Misty Marot: From Biology to Boss

by Adam Martingano, Founder & Chief Strategist
Go To Market Solutions | www.gotomarket.solutions

When you work hard enough, stay focused, and believe in yourself, you can achieve anything. That’s what Florida native Misty Marot grew up hearing and is what helped her shape her company Novel Engineering, Inc. into one of Brevard County’s most successful homegrown engineering and technical services firms.

Growing up as the only child of a single mother, Misty spent her time in competitive gymnastics, riding horses and enjoying the Sarasota beaches. Her love for nature led her down the path of pursuing a degree in Biology from the Florida Institute of Technology (FIT). But a couple of semesters into it, Misty realized there was more out there to learn and that opportunity presents itself in many forms. “I just wasn’t sure what I wanted to be when I grew up so I took some time to explore the options,” she said, “so on a whim, I took a few engineering classes and I had some great professors.” Jokingly she told me about one of her physics professors that would throw erasers toward students that weren’t paying attention or sleeping. This was his way of demonstrating the laws of physics. “He kept things interesting and was a little wild, which is probably why I learned a lot from him.” 

However, these subjects proved to be only brief stops along the way as she knew that although she had an interest in science, she was driven to pursue something she found more purposeful; something that would enable her to directly help people. So just before transferring to another school, a friend mentioned there was a professor offering a well-paying internship in the Psychology department. “I didn’t know much about Psychology, but since it was a paid internship and I needed the money, I went for it, and I got it,” she recalled. The internship and required course work were in the field of applied behavior analysis which is the application of multidisciplinary behavioral research and knowledge to solve real-world problems. At the time, what Misty didn’t realize was that this field of study would reshape the way she viewed the world and her impact on it. 

Applied behavior analysis uses the science of behavior to maximize human potential in any environment as all aspects of the environment are assessed to determine their impact on performance. With this knowledge, you can begin to understand why people and groups behave a certain way, as well as address problems that may impact businesses, organizations, and society.  This research is often used to improve Leadership, Culture, Organizational Management, Organizational Psychology, Performance Management, Safety, Environmental Constructs, Systems Analysis, Project Management, and Efficiency. Misty holds a bachelors and masters degree in the field of psychology and a master’s degree in business administration.

Throughout her university internship, Misty worked to optimize environments to promote success for adults and children with many unique abilities and fell in love with the people and the work. After graduating from FIT, earning a BS in Psychology with a focus on Applied Behavior Analysis, she began consulting with leaders of organizations to improve culture, efficiency, and performance within their organizations and teams as well as with their individual constituents. After a few years, Misty decided to shift her focus on starting and running a business where she could apply her knowledge, skills, and experiences to her own organization. So in 2013, together, with her former spouse Chris, she began laying the groundwork for what would become Novel Engineering. 

“I had never run a business, and wasn’t an engineer, but I understood people, and I knew I could apply my experience and figure out the rest.” And she was right. When you infuse the science of Applied Behavior Analysis to business, you get organizational behavior management, performance management, and systems analysis. Misty’s ‘people first’ approach to running her business can be summed up by the following statement, “People do business and people do engineering, and only when you truly take care of the people can they truly offer their best.” 

Misty is highly protective of her carefully crafted culture. “It is of utmost importance to me that the people doing the hard work on my team know how deeply meaningful and impactful their efforts are for themselves, their team, and for Novel Engineering.  My goal is for each individual in this company to know and see that I genuinely care about every aspect of them and their lives and not simply what they will accomplish for this company on a particular day.”

Since inception, Novel Engineering has grown leaps and bounds. Through an strategic acquisition of Riverside Technical Services, Novel Engineering entered the resource augmentation space, which added to their custom software engineering capabilities and put them on the map.  With highly valued, locally sourced engineers and professionals, Novel Engineering operates in both the public and private sectors. It is the premier provider of IT and engineering services and staffing solutions serving Florida’s Space Coast in the rail, aerospace, and healthcare industries.

Be sure to keep an eye on Novel Engineering, one of Brevard’s best and brightest as they continue their journey onward and upward. www.noveltechservices.com