If you’re in recruiting, you’ve probably seen the iced coffee debate making its way around social media.
A recruiter recently went viral after saying candidates shouldn’t walk into a job interview carrying an iced coffee. The argument was that it can make the interview feel like just another stop in someone’s day instead of something they prepared for and are taking seriously.
Apparently, people have some very strong feelings about this, and I’m one of them.
I’m team no iced coffee.
And before we make this another debate about Gen Z, let me tell you why.
About 10 years ago, long before Gen Z was dominating the conversation about workplace norms, I interviewed a candidate who walked into the interview carrying a Venti Starbucks coffee.
I remember it because it bothered me.
It wasn’t the coffee itself. It was the impression it made. It felt too casual for the setting, and whether that was fair or not, it immediately impacted my perception of the candidate. I didn’t want to offer the job.
Ten years later, we’re having essentially the same debate.
First impressions still matter
We’ve spent a lot of time over the last several years talking about removing bias from hiring, and that’s important. But I also think we’ve occasionally gone so far in that direction that we’re afraid to acknowledge something very basic: How you show up matters.
An interview isn’t a normal workday. You’re meeting people for the first time and asking them to make a decision about whether they want you representing their organization.
Preparation matters. What you wear matters. Being on time matters. Knowing something about the company matters. How you communicate matters.
And yes, I think walking into an interview carrying your Starbucks can matter too.
Could that person be an incredible employee? Absolutely.
But interviewing is partly about judgment. Knowing your audience and understanding the environment you’re walking into are skills in themselves.
But there is a generational conversation here
I don’t think this debate is really about coffee.
It’s another example of how our definition of “professionalism” is changing as generations change in the workplace.
Every generation has pushed on some of the norms that came before it.
Things that would have been considered completely inappropriate in an interview 20 years ago are commonplace today. Tattoos are more accepted. Dress codes have relaxed. Interviews happen over Zoom. Many workplaces are significantly more casual.
Gen Z is continuing to challenge some of those norms. Frankly, some of them probably should be challenged.
But there’s a difference between challenging an outdated workplace rule and understanding that certain situations still call for a different level of professionalism. That’s where I land on the iced coffee.
You may think carrying one into an interview shouldn’t matter. You may even be right.
But you don’t know who is sitting on the other side of that table.
That’s part of interviewing too
Candidates spend a lot of time preparing answers to interview questions. I’d encourage them to spend just as much time thinking about the organization and the people they’re meeting.
What’s the culture?
What’s the industry?
Who are you interviewing with?
How formal is the environment?
How do you want to be perceived in the first five minutes?
That doesn’t mean pretending to be someone you’re not. It means having enough situational awareness to know that an interview at a bank may look different from an interview at a tech startup.
You can always loosen up once you understand the culture.
It’s much harder to redo a first impression.
So yes, I’m still team no iced coffee.
Not because I think drinking coffee makes someone unprofessional. And not because I think Gen Z needs to conform to every workplace norm established by the generations before them.
Because an interview is one hour where you’re asking someone to take a chance on you.
Finish the coffee in the car.