2020 Women in Real Estate: Rebecca Berry, AIA, LEED AP, MCPPO, Principal, President at Finegold Alexander Architects

What is the best advice you have received, and who was it from? The best advice I receive on an on-going basis is from a group of women peer mentors. We have traditionally met on an informal basis and we just talk about anything and everything related to the profession of architecture, our personal challenges, and how we can make things better moving forward. The one constant piece of advice I hear from them: You’ll get there – take time to savor the journey.

How have you been networking during the lockdown? It has been a combination of mining LinkedIn, sending out quick congratulations for my colleague’s major milestones, keeping up with the latest conversations on social media, and generally checking in with people electronically. The reopening of restaurants and cafes for outdoor, socially-distant dining has been fantastic for catching up with people after months of being cooped up at home. As an extrovert, relying on numerous virtual calls to connect with people can be quite draining. 

What recent project or transaction are you most proud of? We have ongoing work at Wellesley College that is very rewarding. We completed renovations this summer to Tower Court, the iconic campus quadrangle on the hill facing the lake. We enjoy not only the complexity of renovating historic structures such as these, but also the work of building relationships and assisting mission-driven institutional clients such as Wellesley College. The facilities and leadership team at the college is diverse, dedicated, and excellent at communicating.