Did you see the woman that just left my office?
Yes.
She's another applicant, and a leading contender, but I didn't want to hire her. She's qualified, but she doesn't quite fit the profile. We're looking for an accountant, and part of the job requires interacting with clients. Well, our clients want conservative people to handle their money. And green hair with ripped jeans doesn't exactly fill them with trust.
But it's the style now.
I realize that, but our business is serving clients and giving them what they want.
Of course.
Well, they don't want to deal with people who look like that. They want people who look more like yourself.
Why is that?
Well, they're older, and they don't understand today's fashions. When they see someone dressed like that, warning bells go off. They don't like that style at all, and they don't like dealing with people who dress like that at work.
Oh, I see.
We used to have a woman here who dressed like that and she was good, very good. But, the clients reacted very negatively when they saw her. Some asked that their account be given to someone who dressed more conservatively.
What happened to her?
Well, she was a very good employee and we wanted to keep her, so her supervisor called her in for a chat and laid it on the line for her. She got the idea and now she saves the trendy styles for evenings and weekends.
I see.