Name: Carrie Villani

Job Title: Director of Marketing

Company Name: LERA Consulting Structural Engineers

What was the biggest lesson you learned while working during the pandemic?
To seize an opportunity while you can. Uncertainty remains, but don’t let the moment pass while waiting for perfection. Keep pushing forward now. This is true with new professional goals and personal situations as well. Great outcomes can be achieved under less than ideal circumstances. Embracing the positive in a situation and not being held back by things you cannot control. And don’t try to do it alone, surround yourself with a supportive and passionate team.

What is the best advice you received in 2021, and who was it from?
The quality and content of industry podcasts has skyrocketed. I appreciate and welcome the advice and guidance from SMPS NY’s podcast “The Marketing Department” and from Monograph’s excellent “Best of Practice” video chat series which I was just featured in as well in a seminar titled “LERA: How to Move a Legacy Firm Into the Future.” Being able to participate in the conversation and empower the next generation is very rewarding to me.

How has your working environment changed over the last year?
Being able to attend live events and collaborate in person has been excellent. We do not take these moments for granted and celebrate each occasion to get together. The hybrid model of in-person and remote work has been great for many firms. Maximizing on the pros of both situations has led to many new processes that are here to stay including normalizing video meetings and the great benefits of digital white boards and collaboration spaces.

What was your greatest professional accomplishment or most notable project, deal, or transaction in 2021?
LERA continues to make great advances in healthcare and life sciences. The Ruth Bader Ginsburg Pavilion at Coney Island is in construction and the NYC Public Health Lab will be finishing design soon. I am committed to this market sector and am very excited to announce I will be on the Board of Association of Medical Facility Professionals (AMFP NYC) in 2022 as communications director. I am honored to be included with an esteemed group of owners and consultants making an impact on the healthcare industry.