According to Tracy Harris and Raquel Fry—creators of a business named “Minzi” (pronounced Mind’s Eye)—if you are not managing your own professional work image, others will.

There are plenty of books and fashion gurus out there telling you how to “dress for success” and avoid a sartorial faux pas that might jinx your interview or hiring process. You can put on a suit or color your hair to improve your appearance, but how do you manage other physical attributes, such as age, skin color, or other features that could play into potential negative stereotypes?

Harris and Fry work with individuals and corporations to define the intricacies and dynamics of managing an image—whether that image is of an American male, a working mother, or a young millennial. They define your professional image as the set of qualities and characteristics that represent perceptions of your competence and character as judged by your key constituents (clients, superiors, subordinates, colleagues, hiring directors).

At a recent job club presentation for Alumni Career Services at the University of Utah, these two professionals asked attendees to ask themselves: “What do I want my key constituents to say about me when I'm not in the room?” in reference to your desired professional image. Likewise, you might ask yourself the question: “What don't I want my key constituents to say about me when I'm not in the room?” The answer to this question represents your undesired professional image.

In the increasingly diverse 21st-century workplace, people face a number of complex challenges in creating a positive professional image. Many individuals experience a significant dissonance between their desired and their perceived professional image. The downfall may be that if you are not managing things, your undesired professional image may be more closely aligned with how your constituents perceive you.

Most people want to be described in the workplace as competent, socially skilled, with integrity and sound character, and committed to making a positive difference in your work, your team, and your company. Research shows that the most favorably regarded traits are trustworthiness, caring, humility, and capability.

According to Harris and Fry, in order to create a positive professional image, impression management must effectively accomplish two tasks: 1) build credibility and 2) maintain authenticity.

When you present yourself in a manner that is true to yourself, it creates a kind of perceived value to others. At that moment, impression management yields a host of positive outcomes for you, your team, and your organization. On the other hand, when you present yourself in an inauthentic and non-credible manner, you are likely to undermine your performance, your professional stature, and your credibility.

Remember, if you aren't managing your own professional image, someone else is. People are constantly observing your behavior and forming theories about your competence, character, and commitment, which are rapidly disseminated throughout your workplace. Allow your voice to frame the dialogue about you by strategically and proactively managing your image about who you are and what you can accomplish.

Some suggestions for identity management include:
• Conduct a cost-benefit analysis for image-change, which includes cognitive, psychological, emotional, and physical effort for change.
• What are the core competencies and character traits you want people to associate with you?
• Which of your social identities do you want to emphasize and incorporate into your workplace interactions, and which would you rather minimize?
• What are the expectations for professionalism around your current image, your business culture, and your audience?
• How do others currently perceive you?
• Do you care about others' perceptions of you?
• Are you capable of changing your image?
• Pay attention to the balancing act—build credibility while maintaining authenticity.
• Use self-disclosure selectively and strategically.
• Manage the effort you invest in the process by monitoring your own behavior, and others’ perceptions of your behavior.

Come join us at Job Club each Friday in Room 380 of the Student Services Building on the campus of the University of Utah. Check out our Web site, www.alumni.utah.edu/career, and click on “Job Club” to see our summer line-up.

Julie Swaner
Alumni Career Services
(801) 585-5036