The Invisible Backbone
My name is Cathy, I’m 58, and I’ve worked at the same insurance company for fifteen years. I’m what you’d call the invisible backbone of Midwest Mutual.
Not the kind of employee who gets spotlighted in the company newsletter, but the one everyone scrambles to find when the system crashes or a client is threatening to leave.
I know every client by name, every policy number by heart, and I’ve memorized all the quirks of our dinosaur software that IT keeps promising to replace ‘next quarter.
‘ I’ve trained half the people in our department—including my last three supervisors, all younger than my oldest pair of sensible pumps. When they promoted Kevin last year, I spent three weeks teaching him how to run the quarterly audits.
When they brought in Melissa before him, I showed her where we keep the client retention files that corporate always asks for during surprise visits.
And when they hired Jason straight out of college, I practically held his hand through his first six months.
That’s just what I do. I’m not flashy, I don’t have an Instagram-worthy desk with succulents and motivational quotes, but I’m dependable. The kind of employee who hasn’t called in sick since Obama’s first term.
So when my boss, Mr. Daniels, hinted earlier this year that he was ‘looking for leadership material’ for a new management position, I thought my time had finally come. Little did I know what I was about to walk into.