Executives: What They Work At After They Quit Working

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For the hard-driving men at the pinnacle of U.S. corporations, the idea of a life without work often seems painful. Yet more and more of them are being forced to retire at 65—an age at which the average U.S. man still has 14 years to live. One of the most troubling questions in U.S. business is what the corporation should do with its overage chiefs—and what they should do with themselves.

In the biggest companies, the trend is to cut off the former bosses rather sharply. Many of the retired themselves sympathize with that policy. Says Joseph B. Hall, former chairman of Kroger Co., the Cincinnati-based grocery chain: "I'm in favor of a retiring officer clearing out completely. The new chief executive should get every break." General Motors' John Gordon, 65, has seldom been seen at G.M. since he left the presidency in June. Ralph Cordiner, 65, retreated to the serenity of his Florida cattle ranch two years ago upon retirement as chairman of General Electric, emerged only briefly last year to head Barry Goldwater's fund raising.

Back Into Action. Money is not usually a problem. Pensions and deferred option deals usually equal one-third to one-half of the executives' working salaries, and in some cases much more. What the corporate celebrities really miss are the old powers, pressures and personal contacts—the feeling of being on the inside and the sense of responsible activity. Some companies (Honeywell Inc., American Express and Jersey Standard, among others) try to fill the gap by giving their retired chief executives and directors a base for new activities; they provide them with office space, but it is usually segregated from the men at work.

Most pensioned chiefs try to swing back into action by getting onto the boards of charities, hospitals or universities. The discreet jockeying for such appointments can be intense. Perhaps the most prestigious board is that of Manhattan's Columbia-Presbyterian Hospital, which includes such former chief executives as American Telephone's Cleo Craig, Texaco's Augustus C. Long, Jersey Standard's Monroe J. Rathbone, and B.B.D.&O.'s Bruce Barton, along with some distinctly unretired figures, such as General Motors' Frederic Donner and U.S. Steel's Roger Blough.

Westinghouse's former chief, Gwilym A. Price, 70, is now the chairman of the University of Pittsburgh's trustees, and has been assuming more and more responsibility at the financially troubled institution since Chancellor Edward Litchfield resigned last year. Equally prestigious, from the retired executive's viewpoint, is an appointment to a powerful (if nonpaying) position in public service. One such plum was won in October by Edwin M. Clark, 65, the recently retired boss of Southwestern Bell Telephone, who was picked to head St. Louis' industrial-development drive.