2017 Women in Real Estate Spotlight - Nancy Greenwald

Years in real estate: 35 

What real estate associations or organizations are you a member of:  Construction Institute at the University of Hartford, National Institute of Building Sciences, American Bar Association Forum on Construction Law, and Women in Dispute Resolution

How have you navigated obstacles to achieve success in your career: I don’t think of myself as navigating around obstacles. If there seems to be an obstacle I ask myself why it’s there and what the solution is. Sometimes the solution is training, or planning, or hard work, or conversation. Other times you need to knock down obstacles. When I was in middle school the guidance counselor told me not to take advanced math and science because “girls just don’t do well in those courses.” I signed up anyway. My undergraduate degree is in science and my desire to knock down obstacles that should not exist led me to law school. 

What trends are you seeing so far this year: We are at the precipice of a revolution; not only in the way we design and build structures, but also in the way we use them. We already communicate with buildings in real time through the Internet of Things. New technologies - augmented and virtual reality, generative design, artificial intelligence, robotics, 3-D printing of buildings, and modular construction will change how we use and maintain structures from large commercial facilities to office buildings to homes, as well as roads, bridges and other infrastructure. Smart cities are the cities of the future. We live in a time of great opportunity.