Senior Manager, Data Centre Operations
12 hours ago
London
Senior Manager, Data Centre Operations Location: London Reporting to: Director, EMEA Data Centre Operations Direct Reports: Data Centre Facilities Manager, Data Centre M&E Manager Salary: £85,000–£100,000 + allowances & benefits (detailed below) About the Role We are seeking an experienced Senior Manager, Data Centre Operations to lead the operational performance, service quality, and resilience of a major carrier-dense, globally connected data centre campus. The site supports mission-critical colocation services, high-density deployments, extensive interconnection ecosystems, and 24/7 operational demands. This role oversees facilities operations, engineering/M&E teams, and incident management processes while ensuring excellence in service delivery and compliance with strict availability, safety, and security standards. Key Responsibilities Operational Leadership • Oversee day-to-day data centre operations, ensuring consistent adherence to uptime, safety, and customer SLAs., • Lead and develop the Facilities Manager and M&E Manager, providing strategic direction for engineering, maintenance, and site operations teams., • Manage site operations across power, cooling, security, fire systems, critical infrastructure, and building services. Infrastructure & Risk Management • Ensure all critical systems are maintained to world-class standards, following rigorous preventive and corrective maintenance programmes., • Lead root-cause analysis, incident response, and post-incident reviews for all operational events., • Maintain operational risk registers, capacity planning, and resilience strategies. Governance, Compliance & Standards • Uphold compliance with required ISO standards, safety regulations, and internal operational frameworks., • Drive continuous improvement initiatives aligned with global data centre best practices., • Work closely with compliance and security teams to maintain audit readiness. Customer & Stakeholder Interaction • Act as a senior operational point of contact for enterprise, cloud, and carrier customers., • Collaborate with internal stakeholders including engineering design, commercial, security, and IT teams., • Support customer tours, technical clarifications, and operational reporting. People Leadership • Foster a high-performance culture within the operations team., • Lead workforce planning, recruitment, succession planning, and skills development., • Ensure teams adhere to safety, quality, and technical training requirements. Standards & Compliance Requirements Experience with the following standards is required or strongly preferred: • ISO 27001 – Information Security Management, • ISO 20000-1 – IT Service Management, • ISO 22301 – Business Continuity, • ISO 9001 – Quality Management, • ISO 14001 – Environmental Management, • ISO 45001 – Occupational Health & Safety, • ISO 50001 – Energy Management Engineering Practices & Technical Experience Candidates must demonstrate strong engineering competence across the following data centre disciplines: Electrical Systems • HV/LV distribution systems, transformers, switchgear, busbars and panel boards, • UPS systems (static & rotary), battery technologies (VRLA, Lithium-ion), • Generator systems, fuel delivery, and synchronisation controls, • Electrical Protection Systems (EPS), load testing and discrimination studies, • Grounding/earthing systems and power quality analysis, • Familiarity with N+1, 2N, and 2N+1 electrical architectures Mechanical & Cooling Systems • CRAC/CRAH units, chilled water systems, DX cooling and adiabatic cooling, • Chillers, pumps, cooling towers, heat exchangers and associated controls, • Hot/cold aisle containment and airflow management strategies, • Environmental monitoring and optimisation for PUE/energy efficiency, • Understanding of high-density deployments (liquid cooling beneficial) Controls, Monitoring & Automation • BMS, EPMS and PLC-driven controls, • Asset monitoring, alarm management, and remote telemetry, • Interpretation of trend data for predictive maintenance and incident analysis, • Familiarity with CMMS platforms for asset management and maintenance planning Facilities, Safety & Critical Infrastructure • Fire detection & suppression systems (VESDA, gas suppression, water mist), • Access control, CCTV, mantrap systems, and physical security controls, • Compliance with electrical and mechanical safety legislation (UK-specific), • Authorised Person experience (AP/CP) for HV/LV or mechanical systems desirable Operational Engineering Practices • Creating and reviewing Method Statements, Risk Assessments, and SOPs/EOPs, • Hands-on oversight of maintenance activities, change controls, and energised work restrictions, • Managing engineering vendors, SLAs, performance reporting, and site audits, • Strong understanding of resilience, redundancy, failover paths and fault-tolerant design Skills & Experience Required • 5+ years of data centre operations management experience within a critical-environment setting., • Proven leadership of engineering, facilities or operations teams in a 24/7 environment., • Strong technical understanding of electrical/mechanical systems, BMS/EPMS, and critical facility infrastructure., • Demonstrated experience in incident management, root cause analysis and operational risk management., • Excellent stakeholder engagement skills, with a customer-centric approach., • Ability to operate effectively in high-availability, multi-site or campus-scale environments. Compensation & Benefits • Base Salary: £85,000–£100,000, • Annual Travel Allowance: £5,000 (paid monthly), • Annual Car Allowance: £5,650 (paid monthly), • Annual Bonus: Equivalent to 2.5× monthly salary, paid every May, • Private Medical & Dental Plan, • Pension:, • Year 1: 9% employer contribution, • Year 2: 10% employer contribution, • Year 3+: 11% employer contribution, • Additional benefits include life assurance, enhanced leave, wellbeing support, and professional development programmes. Why Join Us? This is a senior leadership opportunity within one of Europe’s most interconnected and engineering-intensive data centre environments. You will shape operational strategy, drive engineering excellence, and ensure the resilience and performance of a globally significant critical infrastructure facility. Apply Now!!!!