Her Story
About Melissa
My career path has been anything but traditional. I spent many years in the restaurant industry, working as a bartender and server before becoming an assistant general manager at a restaurant bar in North Carolina. Everything changed when I fell down the side of a mountain, ruptured discs in my back, and had to have a couple of surgeries. Doctors told me I'd never be able to do that type of work again, so I went back to college to re-educate myself for a sit-down job and earned my associate's degree. I got into the damage prevention industry in 2004 and have been in it on and off for the past 20 to 25 years. I worked as a locator technician for many years and became known as a strong producer, but I kept getting stuck in the field because companies would tell me they couldn't afford for me to leave because I was too good. Pushing 50 with two back surgeries, I knew I needed to transition into management while staying in this line of work that I enjoy. I finally took a position as a lead tech with LineQuest, even though it meant essentially taking a pay cut when you count the overtime I would have gotten, because I saw the opportunity to move up. Now I'm an area manager for LineQuest, where I've been for 3 years, managing 10 to 15 technicians, running all the KPIs for my crew, and making sure my technicians are hitting their goals. Some days it feels like I'm herding cats, but the biggest thing is not letting them see how stressed you can be. I'm also a member of the Damage Prevention Committee for the state's 811 call before you dig program, where we work with contractors, utilities, and locate companies to address new technology challenges and update laws. One of my proudest achievements is coining the phrase 'keep your head on a swivel' as a safety mantra that spread to other states and was credited by a technician in Alabama who used that training to save an elderly gentleman who had fallen into a ditch.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Melissa
01What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Don't give up. And don't be afraid to stand up to the men. I had a gentleman who is now a state official who, way back at the beginning when I went to locate his farm, stood in my face and told me that women belong barefoot, pregnant in the kitchen. I laughed and said, well, you're welcome to come to dinner tonight. And he's like, oh, you cook? I said, oh, I absolutely do. We're having oleander pie. I knew he was old enough to catch that reference, and you could watch the realization come about his face, and he pointed to what he wanted located and walked away. Don't let them beat you down. You can't, and you won't go anywhere if you do. I guarantee that. It should have been a few more years prior that I've hit this spot, but I just keep grinding away. I'm here, so keep pushing forward.
02What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
We are dependent upon the economy. If there's no money, there's no work, and that's what we're watching - our work is slowly coming to a halt. There was a lot of grant money released for infrastructure, and that all ended this year, so a lot of that slowed down. We are fully dependent upon the tickets that get called in, so if there is no money for construction, or fences being installed at your home, or whether it's big infrastructure or even someone building a new home, we have no work if that does not happen. It's steadily dropping. I will say we still get a lot of what we call single address work, so I do see a lot of the smaller work being done, but not like it used to be. It's definitely probably cut in half. A lot of people are just not wanting to spend their money because they don't know what's going to come. Beyond the immediate economic challenges, I'm also watching the AI craze closely. I have a feeling it'll still be operations managers, but it may very well be robotic Fleet Operation Manager in the future. They're saying in 3 to 5 years, 80% of white-collar jobs will be gone, the lower-level management. That's where I'm at, so I need to make myself relevant with other employers and stand out more than the rest of my crew, my area, my company.
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