“Grow Your Network Before You Need It” — Greg Roche on Leaving Corporate, Retention, and Building Leverage Before You’re Forced To

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Cut The Tie Podcast with Greg Roche

Most executives think about networking only after something breaks. A missed promotion. A reorg. A quiet signal that their seat is no longer secure. In this episode of Cut The Tie, Thomas Helfrich sits down with Greg Roche to explain why waiting is the most expensive mistake professionals make.

Greg shares his transition from a 20+ year corporate HR career into building his own consulting business, and the exact moment he knew it was time to cut the tie. They explore why compensation and retention are often misunderstood by leadership, how networking quietly creates career insurance, and why the best exits are planned long before you need them.

This conversation is especially relevant for senior leaders who feel stuck, passed over, or uneasy about their long-term role inside large organizations.

About Greg Roche

Greg Roche is the founder of Retention and Rewards Partners, where he helps organizations understand employee compensation, engagement, and retention through a practical, data-informed lens. With more than two decades of corporate HR experience across healthcare, real estate, and cybersecurity, Greg now works with companies on a fractional and consulting basis.

He is also the creator of The Introverted Networker, where he teaches professionals how to grow strong networks without cold outreach, awkward events, or performative networking.

In this episode, Thomas and Greg discuss:

• Why compensation is often a company’s largest unmanaged expense
• The hidden signals executives miss before being passed over
• How age, politics, and reorgs quietly limit upward mobility
• Why networking works best before you need a job
• Fractional consulting as an alternative to corporate leadership roles
• The freedom that comes from detaching your identity from one employer
• How to make yourself “top of mind” without selling or spamming

Key Takeaways

• If you wait until you need your network, you waited too long
  Strong networks are built in calm seasons, not crisis moments.
• Retention problems are usually pay and clarity problems
  Employees leave when they don’t understand their value or future.
• Fractional work creates leverage and emotional distance
  You can give clearer advice when your identity isn’t tied to internal politics.
• Being passed over is often a signal, not a failure
  Ignoring it keeps you stuck longer than necessary.
• Your network is career insurance
  The right connections create options before you feel trapped.

Connect with Greg Roche

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregsroche/
📘 Website: https://www.retentionandrewards.com/

Connect with Thomas Helfrich

🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/thelfrich
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomashelfrich
🌐 Website: https://cutthetie.com
📧 Email: [e-mail]
🚀 https://instantlyrelevant.com

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