Grooming Very Important in Climbing Corporate Ladder, say HR Professionals

Appearance is everything - whether on the job or when job hunting - according to the results of a recent survey, commissioned by Gillette and conducted by Harris Interactive®, on the topic of grooming among male job candidates and male employees1. The survey of HR Professionals reveals that a well-groomed guy is more likely to stand out and climb the corporate ladder faster.

Grooming for Job Seekers:

• Nearly two-thirds (66%) of HR professionals believe that a candidate's physical appearance is very important or important in distinguishing them from other job candidates.


• When meeting a job candidate for the first time, more HR professionals agree that being well-groomed (90%) is important or very important in making a good first impression than the firmness of a candidate's handshake (59%) or how he smells (72%).


• Other factors that the vast majority of HR professionals are likely to deem important or very important in making a good first impression include being appropriately dressed (94%) and the amount of eye contact made (93%).


• More than 9 in 10 (92%) HR professionals agree that a candidate who takes the time to be well-groomed exudes confidence.


• Nearly 9 in 10 (87%) HR professionals agree that the more well-groomed the job candidate, the better impression they get of him.


• More than 8 in 10 (81%) HR professionals agree that they take special note of job candidates who are well-groomed.


• A majority of HR professionals (52%) believe that being clean-shaven is an extremely important or important aspect of personal grooming in making a good first impression when meeting a job candidate for the first time.


• Other aspects of grooming--besides a clean shave--that are also extremely important or important to most HR professionals, include the absence of body odor (91%) and hair that is well-cut and styled (60%).


• One in four (25%) HR professionals believe facial stubble is one of the biggest red flags when meeting a job candidate for the first time.


• Other red flags, according to a majority of HR professionals, include body odor or sweat stains (93%) and wrinkled, ill-fitting, or inappropriate clothing (73%).


• The top three aspects of physical appearance that men often neglect, according to HR professionals, are their fingernails (59%), clothing (27%), and shaving/body odor (23%).


• If a candidate comes to a job interview unkempt, 71% of HR professionals conclude that he is unprofessional and more than half (55%) conclude that he is not seriously interested in the position.

Grooming on the Job:

• More than 8 in 10 HR professionals (84%) agree that well-groomed male employees climb the corporate ladder faster than those who are not well-groomed.


• More than 6 in 10 HR professionals (61%) believe that an employee who is well-groomed is more likely to have better rapport with his superiors than those who are not well-groomed.


• Two-thirds of HR professionals (66%) conclude that an employee is not professional if he regularly comes to work looking unkempt.


• More than half of HR professionals (58%) say that their workplace incorporates personal grooming into their employment policies and procedures, however HR professionals still report that nearly 1 in 5 employees (18%), on average, are not well-groomed.

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