Professional cleanup, courtesy of your PR team. Also: Points to consider before enforcing—or implementing—an office dress code.

There’s no crystal ball for hiccups your organization might have to respond to. What a PR team can offer your association, and more, in today’s Lunchtime Links.

Playing defense: You’re striving to be that force of good, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be hurdles to overcome ahead. That’s where your PR team comes into play, writes SCD Group’s Steve Drake. He cites examples of media busts: USA Today, for example, cited research on the likelihood of getting an infection when living near a pig-manure-fertilized field or farm. The pork industry fired back—noting the study revealed a link, but not a direct cause. “Whether or not your association engages in promotion or marketing for your industry or profession, you need to be prepared to respond or, better yet, be proactive,” Drake says. How has your organization prepared to respond to potential PR issues?

Kindergarten 2.0: Is it really true that everything you need to know in business you learned in kindergarten? The playground’s changed since your monkey-bars-and-naptime days. And when it comes to your professional know-how, all you learned then needs a bit of a refresh, writes Leadership Solutions International’s Holly Duckworth. “Today the rules need to [be] shorter, faster, tweetable, Facebook-able and blog-able,” she writes. Among her suggestions: Get innovative with how you play. There’s fierce competition out there, but remaining true to your association’s mission and values will be your game changer. As a leader, channel your “childlike curiosity” to grasp more creative, innovative ways of thinking, she writes.

Fashion police: A dress code adds a sense of uniformity to the workplace—but are you certain no one feels discriminated against by the office attire policy? Blogging4Jobs’ Mike Haberman notes that the policy can’t treat employees any less favorably because of national origin, according to Equal Employment Opportunity Commission guidelines. As the EEOC’s example reads: “[A] dress code that prohibits certain kinds of ethnic dress, such as traditional African or Indian attire, but otherwise permits casual dress would treat some employees less favorably because of their national origin.” And it’s not only clothing that applies; religious traditions and cultural backgrounds influence hairstyle and accessory choices too, Haberman adds.

What dress code does your office follow—and how do you ensure the policy is sensitive to employee differences? Tell us in the comments.

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