“Preparing Students for the Real World”

bySudha Thangaraj

What is Business Etiquette?

• Etiquette in the Webster's Dictionary states: “Etiquette is the code of unwritten expectations that govern social behavior. It concerns the ways in which people interact with each other, and show their respect for other people by conforming to norms of society.”

Business Etiquette

• Workplace Etiquette• Dressing Etiquette• E-Mail Etiquette• Mobile Etiquette• Dining Etiquette

Hand shake

• The way the business things works is you have to meet people, you have to go through a certain amount of etiquette and business things are done just simply by a shake of the hand and whether they like you or not.

Workplace Etiquette— Meeting and Greeting

• Handshake: offer entire hand, shake lightly and release

• Know whom to introduce first– Junior to senior

– Fellow worker to client

• Eliminate slang/jargon from your vocabulary

• Always on time, always organized, always ready

Business Cards

Manage business card exchanges flawlessly

• Always have a supply of cards• Ask for someone’s card before offering your own• Present card face up• Take time to look at received card• NEVER turn down an offered card• Be selective when distributing cards• Don’t hand out torn or worn business cards• Don't hand out more than one card to a new contact • Don't place it in a bag, back pocket or wallet

Showing Respect

• Always use last names with customers unless they are about your age and rank

• Don’t keep customers waiting• Escort clients out • When someone of higher rank or from

outside the organization enters, everyone in the office stands

• Junior employees stand until seniors sit

• Personal hygiene

• Trimmed nails

• Neat hair

• Oral hygiene

• Culture awareness

• Sitting posture

• Sound

• Scent

• Sight

• Body odour

Office Romance

• Dating a supervisor or subordinate is absolutely a no-no

• Any behavior of a sexual nature on company property gives the company grounds for legal action

Office Romance (When it Happens Anyway)

• Expect at the very least an office relationship will be frowned upon

• Risk loss of credibility

• Difficulty focusing on work

• Don’t use work email or voicemail systems

• Remember when it ends you will still have to work with this person

The Etiquette of dressing

• The dressing sense of a person speaks volumes about a person, personally and professionally.

• The truth is, clothes talk. • Whenever a person enters a room for the first

time, it takes only a few seconds for people they have never met to form perceptions about him and his abilities.

• One need not utter a word; Regardless of who the person really is, his clothes and body language always speak first.

ATTENTION LADIES!!!• Light colored matching salwar suits

properly buttoned, with duppatta pinned properly, or a sari properly pinned.

• No fashion jewellry , hair neatly combed and held in place.

• Nails properly clipped, no colorful nail polish at best use neutral nail polish.

• Use sober colored lipsticks, lip gloss. No diaphanous clothes.

• No stilettos.• No short dresses.• Use light perfumes or avoid totally.

ATTENTION GENTLEMEN!!!

• Dark trousers, light colored full sleeve shirts, leather belt (not more than a inch and a half wide), properly polished leather shoes, socks darker shade of the trouser color, properly knotted tie, no items that bulge in your pockets – both shirt and trouser – carry one pen with you (neatly put in your shirt pocket).

• Hair properly trimmed and combed, neat shave, mild after shave and deodorant. Nails neatly clipped

SHOES

POLISH and SHINE your shoes! Always wear socks TIP: Make sure socks are high enough to

cover skin when sitting down You should be able to walk comfortably in

your shoes i.e. Heels should not be too high

LADIES should stay away from chunky, platform, or knee high boots e.g. NO “go –go” boots when wearing shorter length skirts

GENTLEMEN should stay away from steel toes and other rugged shoes

NEVER wear open toe shoes!

HAIR & MAKEUP

Style hair as conservatively as possible

Do not dye hair with colour that is too flashy e.g. red, yellow, etc.

Wear as little makeup as possible

Don’t wear bright colored lipsticks or eye shadows, too much blush etc

FIRST DAY OF WORK

Try to wear a business suit and a crisp dress shirt on the first day of work. (This applies to both Business & Business Casual environments)

NOTE: Dressing professionally on the 1st day is ALWAYS important because you will likely be introduced to most of your co-workers, including your boss on the first day!

BUSINESS CASUAL WEAR

NOTE: The definition of “BUSINESS CASUAL” wear may vary between office environments, some may be more formal and others are more informal

TIP: It is safer to dress more formally on the first few days and observe how your co-workers dress and then dress accordingly after you get a good indication of how everyone dresses at work

What should I wear?

I Don’t Think So !!

Appearance Matters…

• Recent studies have indicated that 60% of employers will determine whether you will land a job or not based on your appearance alone.

How do I dress for a job in a Business-Casual World?

• This will depend on the place of employment you select

• Many companies have emerged to casual dress codes

• Others are still focusing on suits and ties

New Wave Trends…That need to be addressed

• No ear or body piercing (tattoos, nose rings, brow rings etc)

• Subtle jewellery• Cleanly shaved

The Art of Shaking Hands

• What’s in a handshake? As a near-universal gesture of “accommodation” handshaking is a relatively new cultural behavior.

• Its original purpose was to prove to others you were coming “open-handed” and unarmed. It took off only a few hundred years ago.

When people meet someone for the first time they greet each other with a handshake. One of

the three basic attitudes is subconsciously submitted:

• Dominance: He is trying to dominate me. I’d better be cautious.

• Submission: I can dominate this person. He’ll do what I want.

• Equality: I feel comfortable with this person.

The Pull-In

The Two-Handed Shake

The Topper

The Finger Squeeze

The Bone Crusher

The Palm Pinch

The Limp Fish

The Proper Handshake

• Firm, but not bone-crushing • Lasts about 3 seconds • May be "pumped" once or twice

from the elbow • Is released after the shake, even

if the introduction continues • Includes good eye contact with

the other person • Hold your drink in your left

hand to avoid a cold, wet handshake

Dining Etiquette

• You can survive!

Dining with Style and Grace

Lunch/Dinner--Taboos

• Elbows on table• Salt/pepper on food before tasting• Talking with mouth full• Drinking with food in mouth• Gesturing with silverware• Pushing back or stacking plates at end of meal• Answering or placing cell phone calls at table• Dunking anything into coffee or water• Making a fuss over incorrect orders• Arranging hair or applying makeup at table• Picking your teeth at the table• Asking for a doggy bag

Lunch/Dinner Meetings--Extras

• Don’t eat with your mouth full• Keep one hand in your lap unless you are eating

European style• Remove anything from your mouth with the same

implement that it went in with (except bones)• Eat at a moderate speed• Try to maintain some polite dinner conversation• Never medicate yourself at the table• If you must leave the table, place your napkin in your

chair

Knowing table etiquette will put you at ease.

Your Basic Place Setting

The Formal Dinner Table Setting

Basic Cell Phone Etiquette Rules Include

• Switching it off: You must put your mobiles in vibration mode or switch it off when you are talking with FG, CG ,Customer etc.

• You can put it on the vibration mode when in places where you can take a call, but don't want to disturb others.

• It reflects your attitude towards, work, career and life.

• Reading SMS: It is also rude in formal situations.

• Be Brief: You must be brief when you get a call from your friends especially when you are with your Company Guides and faculty guides.

• Be Polite: You should speak in a lower-than-normal voice; you should be heard by the caller, and not others in the room

• Don't distract: You should avoid talking where you may be distracting to others.

• Driving: It is not only very dangerous, but also unlawful in most countries (even India) to drive & talk on your cell Phone

Skip These Tips……..

And you are certain to perform the ultimate...

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