Director, Construction Management

Working closely with the Regional Director, Platform Execution and other regional Directors, Construction Management peers, this Director will develop best-in-class construction management policies, procedures, tools, and best practices. Taking on a leadership role within the organization, this individual will also be a key player in developing and implementing a robust training and accountability program that ensures the performance of the Construction Management team members across regions.

About the role

This individual will possess an industry-leading reputation and history of providing leadership and direction in construction policies and procedures, partner relationships, accountability, training and employee development, AHJ and supplier relationships, and project and business predictability and profitability. This role will oversee and support a team that leads all aspects of major construction programs targeting both colocation and hyperscale builds, including oversight of employee and third-party organizations engaged in the preconstruction, construction, commissioning, and closeout phases.

A successful Director, Construction Management will possess a hunger to drive efficiencies and innovation, the humility to understand collaborative work during the design and construction process, and a commitment to providing exceptional service to both internal and external customers and vendors. This role will be responsible for the performance of all Construction Managers reporting into it per geographic region.

Responsibilities

• Direct day-to-day operations of construction management projects and lead a team of 2-8 direct reports in a geographic region to drive projects from inception through customer or business turnover, with a heavy focus on preconstruction, construction, commissioning, and turnover phases.
• Serve as the main point of contact for the construction management team in a particular campus or geographic region.
• Work hand-in-hand with the regional Director, Design Management to ensure performance certainty across all projects.
• Direct the day-to-day operations and long-term strategic direction of active and pipeline construction projects within the region.
• Provide guidance and leadership throughout the entire lifecycle of projects, ensuring they meet or exceed company expectations.
• Develop and maintain deep-rooted industry relationships with leaders in the contracting community, including general contractors, trade partners, design partners, and AHJs.
• Collaborate with Director, Construction Management peers in other regions to maintain consistency across all regions and projects.
• Assist the regional Director, Design Management in collaborating and coordinating with other design directors across all regions and projects.
• Interview, hire, and ensure effective training and development of new and existing staff.
• Report status, successes, challenges, and plans of action to the management team and company on a timely basis.
• Develop, manage, and be accountable for the achievement of key departmental metrics.
• Lead, evaluate, hold accountable, and develop the regional Construction Management team members in:
  • Providing guidance and project leadership for ground-up construction, remodels, renovations, and fit-outs, ensuring performance certainty of projects.
  • Organizing and leading cross-functional work groups, including design, engineering, procurement, land enablement, commercial, operations, IT/network, sales, solutions architecture, legal, brand strategy, finance, and accounting to achieve construction management best practices.
  • Developing collaborative relationships with the construction community, including general contractors, MEP trade partners, CSA trades, local Authorities Having Jurisdiction, design partners, and other key project vendors and suppliers.
  • Actively managing project budgeting from project inception through design phases and completion of building turnover.
  • Managing budgets during the design phase to utilize cost data as an input to design decisions.
  • Directing as many as 25+ external vendors per project, comprising general contractors, A&E design teams, commissioning agents, equipment suppliers, etc.
• Assist in the development and implementation of company and departmental processes and best management practices within areas of responsibility.
• Create effective tools to empower and incentivize contracting and design partners to innovate approaches and solutions for project delivery and specific challenges.
• Ensure effective contract administration, including generation, review, management, and monitoring of prime contracts, subcontracts, change orders, cost forecasts, and other pertinent documents and documentation.
• Assure that internal controls are in place at each step of the process.
• Inspect work in place and work in progress to ensure it meets or exceeds quality, specification, and schedule requirements.
• Advocate for self-growth and promotion by seeking out training, professional development, and career advancement opportunities.
• Provide subject-matter expertise in areas of responsibility.
• Operate in lockstep with the Design Manager (DM) on each project to ensure proper communications, escalations, and regular reporting to all internal and external parties and leadership.
• Integrate with the sales and solutions engineering teams during the revenue generation process to meet with customers and ensure technical deliverables are met.
• Interface with customers through fit-out design, construction, and integration; accountable for the successful delivery of customer contracts.
• Manage the project with the business in mind and work to ensure the project meets directives of CRC/SLT/Board.
• Operate with a constant mindset of continuous improvement, creativity, efficiency, and innovation.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Construction Management, Engineering, or equivalent.
• 12+ years of progressive experience in successfully managing commercial construction projects or programs, with data center experience required.
• Construction management experience, with at least 5 years of direct oversight team management.
• Exposure to data center design and engineering.
• Data center design/construction experience, especially with MEP systems.
• Deep network of leaders within the data center design and construction community.
• Ability to navigate AHJs within a particular region with a depth of understanding of local zoning, permitting, and inspection authorities.
• Experience in lean construction methodologies and tools.
• Active listening and collaboration skills to engage all stakeholders in the decision-making process.
• Thorough understanding of various project delivery methods, including IPD, Design-Build, and Design-Bid-Build.
• Thorough understanding of various contract methods, including lump sum, CM at risk, open book GMP, etc.
• Experience on major construction projects for a general contractor or an MEP trade partner as the senior leader accountable for project delivery.
• Advanced experience in Excel, Smartsheets, and/or AutoCAD.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to multi-task, with strong time and change management/organizational skills.
• Track record of mentoring and developing teams and individuals to take on new challenges and career opportunities.
• Ability to maintain discretion and confidentiality.
• Ability to understand and follow clear directions and meet specific deadlines with reporting, communication, and project schedules.
• Team player across the organization.
• Ability to interpret construction drawings and specifications.
• Knowledge of construction cost estimating methods and development of scopes of work.
• Ability to understand construction project scopes.
• Able to monitor and interpret design and schedule changes and forecast their impact on overall project costs.
• May travel at times up to 25%.

