In honor of Women’s History Month in March, we are kicking off a Houzzer Profile series to celebrate female Houzzers and their contributions. Nina Mirabella, is the senior director of sales operations for Houzz Pro, the all-in-one business management and marketing solution for residential construction and design professionals. In her role, Nina oversees the business processes, sales enablement tools, and performance metrics for our sales team so that they can best address the needs of home professionals in our community. Outside of work, she is a true homebody — you’ll find her cooking, crafting and, most recently, welcoming a new puppy into her family. 

What do you do at Houzz?
My team oversees the operations and enablement for our sales organization. We work with nearly every team at Houzz to understand the latest product developments, optimize our processes, and prepare training materials and sessions to ensure that our sales and customer service representatives are well equipped to support our community of home professionals. 

What do you enjoy most about Houzz?
I love working at Houzz and am really passionate about both the industry we support and the product we provide and continue to enhance for homeowners and professionals. I enjoy the visibility I have into what’s happening on the product side and my interactions with many different teams, both in the U.S. and globally. It’s exciting for me and my team of amazing go-getters to be involved in so many aspects of the business. 

What brought you to Houzz?
I’m afraid of flying and I used to carry stacks of home design magazines as a distraction. My husband recommended that I look at Houzz for professional home photos on my phone, so I downloaded the app and used it as a way to prepare for flights. 

In 2017, I had the opportunity to renovate my house. As I was going through the Houzz photo stream, I liked an image and realized that Preferred Kitchen & Bath, the design-build firm who uploaded it, was local. I contacted them (and ultimately hired them to complete the project), and we collaborated through ideabooks, all on Houzz. I am so happy with the result and continue to get compliments when people see my background on video calls! 

A couple of months later, I saw that Houzz was hiring for a role within my experience. It felt like the perfect fit, so I applied and ultimately got the job. 

What has been your favorite project while working at Houzz?
The launch of Houzz Pro, a software as a service (SaaS) marketing and business management platform for home construction and design professionals, was really exciting. We had the opportunity to strategize and roll out a completely new approach to our sales and customer support process that involved an incredible effort to develop in-depth education materials and training programs. We also rebuilt our customer support organization structure and introduced new teams to best serve our pro community, which recently earned Houzz a Bronze Stevie Award for Customer Service.  

What is your favorite Houzz Pro feature?
The Houzz Pro Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool is my favorite feature. It’s such a natural fit for Houzz to provide this service, because of our history helping pros to advertise their services and connect with homeowners. We heard from pros that they needed a command center to organize and manage their leads, so I’m glad that we’ve built that into our software. It allows Houzz Pro to be a one-stop shop. Once they convert the lead into a client, they can use the other management tools such as the client dashboard, time and expense tracking and online invoices and payments, throughout the duration of the project. 

What do you think makes Houzz’s culture unique?
What I find unique about Houzz is that everyone I work with is passionate about the home improvement industry. Many Houzzers joined because of their interest in the space or came to Houzz from a complementary industry. This creates an innate investment in what we’re doing to create the best experience for home professionals and homeowners. I feel that energy and enthusiasm from every level and across every team. Working at Houzz is not simply a job. People are here because they truly want to be part of this industry and believe in Houzz’s mission to create the best experience for home renovation and design. 

How would you describe your leadership style?
I focus on collaboration and communication and believe that every team member should have a voice. If there’s a new initiative or focus area that we’re trying to emphasize, I keep my team updated as often as possible so they understand what to prioritize, why the initiatives matter and how it impacts our business or the pros in our community. I want them to understand what we’re trying to achieve so they can be involved in making suggestions to do things better. They will always be the subject matter expert in their area, so I want to leverage their knowledge and experience. It’s why we hired them in the first place.  

Do you have any advice for the next generation of female leaders?
We have strong female leadership at Houzz, and they’re all incredibly confident bringing their own voice and perspective to the room. I’d encourage the next generation to embrace everything that makes them different and bring it to the table. Early in my career, I often felt like the odd-woman out. I might have been the youngest or newest team member, the only female (of color) in the meeting, or the sole champion for planners, post-its, and dividers on a project. As I’ve matured personally and professionally, I’ve learned that our differences allow us to reinvent the status quo and challenge each other to improve and grow. 

Who has been the most influential female role model in your professional life?
I previously worked with a female Chief Financial Officer (CFO) who successfully carved out her own space in a male-dominated industry and organization. She was one of two women on the leadership team, and she had command of every meeting, decision making process and project she was involved in. It was motivating and inspiring to see how well she was respected by her peers. She was extremely well spoken, but she often sat quietly, digested the information presented by the room and when she was prepared to respond the rest of the room stopped to listen. She would reiterate what she’d been hearing, strike a balance across the different demands in the room, and propose a cohesive solution that served the best interests of the business. I loved watching her manage those meetings, and continue to have so much respect for her as a leader. In my current role, I try to approach situations with a similar perspective that balances the needs of many while keeping the best interests of our community and company at the forefront.  

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