Business dress

is normally described as Business Standard or Business Casual.

• Business Standard

- which is the default dress for business. It basically consists of a suit, shirt, tie, jacket for him, and a knee length skirt or suit with a blouse for her.



• Business Casual

- which needs a little more thought. This can range from Business Standard without a tie, to Smart Casual. It depends on the company and industry and geographical norms. Japan is generally very formal and proper, where as California is normally very relaxed.

For business casual, the exact dress code varies between seniority, industry and size of company.

For large corporations or in a conservative company check out the Corporate Business Casual dress code. First Impressions count and you can always relax your dress later if you find you are overdressed. This is also the dress code to follow if you are likely to meet a client during the day.

A more relaxed dress code is common in many companies, especially new companies. We have called this our Relaxed Business Casual dress code. If in doubt we recommend you dress to Corporate Business Casual standards and then relax your dress later after you have seen what your colleagues are wearing.

If there is no dress code then anything in Relaxed Business Casual or Smart Casual dress codes will probably be fine. Avoid tatty styles or too much jewelry though.

If you have no clue what the dress code is, it's always best to dress to Business Standard, and lose the tie and jacket if you find yourself in a more casual environment. You can always dress down on day two. No one ever got fired for overdressing on their first day, and first impressions count.