The modern office is a minefield. From dress codes to water-cooler conversation topics, today’s coalface requires you to tread carefully if you want to climb to the top. But how – in a world where billionaire tech CEOs wear hoodies and jeans to board meetings – can you stake out your status?

The answer is your wrist. While an Italian-made pair of brogues or a briefcase buffed to a mirror shine might impress, nothing marks you apart like your choice of watch. Big or small, bold or subtle, what you wear on your wrist can be a clue to others as to where you rank in the food chain.

But choosing the best style for work isn’t always a no-brainer; in fact, miss the mark and your DeWitt concept watch could land you in a disciplinary.

Here’s how to boss your wristwear, and keep your job.

Know The (Dress) Code

Key to matching your watch to your workplace is grasping the dress code. Is yours a suits-only kind of office, or do you have some wiggle room in what you get to wear? Maybe you’re fortunate enough to have free reign?

Gauging whether you work in a corporate, business-casual or creative work environment will help weed out designs that’ll bomb so you can focus on those that’ll give you a lift up. As Patrick Kansa, Contributing Editor at A Blog To Watch puts it: “While you might be able to swing a Rolex Explorer in a jeans-and-trainers environment, your jumbo-sized Nixon is not going to work well with a suit and tie.”

These are the best practices for staying office-appropriate:

The Corporate Office

Suit and tie non-negotiable? Then you’ll want to ensure your wrist steers similarly formal. See that you’re taken seriously with a classic watch face and steel bracelet, or opt for leather-strapped styles in timeless, sophisticated colours like black, brown or deep burgundy.

“Avoid anything too statement,” says Muhaddisa Fazal, Fine Watch Buyer at The Watch Gallery. “Making an impression is important but the boardroom is not the place for peacocking – think classic but fairly muted.”