Your Boss Matters More than the Brand

A recognizable fashion brand can be incredibly attractive on a résumé.

Working for a major luxury house, national retailer or well-known apparel company can open doors. The name carries credibility, gives recruiters context and may expose you to larger teams, bigger budgets and more sophisticated processes.

But when it comes to your actual career growth, your boss may matter more than the brand.

A strong manager can accelerate your career. A weak one can stall it.

A Good Boss Creates Opportunities

The best managers do more than assign work.

They teach. They give useful feedback. They expose you to senior leadership. They let you own projects instead of keeping you buried in execution. Most importantly, they advocate for you when you’re not in the room.

In fashion, that might mean a Design Director letting an Assistant Designer present part of a collection, a VP of Sales putting an Account Executive in front of a major retailer or a Production Director allowing a strong coordinator to take ownership of a vendor relationship.

Those opportunities build careers.

A Bad Boss Can Keep You Stuck

The opposite is also true.

Some managers take credit for their team’s work. Others withhold information, avoid developing employees or keep high performers in place because they are too valuable to lose.

You can work incredibly hard for a prestigious company and still emerge several years later with little additional responsibility, limited visibility and few new accomplishments to show for it.

The brand name may look impressive. Your career may not have moved much at all.

Interview Your Future Manager

Candidates often spend so much time trying to impress the interviewer that they forget they are also evaluating the employer.

Ask questions such as:

• How do you develop people on your team?
• What happened to the person who previously held this position?
• How have people on your team advanced?
• How do you give feedback?
• What would someone need to accomplish to be promoted from this role?

Pay attention not only to the answers, but to how comfortably the manager answers them.

Note: When you click the pink APPLY link on a StyleCareers.com job listing and you stay on StyleCareers (as opposed to going to a company site), there is a good chance your resume is being emailed directly to the hiring manager!

Choose Growth Over Prestige

There is nothing wrong with wanting a great brand on your résumé. But don’t assume prestige automatically equals opportunity.

A lesser-known company with a talented manager who invests in you may do far more for your career than a famous brand where you remain invisible.

When evaluating your next fashion job, look beyond the logo.

The company may hire you, but your boss will shape much of what happens next.