Line and Staff

You need to recognize the distinction between line and staff jobs. Line positions are those jobs seen as making a direct contribution to the company's profits. Jobs directly involved in the design, manufacture, and sale of your product are line positions. Briefly put, production and sales jobs are line positions. Staff positions are those that support the line. Human resources, billing, and public relations are considered staff positions. Line people are seen as essential to the organization, while staff people are viewed as expenses. Line people, by the nature of their jobs, usually have more power than staff people. Almost without exception, line people are paid more.

One of the most blatant differences between the careers of women and men is that women typically spend their lives working in staff positions. Men more often move around between line and staff, and most line positions are held by men. This occurs partly because women do not recognize the difference and thus gravitate toward staff positions, erroneously believing them to be safer.

You know how hard you work. Perhaps the women around you remind themselves and each other how important they are to the company. However, staff positions are seen as costs. Women have many more choices than we used to. As we make choices concerning careers, we should know and understand this difference between line and staff. We need to land a position on the line.

I know of companies that have a line job in a staff department, when it was held by a woman. If you have such a job, you might want to approach your management about switching your job to a line position. "Clearly, my responsibilities are more closely tied to production than accounting." If you can get moved, talk to your new boss about a higher salary. You might also consider changing companies. It's possible that you could change companies, keep the same job title, and double your income.

Far too many of us choose staff positions to avoid the risk or visibility of a line position, doubting that we are capable of succeeding at a line job. The price we pay in lack of recognition, job security, advancement, and compensation does not warrant this choice.