Career experts, recruiters and etiquette gurus have weighed in on a fierce online debate over whether Generation Z job applicants should bring iced coffee to job interviews.
The topic originated on social media platform TikTok, where users hotly debated whether taking a beverage into an interview was inconsequential or a habit that could put a candidate's chances in jeopardy.
Social media platforms like TikTok have increasingly become central hubs for younger workers to share workplace experiences, discuss corporate norms, and challenge traditional office etiquette. Generation Z, comprising individuals born roughly between the late 1990s and early 2010s, now represents a growing share of job applicants entering corporate recruitment pipelines worldwide.
Following the online dispute, workplace specialists spoke to the Daily Mail to assess the potential risks for candidates.
Dr Kyle Elliott, tech career coach and founder of CaffeinatedKyle.com, warned that first impressions carry immense weight during employment meetings. "The iced coffee debate may seem trivial on the surface, but the stakes are real: you only get one first impression, and it's particularly critical when meeting a potential employer," Dr Elliott said.
Dr Kyle Elliott provides professional guidance to job seekers navigating competitive hiring landscapes. In modern recruitment, career coaches frequently stress that candidates are evaluated on non-verbal cues and professional decorum alongside their formal qualifications.
Corporate culture and employer expectations
Dr Elliott explained that there is "no one-size-fits-all answer" in the beverage debate, emphasizing that job seekers must understand their audience before walking into a meeting.
"Some candidates may not like hearing it, but if you're interviewing with a more traditional or conservative employer, you'll likely have a better chance of converting the conversation into an offer if you leave the iced coffee at home," Dr Elliott explained.
"If the company is more laid-back or progressive, bringing an iced coffee is less likely to hurt your chances of receiving an offer," he added.
The expert added that if an applicant considers iced coffee a critical part of who they are and takes one to an interview, they must recognize that "it might cost you the job if the interviewer is a stickler."
Dr Elliott stressed that the controversy is not really about the drink itself, but about reading the room and knowing the audience. "Interviewers want to know you'll represent them well in an important meeting with a vendor or client, and they're going off the limited information they have from a 30-minute conversation," he said. "Bringing a beverage to an interview isn't the best predictor of how well someone will perform in the job, but interviewers are working with what they have."
Hiring risks in high-stakes environments
Golda Inquito, founder and CEO of career strategy and talent advisory firm The Talent Treehouse, expressed a similar view on candidate behavior.
Golda Inquito leads a firm specializing in career strategy and talent advisory services. Talent advisory firms routinely assist corporate clients and job candidates in navigating recruitment processes, hiring strategy, and executive placement.
"Ultimately, a company's hiring decision shouldn't hinge on if a candidate brought in a Venti iced pumpkin cream shaken espresso," Inquito told the Daily Mail. "It shouldn't erase a candidate's proven history of strong experience, capabilities and potential."
However, Inquito admitted that job interviews are a "weird environment" because they are "short and high stakes." She noted that both candidates and employers have a very short period of time to make a favorable impression and reach a major hiring decision.
"So if you're a candidate about to walk into an interview with a Fortune 500 company, I'd lean towards neutral," Inquito advised. "Not because you personally think it should matter, but because you have limited time and you want to ensure that the company is focused on your experience and capabilities, not something irrelevant."
The Fortune 500 is an annual list compiled by Fortune magazine ranking the largest corporations in the United States by total revenue. Major corporations on the list often enforce standardized recruitment procedures and formal interview formats, where minor deviations from traditional etiquette can influence an interviewer's perception of professional fit.
"Don't introduce unnecessary variables," Inquito concluded.
