Lord joined Associated Industries of Massachusetts (AIM) in 1991 as executive vice president for legislative policy, where he focused on policy advocacy in health care, economic development, taxation, and workers’ compensation. He became AIM's president/CEO in 1999. In 2015, he was compensated $362,635 from AIM. Prior to his tenure with AIM, Lord was budget director and then chief of staff for the Committee on Ways and Means of the Massachusetts House for six years. He has also held positions in finance with General Electric and McCormack & Dodge. Lord studied economics and psychology at Williams College. He serves on a number of boards, including: Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Boston, Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation, Massachusetts eHealth Collaborative, the Children’s Trust Fund, Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education, Commonwealth’s Health Policy Commission, New England Center for Children, A.I.M. Mutual Insurance Company, Inc., Massachusetts Association for Mental Health, Massachusetts Health Quality Partners, and the Massachusetts Health Council. He also chairs the Massachusetts Workforce Training Fund Advisory Panel.