Q:   I was surprised to hear that Yahoo hired a female CEO and even more surprised to hear she’s six months pregnant.  Is this a sign that women have finally broken through the glass ceiling? Will her high profile bring increased awareness of the needs of working moms?

A: As far as CEO positions go, this is a particularly challenging one.  Yahoo is an under performing, troubled company, and she will be their seventh CEO in five years.  And the first female at the helm.

Marissa Mayer is described as a bright star among Google’s original executive ranks.  At age 37, she’s not only one of the youngest Fortune 500 CEOs, but one of only 19 female CEOs among them.  The fact that she was six months pregnant when hired is unprecedented, and it’s a testament to how much faith the Yahoo board placed on her talent and ability to rescue the company. So it’s a proud day for women.

Having said that, I wouldn’t be too quick to assume that her choice is a harbinger of great new opportunities for working women, or that her pregnancy will greatly advance the cause for better maternity leave.

What Mayer will experience is in no way comparable to what ordinary working moms  experience.  Like most large company CEOs she will benefit from a level of resources and support we can only dream of.  I expect that, in addition to the customary housekeepers, personal assistants, pilots for the corporate jet, drivers, etc, that CEOs normally enjoy, she also will have a few nannies.    I think her experience will have little relevance to 99 percent of working women and will likely have little effect on workplace  policy or public opinion.

The best I’d hope for is that, as a new mom she will be more appreciative of the maternity and family needs of not just female Yahoo employees, but of all her employees.

And to answer your question, no, I don’t believe the glass ceiling has been broken when women make up barely 4 percent of the top 500 CEO slots. Although the ceiling does have a few cracks: among them, IBM, HP, Xerox, Dupont, Pepsico, Kraft and now Yahoo.

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