Director, Data Center Delivery
hace 5 días
Atlanta
Director, Data Center Delivery Atlanta, Georgia (On-Site) Valor Front Executive Search has been exclusively retained to identify a Director, Data Center Delivery for a private real estate investment, acquisition, and development firm. This is a confidential search on behalf of a well-capitalized platform with a national footprint, 300+ completed projects, $40B+ in real estate investments, in-house construction capability, and a dedicated digital infrastructure platform delivering hyperscale data center campuses across the U.S. About the Opportunity Our client is aggressively scaling into hyperscale data center development, with flagship campus projects valued in the billions, active land positions across multiple states, and partnerships with marquee hyperscale operators. This is a ground-floor opportunity to help shape the standards, playbooks, and culture of a rapidly growing data center delivery platform backed by institutional capital and decades of development expertise. You will not be inheriting a fully built machine. You will be building it. The Director of Data Center Delivery owns end-to-end execution for new data center developments, serving as the developer/owner's delivery point person and driving predictable outcomes across schedule, cost, quality, safety, and operational readiness while coordinating internal stakeholders and external partners including GC/CM firms, design teams, commissioning agents, and major vendors. The Ideal Background We are targeting a construction-trained developer. Someone who built a strong foundation in GC or construction management, progressing from field or assistant PM to PM, and has credibility with field teams and superintendents. Then moved to the developer or owner side, owning delivery outcomes as a senior PM, Director, or VP, leading preconstruction and construction across multiple projects. Brings a disciplined toolkit, including preconstruction, value engineering, and critical path scheduling rigor, along with the communication cadence that goes with it. What You Will Do Serve as the accountable leader for delivery performance across one large project or multiple projects. Establish project controls and cadence including milestones, KPI reporting, cost and schedule forecasting, and risk and issue management. Align internal stakeholders across Development, Design and Engineering, Procurement, Finance, Legal, and Operations. Lead preconstruction strategy including constructability reviews, phasing and logistics, schedule development, and budget validation. Drive scope clarity and no-surprises execution through strong coordination with architects, engineers, and contractor teams. Identify long-lead constraints early and build procurement strategies to protect schedule. Lead selection of GC/CM and key partners including commissioning, testing, and major trade and vendor scopes. Own contracting discipline covering scopes, exhibits, change control process, and performance expectations. Manage changes proactively by evaluating impacts, negotiating outcomes, protecting contingency, and maintaining accurate forecasts. Provide clear leadership through the GC/CM while maintaining a strong on-site presence when needed. Champion safety, QA/QC, and schedule recovery planning and resolve constraints with urgency and structure. Ensure consistent standards across sites and partners. Drive turnover readiness, including documentation, training, test plans, integrated systems testing coordination, and acceptance criteria. Lead punch list closure, substantial and final completion, and warranty transition with clean handoffs to Operations. Deliver concise executive updates covering progress versus plan, risk register, mitigation actions, and forecasted outcomes. Build trusted relationships with utilities, AHJs, and key delivery partners. Required Qualifications 10+ years in construction and project delivery with meaningful experience in mission-critical and data center environments. Proven track record of owning outcomes across schedule, budget, quality, and safety. Strong working command of preconstruction disciplines, including estimating, constructability, value engineering, sequencing, and schedule management. Experience managing external partners as an owner or developer representative. Ability to operate up and down the stack, credible in the field, and effective with executives. Bachelor's degree in Construction Management, Civil Engineering, or equivalent. Preferred Qualifications Background in fast-paced design-build environments and strong contractor-facing leadership. Demonstrated progression into senior owner-side leadership in construction project management or development delivery. Leadership Traits That Fit This Role High ownership, low ego. Direct communicator. Calm under pressure. Structured problem-solver with strong judgment and follow-through. Builds alignment quickly and holds partners accountable without creating friction. Why This Opportunity Ground-floor impact in a high-growth data center strategy with meaningful capital and focus behind it, including multi-building campuses, utility-scale power enablement, and large land positions anchoring hyperscale growth. Institutional platform with entrepreneurial freedom, offering the benefit of a credible, well-capitalized sponsor with a deep track record while still enjoying speed, access, and autonomy within a lean leadership team. Direct line of sight to value creation where your success is visible in on-time energization, customer satisfaction, repeat deals, and portfolio growth. Collaborative, low-ego culture that values confident but humble leaders who can operate at a high level with investors, utilities, and hyperscale customers while treating internal teams and partners with respect. Hands-on, accountable leadership where you are deeply engaged in the work, not managing from a slide deck. Direct access to senior leadership and decision-makers with real input into where the firm pursues land, how it structures power, and how it sequences campus build-outs. About the Search This search is being conducted exclusively by Valor Front Executive Search, a top 1% nationally ranked executive search firm with 25+ years of experience and 1,500+ leadership placements. To express interest or learn more, please apply with 100% confidentiality.