Skills

• Adaptability: Adapts to changes in the work environment; manages competing demands; changes approach or method to best fit the situation; able to deal with frequent change, delays, or unexpected events.
• Analytical: Synthesizes complex or diverse information; collects and researches data; uses intuition and experience to complement data; designs workflows and procedures.
• Business Acumen: Understands business implications of decisions; assists in developing budgets and experience understanding reporting budgets/financials; displays orientation to profitability; demonstrates knowledge of market and competition; aligns work with strategic goals.
• Change Management: Assists in the development of workable implementation plans; communicates changes effectively; builds commitment and overcomes resistance; prepares and supports those affected by change; monitors transition and evaluates results.
• Cost Consciousness: Works within approved budget; develops and implements cost-saving measures; contributes to profits and revenue; conserves organizational resources.
• Customer Service: Manages difficult or emotional customer situations; responds promptly to customer needs; solicits customer feedback to improve service; responds to requests for service and assistance; meets commitments.
• Dependability: Follows instructions, responds to management direction; takes responsibility for own actions; keeps commitments; commits to long hours of work when necessary to reach goals; completes tasks on time or notifies the appropriate person with an alternate plan.
• Diversity: Demonstrates knowledge of EEO policy; shows respect and sensitivity for cultural differences; educates others on the value of diversity; promotes a harassment-free environment; builds a diverse workforce.
• Ethics: Treats people with respect; keeps commitments; inspires the trust of others; works with integrity and ethically; upholds organizational values.
• Innovation: Displays original thinking and creativity; meets challenges with resourcefulness; generates suggestions for improving work; develops innovative approaches and ideas; presents ideas and information in a manner that gets others' attention.
• Interpersonal Skills: Focuses on solving conflict, not blaming; maintains confidentiality; listens to others without interrupting; keeps emotions under control; remains open to others' ideas and tries new things.
• Judgement: Displays willingness to make decisions; exhibits sound and accurate judgment; supports and explains reasoning for decisions; includes appropriate people in the decision-making process; makes timely decisions.
• Motivation: Sets and achieves challenging goals; demonstrates persistence and overcomes obstacles; measures self against standard of excellence; takes calculated risks to accomplish goals.
• Oral Communication: Speaks clearly and persuasively in positive or negative situations; listens and gets clarification; responds well to questions; demonstrates group presentation skills; participates in meetings.
• Organizational Support: Follows policies and procedures; completes administrative tasks correctly and on time; supports organization's goals and values.