Lawrence-Lynch Corp

Heather Cole serves as director of people and culture at Lawrence Lynch Corp, bringing experience across biotech, talent development and operationally intensive industries. Before joining Lawrence-Lynch, she led HR and talent development at Affini-T Therapeutics, where her work on employee engagement and workplace culture contributed to the company’s 2023 recognition as a Boston Best Place to Work. Cole has also been recognized for her leadership and advocacy efforts, including the WEST Organization’s Making a Difference in the Community Award and a nomination for a Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce Pinnacle Award.

From Process-Driven to People-Centered Leadership

When I joined Lawrence Lynch Corp, one of the first things that stood out to me was the level of ownership employees had over the culture. It was not top-down. The values did not come from leadership deciding what the company should be. Employees collectively shaped them, and I think that ownership naturally shows up in how people treat and support one another every day.

Joining the company also changed the way I viewed HR. I stopped thinking about it as just policies, processes and compliance. I started thinking more about people and how decisions actually affect their day-to-day work.

Construction can be a tough environment, but what made the biggest impression on me was the level of respect people have for each other here. People genuinely look out for one another. That changed the way I approach my role. For me, company values cannot just exist on paper. They need to show up in how people work together every day.

It also changed how I think about leadership and decision-making. Making employees feel included in decisions is important. Nobody wants to feel like changes are simply being pushed onto them.

Building Rapport that Enables Accountability

Legal compliance is a non-negotiable baseline. It has to be. But for me, building rapport with the folks in the field was my first and foremost objective, because that is what really makes those standards work.

Especially in tougher situations like discipline or terminations, how you communicate matters. People need to understand why something is happening, not just be told they did something wrong. When that trust is there, I can have direct conversations and say, “This is not okay. This is not part of our values.” People are much more open to hearing it when they know the conversation is coming from a place of respect.

I always try to start with a conversation instead of assumptions. People know they can come to me, talk through issues and work toward improving things before situations unnecessarily escalate.

Going from biotech into asphalt construction also taught me that, in HR, you really do have to be a chameleon. You have to flex and relate to your people. You cannot approach every environment or every person in the exact same way. Building trust starts with understanding the people you are working with and meeting them where they are.

One of the things I really appreciate about this culture is that it is okay to make a mistake. Nobody is punished for being human. Because of that, people feel comfortable being honest, speaking up and learning from situations instead of hiding them.

I think that is where the balance comes from. Expectations are clear. Accountability matters. Trust matters just as much.

“I always try to start with a conversation instead of assumptions. People know they can come to me, talk through issues and work toward improving things before situations unnecessarily escalate.”

Safety across the Field

In construction and asphalt work, safety is very real. We work with heavy machinery, in high-traffic environments and on Department of Transportation projects, so there is very little room for error.

There are times, especially in a union environment, when someone could be sent directly to a job site before completing safety training, and that never sat right with me. We made it very clear that nobody goes onto a job site without completing the full onboarding process first. That includes safety training, drug testing, background checks and making sure they have the proper equipment. There are no exceptions.

Working with leadership and the Director of Communications, we built a much more structured onboarding program that involved multiple teams across the organization. That created real buy-in. Once people became part of the process, it stopped feeling like just another policy and became part of how we operate every day. Since then, we have seen stronger safety outcomes and better employee engagement. For me, it reinforced the idea that when people are involved in the process, safety becomes something everybody takes responsibility for, not just something being enforced from the top.

Redesigning Structure to Support Growth

We are a family-owned company, and for a long time, we operated with a very lean structure. But as the company has grown from around 160 to nearly 200 people, I’ve started seeing the need for more support, more leadership development and more opportunities for people to grow.

One of the biggest things I’m rethinking right now is career paths and job roles. In the past, positions were much more clearly defined. Now I’m seeing people naturally take on responsibilities across different areas, and we’re starting to create more flexibility around what those roles can look like.

We’re also working to build more support and oversight across the organization so that no one person bears too much responsibility. The goal is not to create unnecessary layers. It is about giving people more direction, more support and more opportunities as the company continues to grow.

Advice to the Younger Folks

My advice would be to really take the time to understand the organization's culture, values and standards first. We are very selective about who we bring in, and there is a high standard here. The people are capable, engaged and take real ownership in what they do, so understanding that environment matters.

At the same time, there are many opportunities for passionate people willing to put in the work. There is flexibility to grow, explore different paths and take on new opportunities, but that comes with the expectation that people will meet those standards.

That is why listening comes first. Take the time to learn what is already working and understand where real impact can be made. Then, when there is something important to contribute or a path someone genuinely wants to pursue, speak up. That is how growth happens, both for the individual and for the organization.