Director of Risk Management

ARCO; St. Louis (MO); On-site; USD 180,000 - 280,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Industry-leading bonus program

ESOP

401k plans

Job summary

ARCO is seeking an experienced Director of Risk Management to lead our enterprise risk function and shape insurance, risk-financing, claims, and risk-transfer strategies supporting ongoing growth. You will own the enterprise risk-management strategy, design and renew insurance programs, and collaborate with executive leadership on contractual risk transfer and standards across projects.

The role requires 10+ years in construction risk management, CRIS designation, and a proven track record in

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Risk Management, Insurance, Finance, Business Administration, or a related field.
• 10+ years of progressive construction risk management and commercial insurance experience including insurance placement and renewals, claims governance, CCIP/OCIP.
• CRIS designation required; ARM/CPCU or similar advanced designation preferred.
• Extensive knowledge of construction insurance lines (GL, WC, Builder's Risk, Excess/Umbrella, Professional Liability, Pollution/Environmental, Auto, Cyber, D&O).
• Proven people leadership, building and developing a risk team.
• Executive-level communication and negotiation skills with senior leadership, brokers, and carriers.
• Experience with alternative risk financing and single-parent captive structures.
• Experience managing surety and bonding programs in general contractor or design-build environments.
• Strong analytical and financial-modeling skills including TCOR; experience with claims analytics and forecasting.
• Preferred: experience in general contractor or design-build firms; deep understanding of construction operations and project delivery.

Responsibilities

• Own enterprise risk-management strategy across ARCO's family of companies.
• Lead design, placement, renewal, and stewardship of corporate and project insurance programs.
• Assist the Chief Legal Officer in setting contractual risk transfer standards.
• Own risk analysis and governance for major project pursuits and growth initiatives.
• Lead and develop the Risk team and scale services for new markets.
• Build and stand up the risk program as the first executive leader and hire subsequent layers.
• Advise CEO and senior leaders on risk appetite, exposures, and program performance.
• Direct subcontractor prequalification and insurance-compliance frameworks.
• Develop risk-management frameworks for supplier, subcontractor, and supply-chain exposures.
• Oversee annual renewal process and allocation of insurance costs across entities.

Skills

Executive leadership

Strategic thinking

Negotiation

Communication with executives

Risk analytics

Education

Bachelor's degree in Risk Management/Insurance/Finance/Business Admin

CRIS designation

MBA/JD or similar advanced degree

Tools

myCOI

wrap-up software

Job description

ABOUT YOU

Are you an experienced construction risk leader who understands how insurance, claims, contractual risk transfer, and business operations work together to protect and enable a growing organization? Do you enjoy building programs, developing teams, and partnering with executive leadership to turn complex risk into practical business solutions? If the answer is “Yes!” then we have an exciting opportunity for you.

Who are we? We are ARCO, a Family of Construction Companies. We are seeking a Director of Risk Management to lead our enterprise risk function and help shape the insurance, risk-financing, claims, and risk-transfer strategies that support our continued growth.

A DAY IN THE LIFE

• Own and set ARCO's enterprise risk-management strategy across the family of construction companies, translating business objectives into insurance program design, risk-transfer standards, and long-term risk financing

• Lead the design, placement, renewal, and stewardship of ARCO's corporate and project insurance programs, directing broker RFPs, market negotiations, and carrier relationships to optimize coverage, pricing, and terms

• Assist the Chief Legal Officer in setting enterprise standards for contractual risk transfer (indemnification, additional insured, waivers of subrogation, limitation of liability) and partner with Legal on complex or non-standard positions — the standards the Risk Manager and risk staff apply day to day

• Own risk analysis and governance for major project pursuits and strategic growth initiatives, establishing and leading project risk review protocols that evaluate contractual, operational, financial, insurance, and surety exposures before project commitment

• Lead, manage, mentor, and develop the Risk team (Risk Manager, Assistant Risk Manager, Risk Coordinator, and Risk Analyst), scaling risk services to support ARCO's growth and expansion into new markets (e.g., federal, data centers, power and infrastructure)

• As the risk function's first dedicated executive leader, personally build and run the program hands-on during the initial stand-up, then design, justify, and hire the team layers beneath — including a Senior Risk Manager — as the function scales

• Serve as the enterprise's senior risk advisor to the CEO, CAO, CFO, CLO, Safety on risk appetite, emerging exposures, and program performance

• Direct subcontractor prequalification and insurance-compliance frameworks, ensuring consistent risk thresholds across all subcontract awards

• Develop risk-management frameworks addressing critical supplier, subcontractor, and supply-chain exposures that could impact project profitability, schedule, and client obligations

• Oversee the annual renewal process end to end, including underwriting data, exposure summaries, and allocation of insurance costs across entities and projects

• Own optimization of ARCO's total cost of risk (TCOR) by strategically structuring program coverages, limits, deductibles, and retentions

