Like the three notes of a chord, music-lover Gabby Ramirez blends her trio of main interests into one harmonious role at Houzz. A product support specialist, she combines a childhood dream to teach, her university studies and a personal love of design to answer Houzz Pro users’ technical questions. You could say her team’s help is music to their ears.

How would you describe what you do at Houzz?
My team is the main support for home remodeling and design professionals who use our software, marketing and other tools to run their businesses. We’re their go-to resource for questions on our Houzz Pro tools, and we also encourage them to look at other features that could really be helpful to their business or ease their workflow. 

Let’s go back to the beginning. What did you want to be when you grew up?
When I was very little, I really wanted to be a teacher, but that changed as I grew up. My degree is in business marketing with an emphasis in sales. I also have always been interested in interior design and started a certification a couple years ago. 

How did you find out about Houzz?
I was familiar with Houzz because of my interest in interior design. When it was time for me to pursue a career, I went to Houzz’s website and saw a posting for a sales development representative (SDR) position, which aligned with my sales and marketing background. I thought: Well, I really love the interior design space, and this company caters to design and construction professionals, so why not give it a shot? I started as an SDR and later transitioned to serve our design and build professionals through Houzz Pro. I’ve been here five years!

What would you say is the best part about working here?
I’m sure everyone says this, but I have the best team at Houzz. We all get along so well and care for each other very deeply. Our team is so supportive of each other, and I think that really transfers into how we support our pros. 

This is really a great place to work! We have a wonderful community of Houzzers and pros, and my role combines the two together. I appreciate how hard our product support team works – and how much we do for our pros and our other Houzzers!

What do you enjoy most about your role?
I love being able to help by getting an inside look into what professionals are actually doing. It’s nice to go through projects with them and understand what they are trying to accomplish or how they function and work. By helping them, I’m also helping support their business, which leads to a great experience for their clients. 

How have you become so knowledgeable about pro’ needs and all of our Houzz Pro features?
I am in the product every day, trying out different things – like our estimating tools or our 3D Floor Planner – and review product updates. We work pretty closely with the Product team and give them pros’ feedback. We’re also some of the first people to know about or test new launches or updates. 

It’s also been helpful for me to understand upcoming design trends. Since I also have a personal interest, I subscribe to various publications and source things online. It’s a nice way to stay updated. If a pro mentions something they’ve seen, I can say, “Oh, yes, I read about that, too.”  

What is your favorite Houzz Pro feature?
The 3D Floor Planner and our Mood Boards are great visual tools to set a tone for what the design could be before you kick off a project. Adding your own inspiration – whether that’s images, paint swatches, pictures of furniture – and your floor plan really gives a nice view or vision of what’s possible. I love sharing that with pros!

Do you have a memorable story working with someone in our pro community?
A new Houzz Pro user based in New York once sent a request asking for help with sending a proposal. We jumped on a video call so I could walk her through what she was trying to do and ensure she had a good foundation working with the software.

When interactions with pros, like this one, are conversational, it gives us an opportunity to work together and makes it so memorable. There are a lot of pros who use our software and genuinely love our product and the support they get – and that really makes me happy. 

What has surprised you most about working here?
I’d say the genuine connections you make. I’m proud of the people I work with and genuinely care about everyone. And I feel that’s reciprocated, even when I meet new Houzzers or people I haven’t interacted with before. Everyone is so kind and welcoming, and it’s nice to consistently see that even when working remotely. 

That’s also the second part: That community feeling didn’t end once we went remote. It carried on and is fostered through things like our online events and Great Houzzer cards. That part of our culture never went away.

Can you talk about your experience in RISE, the leadership development program?
I’m the kind of person who’s always looking for new ways to get involved here. I was aware of RISE but didn’t think I was ready for it until last year. I would like to be a people leader one day at Houzz, so I knew this was a great opportunity to gain insight on what that would look like. It also would give me a chance to work with Houzzers across the world and have face time with stakeholders and present ideas that I think would be good for Houzz and benefit everyone.

It was a really great experience! The group I worked with on my capstone project was wonderful. After the program, I felt more confident and saw the potential of myself as a leader, even more than I did before. I’ll be able to take this experience with me throughout the rest of my life.

What do you do when you’re not working?
I love music and grew up playing the piano and drums. So if I can, I’m listening to music, or going to concerts and music festivals. And, about a year ago, I started posting a song every Friday for my team to set the vibe, and now I do it every week in the music-focused space on our intranet for all Houzzers!

I also like being outdoors – running and swimming – and spending time with my friends and family. At Houzz, I’m able to enjoy all these things, because I have a really good work/life balance. 

What excites you most about the future of Houzz?
Seeing where our software will go! We’ve added so much, especially in the last year. It’s exciting to help our users with the new features and see more pros subscribing!

​​If you’re interested in joining our team, we’re hiring! Check out available opportunities at houzz.com/jobs.