Silke Vrouletis is May Employee of the Month

Silke Vrouletis, a senior consultant in University Business Consulting, has been an integral part of the business consulting team at George Mason University since November 2021. She has been awarded May Employee of the Month for her unwavering work ethic, creative problem-solving skills, and commitment to high standards.

“Silke Vrouletis is an outstanding contributor to University Business Consulting, her Mason clients, and to Mason as a whole,” said Whitney Owen, executive director of University Business Consulting. “She has been an integral part of several high-impact and strategic initiatives for the university, including planning and celebrating Mason's 50th anniversary. Silke approaches all her work with a tremendous work ethic, pride in her work and the outcome, and holding herself to the utmost quality standards.”

Pamela Promisel, consultant manager in University Business Consulting, said that Vrouletis is able to make connections between disparate pieces of information to help her solve problems in new and innovative ways. “She is always thinking about how something can be done better, more efficiently, or in some cases whether it should be done at all.”

Vrouletis plays a key role with the university’s Mental Health and Well Being Task Force. “I am impressed with her can-do attitude combined with her ability to think outside the box in achieving our collective goals,” said Nance Lucas, executive director and chief well-being officer at the Center for the Advancement of Well-Being in University Life. “She gives unselfishly of herself on our team and has taken ownership of our group's fate and successes. It's unusual for one person to be fully adept at both managing relationships and complex tasks, which Silke does exceptionally well.”

Rachel Wernicke, associate dean and chief mental health officer of University Life, has also worked closely with Vrouletis on the Mental Health and Well-Being Task Force. “I have observed her to be a dedicated, talented, and thoughtful consultant. She has the ability to think strategically about the larger vision and goals for the task force and to track all of the details of this large project,” Wernicke said. “She also works to ensure that the task force members are engaged and understand their purpose and helps them to accomplish their tasks.”

How did you come to Mason:

I was in the midst of the online Master of Professional Studies Program in Industrial-Organizational Psychology here at Mason, when my husband and I discussed relocating from Southwest Virginia. At that point I was working for Virginia Tech in their advancement division. As I loved working in higher education and I had become familiar with Mason through my program, I looked for opportunities to work within Mason. As a result, I applied to various positions in Northern Virginia and received two job offers from Mason within a couple of days from each other. I was extremely excited for the opportunities and decided to join University Business Consulting and Capital Strategy and Planning as an administrative assistant/analyst. Since then, I have had the fortune to be promoted to consultant and senior consultant, working on various strategic initiatives, and providing strategy and project support.

Best day on the job:

The best day is when one of my clients/colleagues tells me that the work I had done or insights I have provided are useful and helped them or made their day just a tiny bit easier. Process efficiency while taking individuals and their work ability/skills/perspective into consideration is what I love to do. Being able to listen to them and transform a problem into a solution that is workable for them makes any workday less “work” but rather joyful.

What do you like best about working at Mason:

Mason is such an innovative and aspiring university. I enjoy immensely that no day is like the other. I might receive a new project or challenge any given day that allows me to utilize my creativity and problem-solving skills that ultimately will support a person, a unit, a department, or a whole division. I am extremely grateful for the autonomy and support I receive on a daily basis from my peers, my supervisor, my department head, and senior leadership.

What do you like to do when you’re not working:

When I am not working, I love to spend my time in the kitchen developing new recipes, either sweet or savory, being inspired by cultures across the world and what we can find at any given moment at farmer’s markets. When not doing that, you will find me either hiking and spending time in nature, or with my nose buried in a book. And as my coworkers will point out, I might just be doing a big jigsaw puzzle with 2,000-3,000 pieces.