They were talking about him while he wasn’t there, the way you talk about someone who has always been there, too long for anyone to remember when he arrived, someone who was never really trained because he did the work, who was never named because he asked for nothing, someone who, by being reliable, had become a functional given, almost part of the furniture.
Another company had approached him, and even though he said he didn’t want to leave, that he preferred to stay, around the table the discussion immediately turned to what it would do if he left, what it would shift, what it would expose.
Money did not take up space in the discussion, it was said that they could match, even exceed, without difficulty.
The conversation moved elsewhere. Not to what he did, nor to what he actually carried, but to what they were willing to put in writing, and at that point something tightened.
– “Director? no. Senior? that was a problem. Not on substance, on effect.”
They talked about titles that circulate, about what they signal, what they commit to, and very quickly it became clear that they did not want to fix anything that could later be read anywhere other than here.
So they looked for another way, without opposing directly, circling around, combining, stretching, until they found a title precise enough to appear serious and empty enough to change nothing.
They knew he would be disappointed.
Someone said that with the amount offered he wouldn’t be able to refuse, that it was more than what the other company was putting on the table, and that if he hesitated despite that, it would say a lot about the person.
Someone smiled and said that
– after all, he had forced their hand a little.
The decision was made at that moment. They told themselves he would eventually understand.
The next meeting started on time.
