Sean Corriel is a problem-solver, whether diving into design and engineering challenges himself or helping interior designers and builders tackle theirs. An architectural professional turned director of product management at Houzz, Sean and his team help solve for ways that Houzz Pro customers can integrate visual tools into their projects, so they can do better work – and help homeowners (virtually) see what’s possible. 

What did you want to be when you grew up?
Pretty consistently, I wanted to be an architect. Even though I’m not a licensed one (yet!), I worked for a very long time in architecture and landscape architecture on projects all around the world.

With both software and architecture, you have to combine a lot of different parts and take in needs that are sometimes contradictory. Ultimately, you want to come out with something that – given all the constraints, timelines, budget, engineering and client needs – is greater than the sum of all those parts. 

Is there any overlap between what you thought you’d do and what you’re doing now?
Absolutely. From an architectural perspective, when you’re building projects in the real world, you go through workflows and try to be as efficient and optimized as possible, because time is of the essence – and time is money. 

And that translates directly into the work we’re doing in software. Software helps people get stuff done, and what software you use can dictate how you do a lot of the work needed for a project. That’s why I find it interesting to work at the intersection of architecture and software: We can help pros problem-solve using our software tools and impact a lot of people.

Do you find that your background in architecture informs how you approach solutions for the pros who use our software?
I’ve always had a passion for visualization tools and 3D, working between the real world and representing it digitally. The work I’m doing with Houzz Pro’s 3D and visual tools reflects my interest in the build environment and the tools we use to get there. You can go back to the Renaissance, like Brunelleschi’s dome in Florence, to see how tools and creation go hand in hand. 

What would you say is the best part about working here?
For me, it’s the focus on the industry and the whole renovation ecosystem of builders, contractors and designers. The different pro and homeowner touch points, and how they intersect, are also really interesting. 

Another big piece is the people at Houzz. Everybody cares more about delivering the work than anything, and I really enjoy that. You can focus on what we need to do and collaborate with teams to do it.

What do you enjoy most about your role?
Being able to see the overall product arc is exciting. When you’re in it day to day, it’s harder to see it sometimes. Reaching milestones and delivering features or improvements – and hearing about how the product positively impacts customers – is very motivating. We focus a lot on what we need to do to keep improving our software, and hearing positive feedback from the pros who use it is both encouraging and rewarding.

Can you talk about how what you’ve worked on has helped our pros and their clients?
We’ve been able to build a couple of big technological leaps into the product, on both desktop and mobile. One is incorporating augmented reality (AR) into the visual workflow. Typically, a homeowner is presented with either a drawing or a 3D model, which is a reduced and abstracted version of what the project will be in real life. For architects, contractors and builders, that’s fine. But a homeowner can have a hard time looking at a plan and envisioning the end result.

With our AR feature in the 3D Floor Planner tool on the mobile app, pros can take a 3D model and overlay it on any space they’re in. Let’s say you’re renovating your kitchen. With the tool, you can see how your new kitchen will look in the actual space. It removes the translation you have to do in your head to understand what it’s going to be like. 

Another big one on mobile is the way a pro can capture the initial project. They can go into a space and use their phone to scan all the rooms, which creates a 3D floor plan on the spot. That saves a lot of time and gives them a great place to start.

Recently, the 3D Floor Planner reached a key milestone with photorealistic renders. Now a pro can translate a 3D floor plan into a photorealistic image. We’ve been working hard on broadening the tool for designers and builders, so it can be used across all stages of a project. Because a homeowner can better envision the final project, these types of visual tools can be a competitive advantage for a pro and help them win business.

What makes you most excited about the future of Houzz?
I think it’s seeing how our software is impacting the home renovation space – both in terms of the software tools pros are using and how they can use these tools to help renovating homeowners connect everything together – and its potential to do even more.​​

If you’re interested in joining our team, we’re hiring! Check out available opportunities at houzz.com/jobs.