Walter Marin: 5 Things You Need To Know To Successfully Manage a Team

In the early days of the pandemic, we struggled to purchase enough remote licenses for the team quickly. We only had seven at the time, and suddenly everybody needed that access. We also offered to upgrade the home internet speeds for all of our team members to ensure that everyone could stay connected and productive.

As a part of our series about the five things you need to successfully manage a large team, I had the pleasure of interviewing Walter Marin.

Walter Marin was born in Latin America but raised in the heart of New York. The son of an immigrant cabinetmaker, he was raised with an appreciation for craftsmanship that led to his life-long love of the built environment. He completed a BS/BA in Architecture in 1982 and worked with well-known architectural design firms including the Howard Golden firm prior to establishing Marin Associates in 1985. Upon obtaining his architectural certification, Walter converted his growing firm into Marin Architects. Supported by Walter’s keen business sense and creative aptitude, the firm has since developed a strong roster of repeat clientele and a sterling reputation. Ever community-minded, Walter gives back by participating in Embrace Relief, and in the past has served as the Vice Chair of The National Hispanic Business Group and the Bronx Community College Foundation Board. Walter is NCARB-certified.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. What is your “backstory”?

I started my own firm out of pure ignorance over thirty years ago. Starting my firm was not driven by ego; I focused on doing the project for the one client I had, then I hired one person, then another, and so forth.

Two years after starting the firm, I began to doubt myself. I thought it wasn’t going anywhere and started looking for other opportunities. Someone offered me a great deal of money to work from them, and I had a realization that if this person trusted me enough to offer this much, how could I not trust…