The Way to the Top in Corporate America

You have been rewarded for execution. This has been happening for years. You deliver. You meet expectations and exceed targets. Over time, you build a reputation for being reliable, disciplined, and consistent.

Suddenly, the rules change.

You keep performing, but you see less growth. Others, some just as capable and some less so, start to move ahead. They get invited into conversations you are left out of. They are trusted with decisions you feel ready to make. They are seen in ways you are not.

Confusion turns into frustration, and sometimes it even feels unfair. This is the wall many professionals hit. For many South Asians, beliefs that fueled early success now hold them back.

There are many ways to succeed in Corporate America.

You can be exceptional at execution and deliver results year after year. Yet, you may not advance as quickly as expected. This is where many professionals get stuck: they rely only on execution instead of also building visibility and relationships.

The rulebook you grew up with, which focused only on delivering results, is not enough for today’s system.

I didn’t understand this early in my career.

When I worked in corporate America, I believed in keeping my head down, doing great work, and letting the results speak for themselves. I avoided what I saw as “office politics.” I thought relationships should happen naturally, not be planned.

And then I hit a wall.

I saw peers, some with less experience or ability, move ahead more quickly. They were invited into conversations I didn’t even know about. They were trusted with bigger roles, even if their performance was similar or lower.

It was frustrating. To be honest, it felt unfair. At times, I even blamed discrimination.

Until I started paying attention. What I observed was that these people had built relationships across teams and departments. Senior leaders knew them, not just for their work, but for how they think. They made themselves visible in the right places. They built trust beyond their main duties. That changed everything.

When decisions were made, their names came up naturally. They weren’t just good at their jobs. They were known, trusted, and visible in the right circles.

​Many South Asians are raised with a simple, powerful belief: Work hard, stay humble, let your results speak, communicate work-to-work, and show your work through your work.

That belief works well in school, in competitive exams, and even in many traditional organizations.

But in Corporate America, the equation shifts.

In the U.S. corporate world, decisions rarely happen just in formal meetings. Promotions, special projects, and high-visibility roles are often decided long before any meeting takes place. At senior levels, leaders work with incomplete information. They can’t rely only on performance numbers. They depend on judgment, trust, and input from people they know.

So, they turn to their networks.

They ask:

Have you worked with this person?

How do they think?

Can they handle complexity?

Would you trust them in a critical situation?

If there is silence in response to your name, it is interpreted as risk. Work alone doesn’t speak for itself. People advocate, vouch, and carry your reputation forward.

​For many South Asians, the word networking feels inauthentic. It can feel like self-promotion, superficial, or even worse, it can feel like manipulation.

But that’s a misunderstanding. In Corporate America, networking is not about charm. It’s about trust, familiarity, and access.

It means:

● People know how you think—not just what you deliver.

● Leaders have seen you in discussions—not just in execution.

● Your name comes up in rooms you’re not in.

● The management just knows that you have their back.

● They trust you and rely on you.

Most people believe that merit, visibility, discipline, transactional communication, and hierarchy are what matter most. But these beliefs often limit growth. At senior levels, decisions rely on incomplete data.

Growth depends on advocacy. Who has seen your thinking? Who feels confident putting their name forward. And those things come from consistent relationship-building.

Some simple but powerful changes you can make:

● Build relationships before you need them.

● Engage beyond immediate work conversations.

● Share perspectives, not just updates.

● Follow up with insight, not just information.

● Be intentional about who knows your work and how they know it.

So today onwards, stop assuming your work alone will build your reputation. Start building relationships to strengthen your reputation. At senior levels, your success depends on trusted advocates, visibility, and relationships, not just on what you accomplish.

Your Good Friend and Coach

Payal Nanjiani

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This article was written by Payal Nanjiani for Sathee Magazine.