• Evaluate, design, and oversee alternative risk-financing structures — including ARCO's single-parent captive, serving as or supporting the executive sponsor for captive governance, including board reporting, actuarial strategy, capital planning, and reinsurance purchasing — and controlled insurance programs (CCIP/OCIP) on both a project-specific and master/portfolio basis, advising project teams on owner-sponsored and contractor-sponsored structures and evaluating risk retention, coverage adequacy, wrap participation, and financial impact

• Partner with IT, Compliance, and Legal to oversee enterprise cyber-risk financing strategy, incident-response readiness, third-party technology risk, and cyber-insurance program performance

• Partner with CLO to direct enterprise claims governance across GL, WC, Builder's Risk, Professional, and other lines — including reserving philosophy, litigation strategy, subrogation, and quarterly claim reviews — to reduce severity and protect financial outcomes

• Partner with CLO to oversee ARCO's surety and bonding program, coordinating with sureties and brokers on capacity, performance and payment bonds, and overall bonding strategy

• Partner with CLO and Compliance Team to maintain an enterprise risk register and reporting framework, translating loss trends, premium data, and operational metrics into executive recommendations

• Lead insurance and risk-management due diligence for acquisitions, integrations, and divestitures, including historical liability assessment, program harmonization, and post-acquisition risk strategy

NECESSARY QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor's degree in Risk Management, Insurance, Finance, Business Administration, or a related field (or equivalent experience)

• 10+ years of progressive construction risk management and commercial insurance experience, including direct ownership of insurance placement and renewals, claims governance, controlled insurance programs (CCIP/OCIP), and contractual risk transfer

• CRIS designation required; ARM, CPCU, or a similar advanced designation strongly preferred

• Extensive knowledge of construction insurance coverage lines, including Commercial General Liability, Workers' Compensation, Builder's Risk, Excess/Umbrella, Professional Liability, Pollution/Environmental, Automobile, Cyber, and Management Liability (D&O)

• Demonstrated people-leadership experience — building, managing, and developing a risk team

• Executive-level communication and negotiation skills, with the ability to advise and influence senior leadership, brokers, and carriers, and to present complex risk topics to boards of directors and financial stakeholders

• Experience with alternative risk financing and single-parent captive structures

• Experience managing surety and bonding programs (performance and payment bonds) in a general-contractor or design-build environment

• Strong analytical and financial-modeling skills, including total cost of risk (TCOR) analysis and loss forecasting; experience leveraging claims analytics, predictive modeling, benchmarking, and business intelligence tools to support risk-financing decisions

• Preferred: experience within a general contractor, design-build firm, or construction-focused insurance brokerage of comparable scale ($1B+ in revenue)

• Preferred: deep understanding of construction operations, project delivery models, scheduling, project controls, and the financial drivers of construction profitability

• Preferred: MBA, JD, or other advanced degree

• Preferred: familiarity with contract insurance review under AIA, ConsensusDocs, and custom owner agreements; experience with risk/COI platforms such as myCOI and wrap-up administration software

WHAT WE CAN OFFER YOU

We are dedicated to the well-being of our associates and are proud to be consistently recognized as a Best Place to Work. Our compensation and benefits package not only supports our associates and their families but benefits local communities and communities around the world.

• Industry-leading performance-based bonus program

• Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP)

• Traditional and Roth 401k

• Tuition reimbursement for associates

• Scholarship for associates’ children up to $28,000 per child

• 1-month paid sabbatical after every five years of employment, plus $5,000 for travel

• 1-week paid volunteer leave each year

• 100% charitable match

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance coverage

• 100% paid 12-week maternity leave

At ARCO, our first core value is to treat people fairly and do the right thing. We are proud to be a drug-free workplace and an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment.

From recruiting, training, and hiring practices to selecting our subcontractors, we understand that the diversity of all those involved in the construction process enhances our ability to deliver the best solutions to our customers. We hire the best and the brightest from across the country – constructing a team of experts in architecture, design, engineering, project management, and business services. #LI-JM4 #LI-Onsite

MAKE YOUR MOVE

We are proud to be one of the fastest-growing, privately-owned companies in America, celebrating over 30 years of experience as design-build experts. We have completed over 7,500 design-build projects nationwide. We ranked #9 on ENR’s Design-Build Firms list and #34 on ENR's Top 400 Contractors list of 2026. Most importantly, our clients like us, trust us, and want to do business with us. We are looking for people with the same enthusiasm, passion, and respect for the hard work that brought us to where we are today. Are you a person who can make a difference at ARCO? If the answer is “Yes!” we look forward to meeting you.

ARCO does not accept unsolicited resumes from individual recruiters or third-party recruiting agencies without pre-approval from ARCO’s Human Resources team. Pre-approval is required before any external candidate can be submitted. ARCO will not be responsible for fees related to unsolicited resumes and for candidates who are sent directly to our hiring managers. Agencies must have a fully executed vendor agreement in place as well as written approval to submit candidates from an ARCO TA Manager for a specific position before submitting candidates.

LEGAL DISCLAIMER

EOE, including disability/vets