A national survey recently carried out by Matrix Recruitment Group polled over 200 HR professionals investigated the area of appearance and how Irish professionals present themselves in an interview situation.
When asked to rank their biggest turn-offs when meeting prospective employees, HR professionals revealed that dirty fingernails, messy or unkempt hair and creased clothing are their biggest turnoffs.
70% of those surveyed admitted that these turnoffs could be the deciding factor when selecting the successful candidate.
62% of those surveyed associate the colour red with aggression. We associate brighter and sunnier colours with happiness – but it is important to take note of which colours not to wear at interview stage. The majority of respondents felt that both yellow (35.4%) and orange (30.4%) were colours best to be avoided but interestingly these are the colours that are associated with creativity.
Another popular argument in relation to job interviews is the visibility of body art and facial hair. Over 50% of those surveyed admitted that tattoos and piercings would not have an impact on the candidate’s progression to the next stage of the interview and over 90% felt that facial hair would not play a factor in the candidate’s progression either. It was also interesting to see that 40.8% of HR professionals stated that wearing a low cut top to an interview would not affect the candidate’s chances of getting the job.
Shane Kilboyle, Matrix Recruitment’s Dublin Marketing team gave his insights, ‘As a nationwide recruitment agency, our consultants conduct interviews with candidates on a daily basis and we felt it was important to carry out this survey to give jobseekers a clearer picture of HR professionals’ likes and dislikes in terms of appropriate dress sense at interviews. It was particularly interesting to see that failing to present yourself appropriately can have such a significant impact on your chances of getting a job. These findings back up what we would advise to our candidates ahead of meeting with prospective employers.”
