In the interest of investigative journalism and with a spirit of adventure, Flip Side decided to conduct an experiment. Your editor is not tall but suffers from excessive bulk in all the wrong places. In fact, he's got tall person's skin on short person's bones and, gravity being what it is, that which is not attached to any particular place simply falls to the next lowest wide bit.

This avalanching is not sightly but has the advantage of creating a certain presence - especially when combined with the special walk known as "The Lawyer's Strut," traditionally performed in a dark suit with heels that strike the floor with a resounding click. So, in rush hour, your editor set off for Town, on the train, but heading in the opposite direction to the frantic hoi poloi.

This time, instead of the uniform, he wore light coloured chinos and a dark pullover, with loafers. Even adopting exactly the same walk, but without the clicking heels, he was pushed and shoved, bounced off and walked into. This was not usual. Usually, the strut and presence parts the waves. Even people shorter and slighter banged into him and, on one particularly memorable occasion, a man with a walking stick barged him out of the way. Repeated two days later, the experiment returned exactly the same result (bar the altercation with the walking stick).

Lesson to be learned: we all knew no-one respected accountants and now perhaps, as they get ignored and walked over, they will realise the truth, too.

Actually, there is a serious purpose to our experiment. Rowan Bosworth-Davis (in "The Regulations and Prevention of Economic Crime Internationally") drew attention to those who deviate from the norms of dress code, saying that they are often "regulatorily resistant". Whether the same can be said of entire organisations is debatable, but if the simple act of changing clothes can be said to change attitudes both of the wearer and those who deal with him, organisations should be cautious about what message is sent out by its staff's choice of clothing.

In fact, your editor has rarely worn suits for several years - but there is a clear change in attitude in client's offices when he does so, mainly it is to be said, from support staff. People who are jokey and relaxed when he is in a sweater and casual trousers are far more cautious about what they say and do in his presence when he wears a suit. Quite simply suits say "serious."

The Andersen position will not change the world, but it might make it more difficult to decide who is serious and who is not. At least until some sort of hierarchy is established over the "designer" badges to be worn.