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Future focused: Carrie Hawley CEO of HLB Lighting Design, Inc. (New York, NY), an internationally recognized design firm focused on architectural lighting for both interior and exterior environments.
By LIISA ANDREASSEN Correspondent
H awley first discovered her passion for lighting design while studying architecture at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. She joined HLB as a designer, working on a wide range of projects. That was nearly 25 years ago. Today, she’s actively involved in marketing and client development for the firm nationwide, and she thrives on market expansion and new opportunities. “We are moving into the future at all times,” Hawley says. “This instills trust. We work with clients to be part of the solution even if we did not create the problem. We stick by them.” A CONVERSATION WITH CARRIE HAWLEY. The Zweig Letter: I see that you and Barbara Horton, the firm’s founder, are co-CEOs. Tell me a little about how that came to be and the reason behind it. How are the responsibilities split? Carrie Hawley: Well, by the time this issue is published,
Barbara will be retired. She plans to retire in February 2021. When we started the strategic plan transition several years ago, Barbara approached me about my interest in being the new CEO. I’ve been a principal since 2007 and it seemed like a natural next move. We decided a co-CEO transition made a lot of sense and we did that for one year prior. It was so helpful. Barbara has been an incredible cheerleader and mentor. I was given the chance to work with a coach too to truly understand the vision of the firm as well as working to establish best practices. TZL: How has COVID-19 impacted your firm’s policy on telecommuting/working remotely? CH: We had a telecommuting policy, but it was more geared to senior staff. Prior to the pandemic, we had taken on IT and had cloud-based technology which was ready to go in December 2019. So, when the pandemic hit, we were ready. We no longer have a “policy,” but it’s now more of a guideline. It’s up to the employees to decide how they best
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