As a result, people will always behave in ways consistent with the meaning of the garment. The presented theory explains the reason why people will always stay more focused when wearing clothes.

Example to support Impact on the company that effectively implements best industry methods on Introducing Informal, Dress Down Fridays

Various companies have implemented the informal dress down Fridays which have further resulted to an increased productivity through a change in mood. Baptist Health South Florida is an example of a company which has recorded a mood shift with the change in attire among the employees. The corporate manager of the identified company indicates that clothing will always correlate with the interactions that that the employees will have with the management in the workplace. The informal wear days within the identified company has created a more relaxed environment for the employees to work in hence an increased productivity (Bailey, 1997). Furthermore, it is also evident that Miami’s Gerson Preston is also another example which has effectively implemented the dress down day which has ensured a transition in the mood of the workers hence the increased level of workplace productivity. A partner of the identified company, Dorothy Eisenberg, provides that the dress code has played an important role in ensuring a relaxed culture within the organization. Additionally, the transition into a business-casual wear within the firm has created a culture which makes it easy for the organization to attract young employees which is considered as an important consideration for accounting firms. Furthermore, Eisenberg revealed that the transition from business to casual wear within the organization communicates the fact that the organization is not stuffy and that people are complying with what the market is like additionally, it also suggests that the staff members are more relaxed and happy (Bailey, 1997). The presented aspects are a positive atmosphere which increases the level of worker morale and improves productivity as well.

Conclusion

To conclude, dress-down Fridays is a culture that most organizations are increasingly adopting with an aim of promoting stability and employee freedom within the workplace. The presented approach requires employees to wear casual wear to work on a given day such as Friday. Organisations which have been able to successfully implement the identified culture have derived various benefits from the move. For instance, firms such as Miami’s Gerson Preston and Baptist Health South Florida have derived various benefits from the transition dressing code culture in that the level of employee morale and productivity have significantly improved from the implementation. With an aim of effectively implementing the presented culture in the workplace, communication is considered to be an important issue. Evidently, failure to involve the employees in the change process can result to an increased level of change resistance hence the general failure of the change process. Communicating the need for change in the identified setting will make it possible for the employees to embrace the change process based on the fact that they will require all the factors which results to their negative attitudes within the workplace be addressed within the last time. The benefits associated with the dress down days within an organization are considered to be significant in comparison to the downsides. For instance, communication levels between the workers and the managers, creating a sense of togetherness, and easing tension that the employees experience when in the workplace are some of the derived benefits which can also lack in situations where the culture is not effectively implemented.

References

Bailey, K. (1997). Should every day be dress down. (cover story). Business NH Magazine, 14(10), 12.

Biecher, E., Keaton, P. N., & Pollman, A. W. (1999). Casual Dress at Work. SAM Advanced Management Journal (07497075), 64(1), 17.

Fortune, M., Francis, B. C., Gallegra, P., Miller, R. J., Stemler, G. J., & Whitman, K. M. (1995). Focus On: Dress Code. Journal Of Accountancy, 179(5), 39-42.

McPherson, W. (1997). “Dressing Down” in the Business Communication Curriculum. Business Communication Quarterly, 60(1), 134-146.