A Ph.D. in Safety
At Foundry Partners, safety is our top priority—and we’re proud to have Carla Landaverde as a vital member of our Safety Operations Team. Currently pursuing her PhD in Occupational Safety and Health with a focus on Relationship-Based Safety in construction, Carla is conducting groundbreaking doctoral research while actively working on our project sites.
Her work centers on forging meaningful connections between safety protocols and the people who implement them. Passionate about cultivating a culture where safety transcends compliance to become a shared value, Carla designs innovative safety campaigns, mentors field teams, and leads initiatives that promote proactive safety behaviors across the jobsite.
Carla is helping to define Relationship-Based Safety—a positive, trust-centered approach that strengthens collaboration between leadership and workers. This model encourages employees to seek guidance freely from safety leaders when learning new processes, using equipment, or developing safer solutions. As she explains, “The best safety professionals already do this instinctively—they just haven’t had a name for it.”
How will we measure success? By building stronger relationships between leaders and staff, we anticipate lower turnover, higher morale, fewer incidents, and an increase in safety observation reports. Workers will feel empowered to identify hazards, while leaders will build trust through prompt corrective actions. This approach fosters shared ownership of safety, enabling everyone on site to contribute to a safer work environment.
Upon completing her dissertation, Carla plans to publish her Relationship-Based Safety research to influence future Occupational Safety curricula.
Before entering safety leadership, Carla began her career as a construction laborer. She holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Occupational Safety, Health, and Environmental Management, along with OSHA certifications including 30, 510, 500, and 502. Beyond reshaping construction safety, she is also committed to encouraging more women to pursue careers in safety leadership.
At Foundry Partners, we’re excited to support Carla in bringing her research to life. As early adopters of Relationship-Based Safety, we fully endorse her mission to advance safer, more inclusive construction leadership.