Is it just me, or does it feel like the term “climbing the corporate ladder” has a negative connotation these days?
Perhaps it’s because countless TikTok and Instagram videos have gone viral for criticising or poking fun at corporate culture, such as lingo like “let’s circle back” or “as per my last email”.
However, just because negative or even toxic behaviour may exist in certain corporations doesn’t mean wanting to pursue a corporate career is bad. “Climbing the corporate ladder” doesn’t have to mean slaving away in what some may refer to as a “rat race”.
I’m no corporate expert, though, so don’t take it from me. Rather, take it from the guests of a recent panel by Malaysian Pay Gap’s Work Slayer Summit, aptly titled “Corporate Ladder 101: How to Climb Ethically?”. The panellists were:
- Fatin Fatihah, Cloud Adoption Engineer at Microsoft
- Dinesh Jayabalan, Recruiter at Shell
- Jenna Chua, Planning Director at Invictus Blue
Moderated by Aaron Sarma, a venture capitalist and serial entrepreneur, they shared insights and practical advice on how they’ve navigated their way to where they are today.
1. Have a clear end goal
Before you even start your ascent, it’s important to keep sight on what you’re doing it for.
For many, the end goal might lie in financial gains. But instead of doing it for higher and higher salary, it’s important to first understand what you even want that money for.
This can be applied to all the steps taken along the way. If you’re networking with someone, what’s your goal? Is it to gain business acumen, make supportive friendships, or get relationship advice? Having clarity is critical throughout this whole journey.
2. Overcome your fear of growth
One of the reasons for stagnancy might be due to fear about growing outside of your comfort zone.
This is especially true the higher you climb, because the further you have to fall. The higher your position or salary is, the more you want to maintain it.
Getting over that fear is easier said than done, so something that might be a source of comfort is this: 50% of your next job is likely what you’re already doing.
This was shared by Jenna. To help you along your journey, she also advised finding a mentor, whether that be in your company or within the industry, and finding a community that supports and uplifts you.
3. Build your communications skill
When upskilling, you might think about picking up industry-specific skillsets. More than that, though, something the panellists collectively agreed was critical to pay attention to is your communication skills.
A part of good communications is making sure you reach out and talk to leaders at different C-levels to see where you fit in.
4. Networking is necessary
As brought up during the session, the actual work itself isn’t hard, it’s people who are hard. (The amount of head-nodding this got amongst the audience during the panel discussion speaks for itself.)
As good as you may be at your job, the fact of the matter is that networking is absolutely necessary if you want to climb the proverbial ladder.
Engaging with stakeholders is crucial in building visibility and relationships so you can be top of mind with decision makers. Showing up is already half the challenge, and as Fatin said, people do notice when you show up.
Sharing that skills and performance are not enough, Dinesh said that you will only know what you know—networking will allow you to broaden your knowledge and horizons.
5. Read the room
Aside from written and spoken language, another layer of communication happens through body language.
To “read the room”, understanding non-verbal cues as well as the industry and its people is crucial. Knowing the dynamics can give you an edge on connecting with people and adapting to the situation.
Being able to read the room also means knowing when to ask for opportunities such as projects or promotions.
6. Don’t kiss ass
While networking and communications are key skills, the panellists were sure to clarify that this doesn’t mean you should be sucking up to your superiors. Any superior who is worth their salt would be able to tell, anyway.
Aside from ass kissing, the speakers also warned about unethical office politics. As Dinesh pointed out, it only takes two people to start politics, so it’s important to be cognisant and escalate instances of unethical politicking to HR when needed.
If you can’t tell whether someone is just sucking up to you or others, the panellists said that core values are supposed to be consistent—just take note of how they treat everyone.
7. Know your values
What if your workplace has a bunch of politics, and you need to partake in it in order to get where you want to be?
Well, the panellists’ answer to that is—don’t climb a ladder at a place where the values are unaligned to yours. If you need to do unsavoury things such as ass kissing just to get a leg up, is that really a place where you want to continue growing?
On this topic, Fatin shared her “onion” theory, whereby there are three layers. Starting from the outside, you have your organisational values and standards of procedures. The second layer is what the customer and project’s interests are. At the core of the onion is your own individual policies.
Fatin gave a personal example, sharing that she herself will never drink, so she will draw the line there.
Of course, not everyone has the privilege to do this.
“But if you are in that position where you can, you should do it for your own sanity and principles,” she concluded.
8. Find your own ladder
Ultimately, no two ladders are supposed to be the same. A path that worked for someone else might not work for you. Perhaps you will have to craft your own ladder. Perhaps your first ladder might be faulty. Perhaps you might stumble upon an elevator along your way.
And at the end of the day, if you realise climbing ladders is not something you want to do, that’s fine too. Your career is in your own hand.
- Read other articles we’ve written about Malaysian startups here.
