Connie Ye is an engineering manager on our Houzz Pro team in Palo Alto, overseeing the development of Houzz Pro tools to help home professionals run a more efficient and profitable business. Outside of work, she spends time with her family and can often be found on playdates with her kids and their friends.

What do you do at Houzz?
I oversee the development and support for Houzz Pro’s customer relationship management (CRM), payment and visual tools, as well as overall support for the Houzz Pro platform. 

What has your career growth been like at Houzz? 
I’ve been with Houzz for over six years. I started as a full stack software engineer and gradually had the opportunity to take on more responsibility as a technical lead and now as an engineering manager. I enjoy that I have the opportunity to guide and empower others to contribute directly to the product. 

What do you enjoy most about Houzz?
I’m passionate about the product and enjoy that my work positively impacts the lives of both home professionals and the homeowners they serve. Our Houzz Pro tools are very useful in helping pros to grow and manage their business. It’s been an amazing opportunity to contribute to the evolution of the product, working with multiple teams at Houzz to continue to identify new ways to serve our customers and improve their experience. 

I am also constantly learning from smart, talented teammates all over the world, which is a great experience. Houzzers are very supportive and collaborative.

How did you hear about Houzz?
I bought my first house when I was pretty young, so I was looking for inspiration on how to decorate and came across Houzz. Then, I realized that I could also purchase furniture on Houzz! We’re preparing for a remodel now and I told my general contractor about our new Houzz Pro Takeoff tool. I also use the Houzz Pro Floor Planner to communicate with my designers. It’s so efficient. 

Speaking of the Houzz Pro Takeoff tool. Houzz recently acquired Australia-based ConX and integrated the technology into Houzz Pro. What was that process like?
It was really smooth. We created a roadmap so everyone had a clear vision for how the product will evolve and that allowed us to integrate the technology in record time, delivering it to our customers as quickly as possible.

The ConX team is truly talented and a joy to work with. Our teams are spread across the globe, from Australia to America to Israel to Taiwan to Nepal, but everyone works so well together. I’ve been really impressed by everyone’s dedication and collaboration. Even though we started as two separate companies, we’re one family now.  

What project are you most proud of while at Houzz? 
In my first few years at Houzz, I contributed to the development of the Houzz Shop. It was amazing to watch the rapid growth as we added new vendors. Despite being fairly junior, I had the opportunity to represent our company by connecting with vendors to learn about what they wanted from our marketplace. It allowed me to gain new experience outside of engineering and helped me to improve my communication skills. 

I also created an internal tool to help our teams review and approve products that will be sold on the Houzz Shop. At the time, I was so focused on making sure it worked well and looked good, that I didn’t really think about the impact that it might have on the team’s productivity. The team was based in another office and to my surprise, they created a video to show their appreciation for the tool because it made their jobs much easier. It was so nice of them to take the time to make a video to show their gratitude. 

What is one of your favorite memories at Houzz? 
One of my favorite memories was glamping during our team retreat at Camp Houzz. It was a really fun experience! I had started at Houzz somewhat recently, so it was a great way for me to meet people and get to know other Houzzers. 

What is your most productive time of day?
The morning. It gives me time to reflect and plan my day without interruptions. 

What’s an interesting fact about yourself?
I competed in ballroom dance competitions in New York and traditional Chinese dance in Los Angeles. We actually bought a dance studio, but ultimately closed it during the pandemic. Now, I enjoy dancing casually with my husband in our home.

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