You're doing everything right.
You're delivering great work, hitting deadlines, and solving hard problems.
So why does it feel like no one notices?
If you've been putting your head down and waiting for your manager to recognize what you bring to the table, you're not alone. But that strategy has a ceiling, and it's lower than you think.
In this episode, I sit down with Lalitha Madhugundu, a Senior Engineering Manager at Atlassian with over 20 years in software engineering. Lalitha shares what she's learned about what actually moves careers forward, and it's not what most of us were told.
What we talk about:
- Why ”the work speaks for itself” is one of the most expensive beliefs you can hold
- What happened when Lalitha helped a struggling teammate without being asked, and how it changed everything
- How genuine curiosity, not networking strategy, landed her an opportunity she never planned for
- Why your sponsors matter more than your skills when promotion decisions happen in rooms you're not in
- The imposter syndrome ”mammoth” and why even senior leaders still deal with it
About Lalitha:Lalitha Madhugundu is a Senior Engineering Manager at Atlassian, where she leads cloud infrastructure and networking teams. With over 20 years in software engineering, she's driven large-scale cloud transformations and built teams across multiple continents. She's also an active mentor through Tech Leading Ladies and SheTO.
Connect with Lalitha: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mlalitha/
Connect with Limor:
Website: https://limorbergman.com/podcast/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/limorbergman/
Substack: https://limorbergman.substack.com