'The absence of collar-points means this feels less clearly like power-dressing'
The bit of your body between chin and décolletage is the power dressing equivalent of an erogenous zone. Think of dog collars, of the knot of a neck tie, of strings of pearls. It's the only part of your outfit you can see in passport photos, or that is visible before you've removed your coat.
In other words, what happens there matters. There will always be a power collar of the moment, for alpha women as much as for men. Elizabeth I had her ruff; Alexa Chung had the Peter Pan collar. It is a marker of the depth of Alexa's influence over contemporary womenswear that her trademark collars laid the foundation for the look that became the Alpha Neckline of the past two years: a shirt collar worn pulled over a crew-neck sweater. Softer and more feminine than a shirt and jacket, but sharper and sassier than a blouse or a scoop neck, this look is office-appropriate but fun enough for weekends, too – perfect, in other words, for the Smartphone era in which the boundaries between work and downtime have blurred.
But the shirt-collar-over-crew-neck look has become a victim of its own success. (The writing was on the wall once high-street stores started reproducing trompe l'oeil shirt collars to jazz up every other sweatshirt.) The point of fashion is to kick the story on, to shake us by the lapels when we get too comfortable by the fireside. And so there is a new Alpha Neckline. Double, again, but different: a high, tight neck under a lower, loose one. So a polo neck under a collarless coat, or a crew neck under a cutaway boat neck. The absence of collar-points means this feels less clearly like power-dressing – but on the other hand, by negating the need for a messy scarf, it lets you stay cosy while keeping the silhouette sleek.
If you are not ready to give up the pertness of a collared shirt, there is a halfway house. Wear a shirt under a crew neck, but let the collar points stay tucked underneath the sweater. This gives you the new Alpha Neckline look without the need to alter your wardrobe. If that's not a power move, I don't know what is.
• Jess wears polo neck, £16, next.co.uk. Coat, £95, warehouse.co.uk. Trousers, £350, by Stella McCartney at matchesfashion.com. Courts, £69, dune.co.uk.
Styling: Melanie Wilkinson. Hair and makeup: Laurence Close at Carol Hayes Management.