Summer is always a busy and exciting time at LCS. Not only do we have a jam-packed schedule of incredible team-building events—capped off with the annual LCS Olympics in August—but this summer marks a very special milestone here at the office. While our company history stretches back more than three decades, the office building that LCS currently calls home officially opened its doors to employees in July 2016. After a decade of continued success and growth, we wanted to celebrate both our past and our future with a trip down memory lane. To mark the occasion, we asked employees and executives to share their perspectives on our headquarters, from its history to the impact it has on our culture today.
Needing Room to Grow
LCS spent much of its first decade of operation as a small team of developers working out of their homes through the late 1980s and early 1990s. After taking full ownership of the company in the mid-1990s, LCS President and CEO Dave Hegemann brought on his wife as his first employee to run the company’s books and moved operations into a small office in Blue Ash, Ohio, in 1997. LCS would move offices two more times during the 2000s as the workforce grew, and by the 2010s, it was clear that it was time for LCS to embark on a new journey:
Building its own, future-proof office.
Built for Purpose & Connection
It took two years to plan and build the Waterstone Boulevard tech campus. By the time the office was ready to move, LCS’ workforce had grown to around 100 employees split between two locations. With room to grow to more than four times that amount, Dave said his goal was not only to give everyone enough space for years to come, but also to create “an open environment, a culture of working together, […] and [give] the whole company a sense of one mission.”
January 2016
March 2016
June 2016
Each feature of the building was intentionally chosen to spark imagination and creativity while exuding a tech-forward image. From the large, open atrium with a massive nine-screen display that welcomes visitors to the office, to multiple collaborative spaces, picturesque views, and employee-first amenities, all three floors were carefully designed to ensure employees enjoyed coming to work every day.
“I wanted to build a place that I enjoy coming to every day,” Dave said. “One of the first things you’ll notice when you walk in the front door is everything’s open. You see a lot of movement, a lot of people walking around, doing work, going from meeting to meeting. You just have that sense of energy, I think. Some other office spaces can be a little more stale, […] so I think that’s important, when you start the day, that you have that [energetic] feeling.”
COO Brittany Christerson agreed.
“A lot of times, we’re spending a lot of hours here. You’re seeing these people as much as you see your own family at home. So, it has to be an environment that’s positive, collaborative, and promotes this thinking of: I want to be there. I want to be working with my team.”
Today at Waterstone
Today, the LCS office is home to more than 500 employees—a workforce that makes the 100 who first occupied the building seem tiny in comparison. While some things have changed throughout the years, like the addition of the third-floor recording studio and the exterior storage shed, to name a few, one thing that hasn’t changed is how the office contributes to LCS’ unique employee culture. Voted a Top Workplace by employees for 15 years and counting, LCS continues to foster a strong sense of community through monthly employee engagement initiatives and regular opportunities to work and play together. It’s clear that our team not only loves where they work, but also the people they work with.
“The culture’s always been very important to the company,” Dave said. “I think that if you enjoy the place that you’re working, you’re going to take care of each other, you’re going to take care of the customers. All those things work together and give a sense of community when we’re all in one place.”
Here’s just a small sample of what our team had to say about what it’s like working at LCS:
“I love how open [the office] is, and the amount of windows. You don’t feel like you’re in a dark office where you aren’t going to enjoy working every day. It’s very open, it’s very light, everything about it is very happy in a way.” – Tony Timmers, Business Intelligence Analyst
“I really enjoy [the monthly all-hands meetings]… it’s a great opportunity to see other people in the company that you might not necessarily get to work with every day… It’s a really fun environment.” -Camille Brigano, Senior Sales Representative
“The community and culture of LCS have just made me so happy to be at work, come to work, and share things with my friends. I’ve made friends that I go out with, go for walks with, grab coffee with, and I think creating that company culture has just been top tier.” – Katie Brown, Training Specialist
“[My favorite thing is] just the people that are in this building. There are a lot of really good people that you want to surround yourself with, so just getting involved with everyone in the company… it’s just been a really great three years.” – Joe Lysaght, Sales Representative
The Next Decade & Beyond
As LCS moves forward, the Waterstone campus will continue to receive updates to keep it a fresh, modern, and inspiring workspace.
“We don’t want to get stale,” Brittany said. “We still want to have a very tech-forward approach, so I think we’ll continue to upgrade graphics throughout the building and introduce different colors and designs. We also have lots of monitors and TVs throughout the building, and we want to showcase our team and culture as much as possible. So those are things I think we’ll continue to do moving forward.”
But the company itself is bigger than its physical headquarters. As technology continues to evolve, so too will the solutions the LCS team creates to meet the needs of its customers. And as far as we’re concerned, as long as we’re working and innovating together, we’re confident that LCS will continue to be a great place to work, build connections, and thrive for the next decade and beyond.
We think Brittany put it best: “I just look back on these ten years, and I honestly can’t believe how fast time has flown by,” she said. “And I really honestly mean that I wouldn’t have wanted to [go on] this journey with anybody else other than the people that I work with.”
If you’re looking for a workplace that invests in your future and lets you build lasting professional relationships, all while connecting in a tech-forward space, look no further than LCS. Check out our open positions and apply to join our team today.
