Some have nevertheless chosen to combine the two

"Women, it is like oxygen: more one goes up, less it y en a." the formula continues to fly, but it is also more accurate than before. Just two decades after the appearance, in the columns of the Wall Street Journal, the term "glass ceiling", more and more women investing in France leadership positions. Otherwise, at least enough so that cannot be more talk about exceptions as it did for most of their predecessors, of Patricia Barbizet (Artémis) to Dominique Reiniche (Coca-Cola), Mercedes ARAF (Euro RSCG) and Anne Lauvergeon (Areva). Less known, these rising stars are called Catherine Lucet, Sophie Boissard, Thaima Samman or Armelle Carminati-Rabasse. It is they and a few others, to profile a little bit different Martine Monteil to PJ, Muriel Mayette at the Comédie-Française that we have chosen to turn the spotlight. All have in common is that they have been appointed in the past recent less than two years an important post. And all illustrate this (relative) feminization of the circles of power that there is currently a generation after the opening of schools to women. Because, if the ENA is mixed since its creation in 1945 Yvette Chassagne was received in 1947 , the X and HEC are that since the beginning of the 1970s.

More applied that boys, girls have quickly filled their delay. "Today, apart from the inevitable biases sociological, educational circuits are largely non-discriminating," judge Armelle Carminati-Rabasse, Accenture France Vice-President and head of the programme "focus on them." Consequence of diversity: the gaze of men on women has changed. "Those who have worked with on the banks of the school girls feel natural to be in the presence of women around a meeting table," notes Tita Zeitoun, creator and President of the association Action woman. Not naïve optimism, however. A long way still to go before achieving a true balance between the sexes. While women are now almost as numerous as the men in the active population, they represent 36 of executives and higher intellectual professions. At the highest levels, the gap is even more obvious.

Pat Russo, first Patron Saint of CAC

The Group Grandes écoles au Féminin (LFE), created in 2002 by Evelyne Sevin, President of HEC in the feminine, and Agnès Arcier, founder of the modern Administration association, near Accenture to pass through the Executive Committees or management of big French companies. Result: in 2003, there was there were on average as a woman for seven men! Idem in administration or monitoring boards and the boards: according to the score by Action of women, to August 31, less than 7 of 580 mandates of Directors offered by the CAC 40 companies were held by women (1). 12 Of these groups still have an exclusively male Council and they were 13 before the Alcatel-Lucent merger, making the American Patricia Russo the first and only woman to lead a company of the CAC 40.

Often restricted to the functions of support, women are that little present at the head of large centres of profit, forced passage before the number one position. Well placed to observe the evolution of attitudes in the matter, heads hunters this imbalance are a nuanced analysis. "Excellent women in communication, marketing or human resources because they are in general more intuitive", says Emeric Lepoutre, Cabinet SpencerStuart. The vision of his female counterpart of Christian & Timbers, Diane Segalen, is a little different. "Women have less time to devote to their professional networks. They focus on their work and found more satisfaction in the performance of a task in the pure power. "Some have nevertheless chosen to combine the two. Proof by example.