K.O. that B.O.!

By Galia BarHava-Monteith

19 March 2007

QEver since we started working on Professionelle a while back, our friends and family have been asking us, "When are you going to do the Ask the Expert on Body Odour?" You know... that tricky little issue when your office mate/colleague has terrible B.O. We’ve both encountered it; quite a few of our friends have encountered it. And yet, it never gets easier to tackle.

Given it seems to be such a hot topic, we thought we should raise this one ourselves. So here goes:

How can you knock out that Body Odour problem without jeopardizing relationships and causing general mayhem in the office?

AWe’ve heard lots of horror stories about what happens when the B.O. problem isn’t tackled properly. So we'll start with what not to do...

If your colleague/office mate has a Body Odour problem DON’T:

buy them a deodorant/soap as a secret Santa present
start decorating the office with aromatic candles
comment loudly ‘this office can’t have been cleaned because it really SMELLS in here!’
sit in your office with a clothes peg on your nose
talk to other colleagues about what a terrible issue this is without trying to tackle it yourself

Joking aside, mishandling the B.O. problem can cause serious distress and even harm to the people involved.

We believe that there are two likely scenarios here:

The person is simply unaware because no one has actually bothered talking to them about it. You’d be surprised how common this situation is.
The person is aware and has a medical problem that they are trying to deal with.

In both these scenarios there are steps the person can take to alleviate the problem. In either case, unless you raise it with them, you’ll never give them an opportunity to deal with the problem.

Unfortunately, all too often, these issues are left untackled and result in people being talked about behind their backs or even ostracized. In some cases, their career may suffer serious consequences.

You’ve probably guessed it by now. We definitely recommend the direct approach. We suggest the following steps to deal with the situation:

give the matter some thought
choose the right space
get straight to the point

1. Give the matter some thought:

Think about how you can help the person by giving them honest and helpful feedback. You can really help your colleague if you think through some suggestions to deal with the B.O. problem.

Some people don’t change their clothes frequently enough and/or skimp on their dry cleaning bill. Others decide they will save time in the morning by showering at night. Some walk to work or exercise at lunch time and don’t shower after that. Can you tell what the causes of your colleague’s BO problem might be?

If you can, that can make things somewhat easier. If you’ve given it some thought and have figured out the cause of the problem you can actually tell them what they can do about it.

Is there a chance your colleague has a medical problem? Bad body odour can be caused by bacterial infection. It might be the case that your colleague has a medical problem and is unaware of it. By being honest with them, you can encourage them to go to their GP and deal with the situation rather than prolonging it.

You can find out more about the causes of body odour at the following websites:

For a short, easy to read summary try Healthy net
For an in-depth medical explanation try Health Line

2. Choose the right space:

We believe that the best, most respectful, approach to handling this situation is by initiating a conversation in a place which is quiet, private and away from prying eyes. If your office answers these requirements, that’s great.

However, you might want to consider more ‘neutral’ territory, to ensure that your colleague doesn’t feel ‘cornered’.

It might be a meeting room. But then, think about how your colleague will feel coming out of the conversation to face all the other people in the office who might have been complaining about his/her B.O.

A cafe with well spaced tables which is relatively quiet outside of lunch hours can be a great option. This way, your colleague can take his/her time getting back to the office to come to terms with what s/he's just heard.

3. Get straight to the point:

After a little ‘small talk’, consider saying something like:

There is something I’d like to raise with you that you are perhaps not aware of. [Take a deep breath, this is the hard bit]. You have a body odour problem.

Straight to the point, but in a frank and unthreatening way. You might want to add that you find the subject a bit awkward or embarrassing to broach (if that’s the case) because honesty is the best policy when tackling a situation like this. We’d also suggest that you shoulder the ‘blame’ of bringing it up by saying you’ve noticed the problem. Don’t say people have been complaining, or talking about it. No-one wants to imagine people talking behind his or her back.

If you’ve figured out what the problem is, you can then say something like;

I’ve noticed that sometimes you run short of time after you exercise so you skip showers. I wondered if that might be the cause of it.

When the cause is not clear, you can have a conversation about their approach to hygiene (painful, we are aware, but nonetheless necessary). You might find out they wash their clothes infrequently, or that they shower at night. If they report they’re scrupulous about hygiene, yet they still smell, the problem might be a medical one.

In any case, whether they are aware of their smell or not, most people will appreciate this direct and respectful approach.

One last thought. This advice was written from the perspective of having to deal with a colleague with a B.O. problem. If the issue is with a direct report the same approach can be useful, but you should consult with your HR department about the legal ramifications from an employment law perspective in such situations.

If you want to read more about how other people have approached this sensitive issue; check out this brilliant UK forum which is all about dealing with colleagues with body odour.