January 17th, 2024
Bolanle Williams-Olley CFO & Owner, Mancini Duffy
Bolanle Williams-Olley is the CFO and co-owner of Mancini Duffy, a national design firm with over 100 years of history and a tech-forward approach based in New York City, where she oversees the firm's financial and operational performance. She has over 16 years of experience working in the AEC industry with a strong background in financial analysis and strategic initiatives. She is also the founder of four impact organizations serving children in low-income communities in Nigeria, women, small firms and creating awareness about NGOs across Nigeria.
As the author of Build Boldly: Chart Your Unique Career Path and Lead with Courage, she is passionate about helping individuals lean into their full potential at each step of their career, from applying to the first job to becoming a leader who empowers others. She urges leaders to challenge the status quo of what the corporate world should look like, introducing new methods to foster space for open voices, collective growth, and meaningful connections.
She is married with two kids, passionate about service and is obsessed with throwing really fun themed parties.
Unlocking Career Potential: A B.O.L.D. Approach for Women
Join Bolanle as she shares her personal journey and the B.O.L.D. framework for women to unlock their career potential. Discover how to shift your mindset, harness your potential, and take control of your future career journey. Gain insights into overcoming barriers and crafting a roadmap to success.
Laura Gressin Registered Architect & MBA Candidate, Zicklin School of Business
Laura Gressin is a Registered Architect, and an MBA student at the Zicklin School of Business, where she is focusing her studies on Finance and Strategy. Before pursuing her MBA, she was a Project Architect for religious, educational, and hospitality clients located across the USA, and a Project Manager for high-end homes and estates, overseeing complex renovation and new construction projects on the east coast.
Laura is passionate about using her architectural skills to solve complex business problems and using the design process to break down a problem into digestible pieces to identify areas of inefficiency, opportunity, or risk, and develop solutions with lasting positive impact. Last summer she did this as a Leadership Associate for Citibank, where she was part of the Strategy team for the Costco Credit Card.
Outside work, she is an avid figure skater working on her spins and jumps, and an interpreter for Safe Passage Project, an organization that provides free lawyers to refugee children.
Applying Design Thinking in Business
Architects are uniquely positioned to think strategically in defining what must get done. They know how to focus on key drivers to get impactful results, all while being creative even in ambiguous circumstances. In her experience as a licensed architect, an associate in financial services, and an MBA graduate student, Laura will discuss how Architects are uniquely equipped to solve complex business problems.