So then if you need to meet someone, you contact them and schedule that meeting. If the project requires custom designs, you write that design doc. And if they add more engineers to the project, it is your job to get them up to speed and assign parts of the project to them so they can be productive. Basically, your job is to ensure things gets done.
For example one of my previous companies was very top down, siloed and hierarchical. One time I went to talk with a PM from a different team about the prioritization of certain customer features, and my boss got really pissed off. He told me I should never talk directly with anyone and should always communicate via him. This was also the kind of place where new ideas were shut down and opposing the main point of view could get you in trouble.
What about the opposite, people who have the environment but not the mindset? Some might coast years in big tech actively refusing to learn, but it is rare. Most often they will be put in situations that make them uncomfortable and will choose to leave (reorgs are common). Other times their performance will simply suffer if they aren't able to keep up with the team.