By CPA Erwine Ashioya
A Diverse Dress Code Attracts a Diverse Client Pool
Associating accountants with fashion may sound foreign, especially because the list of top-dressed professional accountants and auditors never comes anywhere near the top five.
Bankers and lawyers usually dominate the top best dressed professions. Accountants are usually placed in the same group as IT experts. They are perceived as individuals who think all they think about is numbers and how to spend less and make more money. They see fashion as a liability and a luxury. Accountants in movies and shows paint this particular picture more realistically. In a show called The Accountant, the main character, Christian Wolf, is portrayed as a highly-skilled forensic accountant. His dress as the accountant portrays the traditional accountant. Conservative and neutral-coloured clothing populate most of the scenes in the movie.
However, trends are changing quite fast. New generations of accountants are coming up. The younger generations are willing to explore unchartered grounds, including fashion, no matter the profession. There is a new status quo that leans towards oozing confidence in whatever work you do, mostly through fashion. Accountants are no longer the boring professionals in khakis. Their modes of dressing are evolving. A time will come when accountants will give lawyers and bankers a run for their money in fashion.
Understandably, some accountants restrict themselves to a particular way of dressing because it allows them to focus on work rather than fashion. This is indeed true. If accounting firms allowed their staff to dress however, they want, it could become a distraction. Some would start wearing unprofessional clothes to work, especially the juniors. Therefore, the guidelines for ways to dress are pertinent. These guidelines should, however, leave room for creativity. Encouraging more flexibility in the dressing guidelines will prove more beneficial to the accounting profession than harm.
Firstly, allowing room for creativity in dressing will be more appealing to the younger generations to join and enjoy the profession. To the young people, dressing is a way of expressing how they feel and what they are. Instituting dressing guidelines that maintain professionalism but give room for staff to explore their closets will be highly motivating to the staff, especially the junior ones.
Accounting, as it is, can at times be monotonous. Therefore, dressing in the same way every day does not help. For a young generation that takes mental health seriously, feeling good and motivated as they go to work is a significant motivation. Financial institutions are currently facing high turnovers, especially among the younger staff.
The Business Daily newspaper issue of September 5, 2024, reported that Equity Bank had the highest net employee exit in four years in the year that ended in 2023. A total of 1628 staff left the group while 1213 were hired. While this high turnover could be attributed to other factors, it clearly shows the willingness of today’s staff to shift or leave careers if they do not feel motivated. Currently, most finance departments in companies are dominated by staff aged over 30 years. This is understandable as they have more experience. However, we must encourage the young generation to join the profession to ensure continuity. They are the future. Dressing is a massive part of a young person’s personality. Therefore, allowing them to be themselves in the most professional way possible will benefit the profession the most.
Secondly, dressing can enhance an accountant’s or an accounting firm’s brand while keeping the staff motivated and confident. An accounting firm can institute guidelines on how their staff should dress but be careful to leave them room to explore. Imposing strict rules on dressing might give a firm a specific professional outlook but will heavily impact the more critical staff performance. Quality of work drastically improves when the staff feels good about themselves. Give them room to choose how to dress, and they will choose the best. Restrict them, and they will despise their work. It is fundamental to human nature. Clients will be attracted to firms where staff are most motivated. It is easier to work with individuals who feel confident about themselves than those who do not.
Lastly, having a diverse dress code also attracts a diverse client pool. Accountants serve in nearly all economic sectors. From banking to Jua Kali industries. From law firms to the entertainment industry. From doctors to transport sectors. These are diverse sectors that have very distinct professional appearances. Lawyers and bankers will don their suits. Engineers and doctors will feel at home with their overalls and lab coats. A farmer will be proud to walk the whole day in their gumboots even when not farming that day. Accountants serve all these individuals. Therefore, it may not be wise for an accountant to follow their strict dressing rules when visiting a client’s potato farm. Some clients love it when their accountants are willing to get to know their work and understand what goes on in their farms—As an accountant in the fashion industry, you might need to understand what goes on there. Therefore, being a fashion enthusiast will majorly boost the quality of your work for such clients. How you dress will either assure your clients that you understand what they do or not. Fashion, in that sense, is therefore vital in the flourishing of the accounting profession. You can never dismiss the positive impact of diversity in professional dressing on your accounting business. Accounting is not all about numbers but also about human connection, emotional intelligence, and the psyche. Fashion should, therefore, be embraced and encouraged.
There are many reasons why accountants may want diversity in dressing. These include, among other things, visibility, attracting clients and talents, and making it easier to network. Further, dressing could leave an impression on your potential clients during social occasions. They say a first impression is crucial. Therefore, an accountant shifting away from the traditional dressing could be more impactful. Being rigid in how you dress could be perceived as lacking creativity or just being basic. We are evolving into a competitive sector, hence the need to embrace any opportunity to perform better.
In conclusion, how you feel can greatly boost your love for numbers, and your dressing can enhance your confidence. The more the accounting profession embraces diversity professionally, the more attractive and enjoyable accounting will be.
Erwine Shitunduhu Ashioya is an Audit Trainee at Crowe Erastus & Co. CPAs
ashioyaerwine@gmail.com
