How Construction Firms are Recruiting and Retaining Women Amid Ongoing Workforce Pressures

Through partnerships with organizations such as The Posse Foundation, Summer Search, STEM Advantage and ACE Mentor Program, Shawmut Design and Construction's teams are helping build awareness, provide mentorship and create pathways into the industry.

It is also leveraging the growing interest in STEM and STEAM to connect with emerging talent and strengthen its workforce for the long term. It works closely with its academic and community clients to create meaningful connection points for students on active projects.

On K–12 and higher education projects, its project teams intentionally engage students in the construction process—hosting site tours, participating in classroom discussions and inviting students to milestone events such as beam signings during topping-off ceremonies.

"By embedding these experiences into our projects, we help spark interest in the built environment and create tangible pathways from the classroom to the jobsite," LaFleur said. "

These efforts play a pivotal role in shaping the future of the construction industry by cultivating the enthusiasm and skills of potential builders from an early age."

Retention is equally important, she said.

"Strong businesses are built by engaged, supported employees," LaFleur said. "At Shawmut, we focus on creating an environment where everyone feels respected, has clear opportunities for growth, and is supported through mentorship and sponsorship.

"In my nearly 30 years with the company, I've seen that when all employees are given meaningful responsibility and recognized for their contributions, they build long, successful careers."

Meaningful Culture Must be Intentional

In an industry historically resistant to change, meaningful culture change requires being intentional about how we show up every day, she said.

Shawmut's culture of care has been foundational since its inception and is embedded in its core values. As a 100% employee-owned company, every worker is also an owner. That ownership model reinforces accountability.

"When you have a stake in the company's success, you take personal responsibility for the environment you help create. It fosters pride, collaboration, and a shared commitment to excellence," she said.

"Creating environments where all employees feel supported, heard, and safe—both on and off the jobsite—is a shared responsibility. It requires consistent leadership, peer accountability, and a willingness to address challenges directly and constructively and create systems and processes to support the change."

Fostering this culture starts at the top, LaFleur said. CEO Les Hiscoe serves as a leader, reinforcing clear expectations around respect, professionalism and opportunity. He regularly emphasizes the importance of removing barriers that can limit growth and uses his position to ensure that commitment is reflected across the organization.

"Culture change isn't owned by one department or driven by a single policy—it takes everyone," she said. "When care and accountability are embedded into daily operations, engagement rises, collaboration strengthens, and all employees build long-term careers here.

Creating Leadership Pathways for Women

Organizations and their leadership teams have to be intentional about making opportunities broadly accessible to all employees. Access to leadership-building experience has not always been consistent, according to LaFleur.

"Earlier in my career, advancement often depended on visibility and less-structured relationships," she said.

"Today, at Shawmut, we are far more deliberate. We define clear competencies for advancement, conduct structured talent and succession conversations, and provide transparency around what it takes to move into leadership roles."

All leaders complete enhanced leadership and awareness training, including topics such as interrupting unconscious bias. This helps reduce ambiguity and reinforce accountabilities for all employees, she said.

Shawmut also supports development through formal pathways, including mentorship and sponsorship programs, as well as leadership development programming. These forums create space for connection, professional growth and peer learning, while reinforcing that leadership development is an organizational priority for all employees—not an individual pursuit.

"[The company's leadership] needs to reinforce that it is accessible to all employees and defined by capability, performance, and commitment," she said.

Intentional development pathways ensure that leadership potential is recognized and cultivated across the organization, LaFleur said.

She said her career progression at Shawmut—growing within one organization for almost three decades—reflects the impact of being trusted with meaningful responsibility and given opportunities to lead at critical moments.

Site Safety Is the Foundation of Everything

In construction, safety is the foundation of everything—and it's Shawmut's number one priority.

"A job site where all employees feel comfortable speaking up is safer," LaFleur said. "If someone hesitates to raise concerns about safety risks or a project issue, the consequences can be significant. Psychological safety and physical safety are deeply connected."

At Shawmut, this principle is embedded in its Culture of Care Toolbox Talks series, which highlights psychological safety and mental well-being—critical components of overall jobsite safety.

"When workers feel psychologically safe, there are fewer safety incidents; when psychological safety is threatened, safety is compromised," she said.

This approach is part of a broader Total Worker Health model, championed by Hiscoe and our chief safety officer, Shaun Carvalho, which focuses on the well-being of the whole person—physically, mentally, and psychologically—on and off the job site.

Shawmut reinforces this commitment through comprehensive benefits designed to support total worker health, including robust medical coverage, mental health resources, employee assistance programs and wellness initiatives.

"These benefits ensure employees have access to the care and support they need beyond the job site," LaFleur said.

Shawmut's programs include mindfulness training, substance use disorder education, enhanced toolbox talks and hands-on safety training for all employees and trade partners. Initiatives such as Safety Week provide company-wide opportunities to reinforce safety and mental well-being through events.

These programs are complemented by leadership engagement and Shawmut's Mental Health & Wellness Leadership Group, which drives initiatives to proactively address mental health challenges in the construction industry.

"By combining these programs, leadership development and engagement, and consistent communication of expectations, Shawmut builds job sites where all employees feel safe, included, and empowered to speak up," she said.

"This approach creates environments where all employees can perform at their best, collaborate effectively, and grow with confidence."