Ryan Sooter

Ryan grew up in Kansas and went on to earn a Bachelor of Science in Construction Science and Management from Kansas State University. After graduation he entered the construction industry at ground level and spent the next 13 years working his way from the field through estimating, project management, and EPC program management across a wide range of sectors and project types.

During that time Ryan managed projects ranging from small renovations to a $130 million industrial terminal program, coordinating engineering, procurement, and construction teams across multiple disciplines simultaneously. His project experience spans residential, commercial, multi-family, heavy industrial, oil and gas, renewables, chemical processing, healthcare, sports stadiums, and FAA-regulated airport work. That breadth across sectors gives him a perspective most construction professionals never develop: the ability to walk into virtually any project environment and understand what is happening, what is missing, and what needs to change.

Throughout his career Ryan consistently saw the same gaps left unfilled. Owners investing millions in new construction without proper representation on the ground. Engineering firms focused on design with little appetite for the coordination and oversight work that truly protects an owner's investment. Facilities teams handed completed buildings with no knowledge of what was installed or how to maintain it. And contractors growing fast but chasing revenue without the operational systems to know whether that revenue was actually profitable.

Those gaps frustrated him for years. So he built a firm around solving them.

Ryan launched RLS Building Advisors to fill those gaps directly. Through RLS Building Advisors he provides contract project management, owner's representative services, fractional facilities management, and construction operations consulting to contractors, developers, and organizations across the country that need senior-level construction expertise without the overhead of a traditional hire.

Ryan holds an OSHA 30 certification and a Kansas Class A Contractors License, and is also a licensed private pilot. He enjoys flying, the outdoors, and spending time with his family. Based in Wichita, Kansas and available nationwide.

Lilla Sooter is a SHRM certified human resources professional who brings people strategy and compliance expertise to the RLS Building Advisors team. Her background spans employee relations, talent management, onboarding, and HR policy and compliance, developed across highly regulated industries where getting the details right isn't optional.

That experience means RLS clients aren't limited to construction and operations support. When a project or organization surfaces HR needs, whether building out people infrastructure, handling employee relations, tightening compliance, or standing up onboarding and talent processes, Lilla is there to cover it. Clients get experienced HR support without the overhead of a separate hire.

Lilla holds the SHRM Certified Professional credential and is a certified Strategic HR Business Partner through the People and Culture Strategy Institute. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Economics and earned her Master of Arts from Kansas State University, and she is trilingual in English, French, and Hungarian. Outside of work, Lilla enjoys spending time with her family and playing volleyball. Based in Wichita, Kansas, and available nationwide.