The VTS team consists of folks with a diverse set of personalities, talents, and perspectives, and we want you to meet them! That’s why we’ve created this #WeAreVTS blog series to highlight some of the many outstanding people we have at VTS, get a closer look at the dynamic lives they have, and continue to create an environment where each VTSer can be their authentic self.
Without further ado, here's our interview with Nicole Maetta, Senior Client Advisor!
In a sentence or two, can you explain what you do here at VTS?
Hey Louisa! I'm on the Client Advisory team for VTS Lease, VTS Market, and VTS Data. I’m responsible for the success of the clients on the VTS Platform. I build relationships with clients and partner with them to find ways to make sure that they are getting value from the products that they use with VTS.
Where are you based right now?
New York. I live in Hoboken, New Jersey and I commute into the New York City office four days a week.
Can you describe your professional journey and how it led you to VTS?
I actually studied mechanical engineering and initially worked at a healthcare tech company for two years right after graduating from college, which is very different from what I do today.
Towards the end of my time in healthcare tech – which required me to move away from home – I realized I wanted to move back to New York and be closer to my family. That ultimately led me to VTS! I started on the Implementation Services team and worked there for three years; the first two years as an Implementation Manager (IM) and then as a people manager of the IMs on the team.
As I transitioned to people management, I found that I missed working directly with clients and building those relationships. An opportunity opened up at the end of summer 2023 on the Client Advisory team; I expressed interest and officially became a Senior Client Advisor in October 2023.
When I joined VTS, I was more drawn to the technology side of what the company was doing (since I had a background in healthcare and not commercial real estate), but it’s been really cool to learn a new industry over the last three and a half years.
What excites you about what you do at VTS?
The number one thing for me is getting to work with all different types of people, whether that is with different teams in the company like Sales, Customer Success, Product, or with customers across the world. I really enjoy making connections with coworkers and customers about VTS solutions, commercial real estate, and mutual interests at a personal level. Whether a coworker or customer, we’re all working toward the same goal of trying to achieve certain outcomes for our respective companies. Building those relationships and connections and learning about them as people has always excited me.
Is there a moment in your time here that made you especially proud to work at VTS?
There is one moment that sticks out to me – it was during on-site training with one of our clients in Houston, TX. We had recently gone through a 10 month project to deploy the client on the entire VTS Platform, which took a lot of effort on both sides. I had the opportunity to present to nearly every department at the company on all the ways each team can use the platform to manage their day-to-day business (from leasing and asset management, to construction and property management, and even finance and legal teams).
We got so much positive feedback from stakeholders during the training. In that moment I came to appreciate how special the partnership became over 10 months. All the hard work really paid off!
On to more personal topics - what was your dream job growing up?
I knew I always wanted to work with people since I’m quite extroverted, but my “dream job” changed a bunch as I grew up. I initially thought I wanted to work with people in healthcare, and for a long time I wanted to be a dentist. Later, I thought that I might want to be a biomedical engineer. As mentioned earlier, I worked in healthcare technology after college; after I learned about other career paths, I was open to branching my career outside of the healthcare industry, which led me to VTS and the PropTech space.
What do you like to do in your free time? Any hobbies?
My hobbies are pretty social! I very rarely do passive activities like watching TV. I spend a lot of time with my family and my friends and have recently gotten into knitting chunky blankets!
If you could wave a magic wand to solve any problem in the world, what would it be?
Access to education. I would love to live in a world where all people, regardless of where or when they were born, have equal opportunities to learn and grow intellectually. I try not to take the opportunities I have been given to learn from so many incredible people for granted – whether it be in school or in my professional life from customers and peers at VTS.
What’s your advice for someone who wants to be in a role similar to yours?
Don’t be afraid of change! Jumping around and trying new things is so important to figure out not only what you like, but also what you don’t like. Usually career adjustments are not final, and you can always go back to what you were doing before. If you have an interest in trying something new (whether it be a new role, a stretch project, or even a complete career change), find a mentor, do your research and go for it - you’ll either love it or learn from it. Hopefully both!
