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Business Etiquette
Corby O'Connor

The ideal business image is classic and traditional. Choose classic clothing for business. Classics work well in most businesses and professions. Woman can add accessories to make the look more feminine and fashionable. Look around and see what the top executives are wearing.
Introducing people is one of the most important acts in business life, yet very few people know how to do it. The more important person’s name is said first or the less important person is introduced to the more important person. Show energy and enthusiasm using eye contact and a smile. Stand for all introductions.

Networking is a skill that all successful business people must develop. When preparing for a networking situation, plan to arrive with a smile, a gracious demeanor and a plan. Decide that you will use the opportunity to meet, maybe, ten people and bring plenty of business cards. Prepare and practice ways of generating conversations with strangers.

New high-tech ways of conducting business – email, fax, speakerphones, and voicemail – have left us cold. Add warmth to your emails with simple phrases like thank you and please. Follow up to see if the recipient has received your fax. Ask your caller if he or she minds being placed on the speakerphone and speak slowly and clearly when leaving voicemail.

The feminist movement and financial necessity have brought women in the workplace and they are rapidly rising to positions of power. It’s sometimes confusing for both men and women to know how to interact with one another in the office. Do women still expect the traditional courtesies? What shouldn’t be said? Simply stated, yes, most women appreciate the simple traditional courtesies. And don’t say anything that is sexualized. Compliments are OK. Everyone loves a compliment. Follow your professional instincts about what is over the line, for example, say, “I like your haircut,” not “That haircut makes you look sexy.”

The Job Search

The job search is a multi-step process beginning with setting up interviews. Call company representatives with four goals: get attention, generate interest, create a desire to know more about you and make the company representative take action. The respect you receive at the interview is in direct proportion to the respect your visual image earns for you before you have the chance to say a word. Pay special attention to your interview attire. Be prompt and gracious to everyone you meet.
Every job posted is for a problem solver. You will have an advantage if you can determine beforehand what the problem is. Research the company, department and position. Ask questions. Determine what the problem is and tell the company representative or hiring manager how you will solve it.

A job interview is stressful especially when faced with difficult questions. Unfortunately, it is not possible to avoid this part of the interview. If you prepare questions of your own, you may have an opportunity to take control of the interview time and feel less interrogated. Another way to answer questions easily is to listen well. Some of the questions you may be asked will go like this: “What did you like/dislike about your last job?” Don’t say anything negative about a previous employer. Answer with something that you have heard the interviewer say. If he said, “We like people to contribute here because we’re a small company.” You can say, “My previous company was very large and I am looking for a smaller place where I can make a greater contribution.”

The job interview is not the end of the search. So much emphasis is placed on the importance of the resume and interview in the job search process but studies of hiring practices suggest that it is often what occurs after that determines who gets offered the job.
Plan on writing a perfect follow up letter; a letter that will include topics that came up during the interview. The ordinary letter thanks the interviewer for his time and expresses hope to hear something in the future. Your letter should be written in a way that the reader sees you in the position solving the problem they need solved. Mention the names of the people you met at the interview. Keep it to one page and finish by asking for a response within a week. Send your letter the next day.

Corby O’Connor is the founder of Corby O’Connor & Company, Business Etiquette & Protocol, a New Jersey based company specializing in business etiquette and protocol programs. Ms. O’Connor is the Business Etiquette Columnist for the New Jersey Star Ledger, New Jersey’s largest newspaper. She has been quoted in the March 2001 issue of New Jersey Monthly Magazine, the Trenton Times, Princeton Business Journal, the Courier Post, and New Jersey News 101.5 Ms. O’Connor has been trained and certified by the Protocol School of Washington and holds a degree in Communications from Fordham University. For questions please write to Corby O’Connor at etiquette@corbyoconnor.com.