WLI SPOTLIGHT

Monica Audette, AIA, LEED AP

Assistant Vice President I Senior Project Manager at Hobbs Brook Real Estate

This is the first profile of an ongoing series that profiles WLI members. WLI’s mission to increase both the number and visibility of women leaders throughout ULI’s vast network and the CRE industry.

How many years have you been in the CRE industry?

• 28 years.

 What’s your motto that motivates you?

• “The key to success is to focus on goals, not obstacles.” – Unknown.
• I say this to myself all the time. As humans, we tend to get easily frustrated. It’s easy to perceive setbacks or challenges as obstacles; but, if you interpret (inconvenient) moments as part of the goal reaching process, you are well positioned to achieve big things and stay on course.

 If there’s one piece of advice that you would give to someone entering CRE, what is it?

• Be humble and pleasant to everyone you work with. The CRE circle is small, and everyone is interconnected.

 What’s your favorite thing about real estate?

• I focus mostly on office/corporate design work. My clients are often tenants/companies, so I get to work on projects that help people be more creative/inspired in their built environment.
• People spend a lot of time in their physical work environments/offices. Creating spaces where people feel comfortable has a big impact on their day to day and I greatly enjoy having influence in that though strategic design.

 What’s your biggest career accomplishment?

• Becoming a registered architect with the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Architects. This license has opened a lot of doors for me throughout my career, and I recommend prioritizing it to those in the field.

 Name one – two fun facts that people may not know about.

• I love to golf and gather with a group of women every week to play and then we enjoy dinner together afterward.
• I also love to garden. It’s a lot of hard work but I find myself getting into the zone planting flowers, pulling weeds, and just being outside in the natural environment.
• I consider myself an extrovert and enjoy being social.

 Why do you find ULI/WLI valuable?

• I enjoy being a part of a community of women that genuinely support each other.
• Through ULI/WLI, I have had the chance to meet new, interesting people and expand my network.
• WLI has provides a valuable, safe space to voice and hear differing points of view on a wide range of topics, from navigating Covid to new development trends.

Learn more about WLI here:  https://americas.uli.org/programs/leadership-network/womens-initiative/wli-executive-committee/ and connect with Monica on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/monica-audette-aia-leed-ap-02422512/