At KCM Group, our work is driven by the people behind the projects. Hector Rios recently joined KCM as a Senior Project Manager, bringing more than 30 years of architectural experience to his role as an Owner’s Project Manager.
A licensed architect in Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Massachusetts, Hector built a career balancing his own residential practice with commercial and institutional work throughout the region. Over three decades, he gained deep experience in design, documentation, and navigating complex project teams.
Earlier in his career, a piece of advice from architectural school stayed with him: you don’t need to know all the answers — you need to know where to find them.
“That stuck with me,” Hector says. “There’s only so much you can hold in your head at once. The most valuable thing you can do is know how to get the right answer.”
That mindset has proven especially valuable in his transition to the owner’s side of the table.
Hector’s path to KCM began with a familiar industry story — reconnecting with former colleagues. While managing a project in Quonset, Rhode Island from the architectural side, he crossed paths with Joe Giorgi, a Project Manager at KCM and someone he had worked alongside decades earlier. Weekly project meetings turned into conversations about perspective, fit, and what it means to advocate for an owner’s interests.
After years in design, Hector was ready to see projects from a different vantage point.
“As an architect, I couldn’t imagine stepping fully into an OPM role,” he says. “Now I’m seeing the other side of the table. It’s been a great learning process.”
Today, Hector is serving as Owner’s Project Manager on a large-scale industrial facility expansion in Rhode Island. The project involves a significant addition to an existing historic structure to support specialized manufacturing operations. In his role, Hector coordinates contractors, architects, vendors, agencies, and internal stakeholders — managing budget, schedule, and communication while protecting the client’s interests at every step.
“It’s about connecting all the pieces,” he explains. “Collecting the data, keeping everyone aligned, and making sure the owner’s priorities stay front and center.”
Outside of work, Hector brings the same curiosity and energy to his personal life. He and his wife of nearly four decades enjoy ballroom dancing — from waltz to salsa — as well as hiking and snowshoeing in New Hampshire, long-distance cycling, birdwatching along the New England coast, and landscape photography.
As he settles into his role at KCM, Hector continues to apply decades of design experience to a new challenge: helping owners navigate complex projects with clarity, perspective, and steady leadership.