The term professionalism conveys intangible meanings in the working world. The word is usually attached to high-performing employees in any line of work. To more accurately understand the meaning of professionalism and what is expected, you have to become familiar with the core concepts that contribute to being a professional.
One of the critical first steps in building a reputation for professionalism is to meet the basic dress, grooming and hygiene standards of your industry. Naturally, blue collar workers who deal with dirt and grime on a daily basis don't have as much to worry about in this regard. However, officer workers, sales and service employees, and managers are among professionals who are commonly judged by the way they look. Professional dress, well-groomed hair and a clean-cut image without excessive piercings and visible tattoos are among expectations of professionalism in many white collar jobs.
Being responsible is a common concept of professionalism, while responsible behavior is encompassed within the broader term of accountability. This means that you accept the duties of your position and the responsibility when things don't work out. A professional customer service employee, for instance, would more likely try to figure out how to boost his satisfaction score from 95 percent to 100 than question a manager who called it to his attention. Accountability in a given role is often a must for consideration of promotions to a higher level, since leaders need to set the bar.
Professionalism is often viewed as a mix of soft skills and work attitudes. However, the core of being a professional is showing a basic foundation of competence in your job. Some of the onus is on the company that hires you to ensure a good fit. However, a professional looks at the expectations of his role and addresses any deficiencies in skills through requests for coaching and additional training.
Being a professional generally means colleagues and co-workers view you as someone who is very respectful in both formal and informal conversation. Appropriate use of language, good verbal and nonverbal interaction skills, eye contact, a friendly smile and genuine respect for workers as people are common traits of respectful communicators. Demonstrating professionalism in this area is often important to your ability to develop strong working relationships with resourceful people in your organization.
Demonstrating honesty, transparency and integrity in the way you conduct yourself in your job are the foundation of professionalism. This includes being straight with people in conversation and staying out of the company gossip mill. Talking behind the backs of co-workers is not a good way to develop a professional reputation. Consistently following through on the things you say you will do is also at the heart of integrity, and subsequently, professionalism.