Pave It Black returns and goes beyond the pavement
What makes a great leader? How do you grow into leadership? Why do people become leaders? NAPA’s flagship podcast enters its ninth season and seeks to answer these questions as it takes on the topic of leadership. With the support of leaders inside and outside the asphalt pavement industry, hosts Richard Willis and Brett Williams ask guests to share challenges and accomplishments from their personal leadership journeys and how our listeners can enhance their leadership skills.
Season 9 kicks off with Pat Nelson, newly elected NAPA Chairman and President of Lehman-Roberts, a Granite Company. Pat shares his journey from hands-on work in the field to leading at the national level. He reflects on the importance of values and industry relationships that shaped his career. He also dives into the importance of advocacy, NAPA PAC, and the industry’s role in driving economic growth. His story highlights a deep appreciation for asphalt pavement, the people who make it, and the lasting impact of infrastructure on communities.
These highlights offer just a glimpse into our conversation with Pat Nelson—tune in to the full episode to hear even more insights on leadership, industry innovations, and the future of the industry.
What are you most excited about in this leadership role? How will it differ from other leadership positions you’ve held within the organization?
I’m most excited about having the platform to celebrate what I think is just an amazing industry. The influence that we get, or we have gotten to have on the economy of this country is pretty remarkable. Over Christmas. I was reading a book by Stephen Ambrose, and it was about the building of the transcontinental railroad and I just pulled up this quote: “For the people of 1869, especially those over 40 years old, there was nothing to compare to it. The Transcontinental Railroad. A man whose birthday was in 1829 or earlier had been born in a world in which President Andrew Jackson traveled no faster than Julius Caesar, a world in which no thought of information could be transmitted any faster than Alexander the Great. In 1869 with the railroad and the telegraph, that was beside it. A man could move at 60 miles an hour and transmit an idea or a statistic from coast to coast almost instantly.”
I jotted down that quote because I thought, that’s what we’ve done as an industry. Yes, the Transcontinental Railroad changed the world in the early 1870s, but the interstate highway system did too. The companies that we represent have had a chance to do that, we got to build that. It’s an amazing story.
What differentiates a good leader from a great leader?
If I have to boil it down to maybe two or three things, I would say trust is at the bottom of that. It is really hard to follow somebody you can’t trust. I would say it’s impossible. And so, at the foundation of leadership, I think you’ve got to have this element of trust that when a leader says they’re going to do this, they do it. And if they don’t, they’re super-fast to apologize and they own it. Leaders are going to make mistakes and the ones that I respect the most, admire the most and want to follow are the ones that are willing to admit that. And that builds trust. So, I think owning your mess is a big deal.
Another one for me would be humility. And there’s an element of that in the first, but I think it’s knowing you don’t have all the answers. Some of the biggest help I’ve received is somebody who helped me go by saying “Here’s a way to get from here to here and here’s the path you can follow.” Having the humility to look and hear and listen to those things.
Thirdly, I would say, and this may sound like a little bit of an odd answer, but I think it’s somebody who’s willing to lean into conflict. One of my character flaws, I call myself a recovering people pleaser in that my first step in any relationship is for you to like me. Even on this podcast, trying to figure out how I can come across as likable. And it’s just the way God made me, but I know it about myself. And so often for me, I have to lean towards conflict because it’s just not natural for me. Being willing to hold people accountable and not run from that, comes full circle. It builds trust in an organization.
What’s a piece of advice you would have given yourself with the experience that you’ve had now?
It would be to embrace patience. I think when I look back on my twenties and thirties, I was very ambitious. I was very hungry, but very impatient to let the process play out. I was always looking for shortcuts, trying to figure out what’s the quickest path. I probably short-circuited some really valuable learning and lessons. And I think what I would tell 21-year-old Pat. You’re going to figure all this out, but take your time, learn the business, and build the relationships.
