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Still, while women are making dramatic progress through the lower and middle ranks of U.S. companies, many managers, male as well as female, say that an invisible line often seems to block qualified women from joining top management. Says Thomas Peters, co-author of In Search of Excellence: "The number of women in executive positions today is truly revolutionary, but there is still an incredible barrier to women who want the few best jobs." He says that it will be far easier for a woman to become President of the U.S. than to head one of the "male bastions" in corporate America.
Peters attributes this reluctance to accept women at the pinnacle of the corporate world to "the clubby atmosphere, the unspoken rules at the top." Since so few senior executives can win the top jobs, talent and qualifications are not the only characteristics determining the victors. Some chief executives seem to be unable to think of the female manager as a stand-in, a potential successor. Says Monet's Evans: "The chief executives of most major U.S. corporations have never worked for or with a superbly qualified woman. They know us only as secretaries, wives and lovers. This group is simply not comfortable with us."
There is some evidence that this so-called comfort factor may not change significantly until younger men who have spent their careers working alongside competent women begin to run major U.S. companies. Among the men in the Harvard Business Review survey, those age 40 or younger were more likely to say that they would feel comfortable working for a woman boss.
Another sign that women have yet to be fully accepted as executives is a stubborn salary gap. Separate studies by Harvard, the Rand Corp., Stanford and the Columbia University Graduate School of Business have all documented the same trend. According to Mary Anne Devanna, who conducted the Columbia study released last year, female M.B.A.s entering the work force are paid the same starting salaries as men with the same qualifications (1985 average: $28,584). But within ten years, the women fall behind by 20% in pay, regardless of the company they work for or their jobs.
Most management experts think that several women will win the top jobs in FORTUNE 500 companies within the next 20 years. But few think that women will head half of America's larger companies any time soon. One reason cited by Rand's Smith: "There will always be women who will choose to stay home for family reasons, and either not have a career or drop out of their careers." But whether financial need or ambition sparks their pursuit of a career, the majority of women are choosing to work. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, more women are working today than ever before, 55% in the latest survey.
Many of those who are unwilling to accept the continuing salary gap or the frustrations in reaching the very top are leaving corporations to set up their own firms. Launching a company offers some indisputable advantages. Says Kay Koplovitz, founder and president of the cable firm USA Network: "The best way to get to the top for a woman is to start there." Says Sandra Kurtzig, founder and chairman of ASK Computer Systems in Los Altos, Calif. (estimated 1985 sales: $100 million): "My being a woman is just not an issue. I'm the boss. They'd better be comfortable with me--or else."