“Image is everything,” she said. “The media play a huge role.”

The image, and recruitment, should improve with three women heading defense businesses, said Ana Dutra, chief executive for leadership and talent consulting at Korn/Ferry International.

“It’s going to be a total game-changer,” Dutra said. “There is an inspiration factor. I bet that we’re going to see many more women graduates reaching out to those companies and wanting to be part of them,” Dutra said.

But today’s younger women likely won’t have the patience to slowly work their way up and wait until they are in their late 40s, 50s or 60s to hold powerful jobs, Dutra said.

“Companies need to identify their high potential women much earlier and try to develop them faster,” she said. Otherwise, “they are probably going to move out to other sectors.”