Layla Vrabel Of Mancini Duffy On How To Hire The Right Person
An Interview With Ben Ari
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I always ask them what questions they have about our firm. You can tell what’s most important to someone by what questions they do or don’t ask.
When a company is looking to grow, the choice of who to hire can sometimes be an almost existential question. The right hire can dramatically grow a company, while the wrong hire can i morale and growth. How can you know you are hiring the right person? What are the red flags that should warn you away from hiring someone? In this interview series, we are talking to business leaders who can share insights and stories from their experience about “How To Hire The Right Person.” As a part of this series, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Layla Vrabel, AIA.
Over 11 years ago, Layla Vrabel, AIA, joined Mancini Duffy as a junior architectural designer after graduating from Syracuse University. Today, she is a Principal and Studio Director at Mancini’s New York headquarters. Layla has seen many waves of newcomers, ‘boomerangs,’ and torch-passing from seasoned veterans to emerging talent. As Co-head of the firm’s Talent Group, Layla leads Talent Recruitment and Attraction efforts and Talent Development, Performance, and Management for Mancini.
Thank you for joining us in this interview series. Our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your ‘backstory’?
I enjoy learning about people, understanding what drives them, and putting all the pieces together. As a result, I’ve always sought out roles where I manage and work with many people, whether in high school as the president of the French club, in college as a leader in the Peer Mentorship Program, or in my current role at Mancini. Endlessly curious, I have a knack for understanding people’s personalities and strengths, identifying areas in which they could excel.
You’ve had a remarkable career journey. Can you highlight a key decision in your career that helped you get to where you are today?
In the first few years of my career, I noticed the most significant difference between school and real-world…
