Director of Health, Safety and Environmental

Join the future of digital infrastructure powering hyperscalers, AI innovation, and high-performance computing across North America.

About the role

The Director of HSE is responsible for leading and managing all aspects of health, safety, and environmental performance across 5C's national data center portfolio. This role is integral to creating a culture of proactive risk prevention, compliance, and continuous improvement. The ideal candidate will have a strong command of regulatory frameworks, experience implementing and auditing HSE programs at scale, and a passion for team leadership and cross-functional collaboration.

This role serves as the company's HSE subject-matter leader and is accountable for building scalable programs that support data center development, construction, commissioning, operations, and major maintenance activities. The Director will promote a proactive safety culture; maintain compliance with applicable federal, state, and local requirements; advise leadership on material HSE risk; and partner across Operations, Facilities, Construction, Security, Human Resources, and other functions to protect both people and performance.

Responsibilities

• Strategy & Program Leadership: Develop and execute an enterprise-wide HSE strategy, management system, policies, standards, and annual objectives aligned with 5C's business and operational priorities.
• Compliance & Policy:
  • Serve as 5C's primary HSE subject-matter expert and regulatory liaison for applicable OSHA, EPA, state, and local agencies, fire authorities, and other governmental bodies.
  • Monitor changes in applicable HSE laws, regulations, codes, permits, and industry standards; assess business impact and update company policies, training, and site practices accordingly.
  • Establish and maintain required HSE records, permits, plans, reports, and regulatory submissions, including applicable OSHA injury and illness recordkeeping and reporting requirements.
  • Develop and oversee environmental compliance programs applicable to each site, including hazardous materials and waste management, spill prevention and response, stormwater, air emissions, refrigerants, and environmental permitting.
  • Support the implementation, maintenance, and audit readiness of ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 management systems, where applicable.
• Risk Management & Auditing:
  • Lead hazard identification and risk-assessment processes, including job hazard analyses, safe work practices, control-of-hazardous-energy requirements, electrical safety, confined space, hot work, working at heights, and other mission-critical operational risks.
  • Establish contractor and vendor HSE standards, including prequalification, onboarding, site orientation, performance monitoring, and enforcement for construction, commissioning, and operational activities on multi-employer worksites.
  • Conduct and oversee routine audits, inspections, and safety walkthroughs across all data center sites; ensure findings, corrective actions, owners, and completion dates are documented and tracked to closure.
  • Lead the investigation of injuries, illnesses, environmental events, near misses, and high-potential incidents; ensure timely escalation, root cause analysis, and completion of corrective and preventive actions (CAPA).
  • Develop and maintain emergency preparedness, response, and crisis-management programs in coordination with site operations, security, business continuity teams, and local emergency responders.
• Training & Development:
  • Design and deliver role-based HSE training and communication programs for employees, temporary workers, vendors, and contractors; maintain required training records and evaluate program effectiveness.
  • Lead, coach, and develop a high-performing team of HSE professionals capable of supporting a growing national, multi-site portfolio.
• Collaboration & Continuous Improvement:
  • Define, monitor, and report leading and lagging HSE metrics and key performance indicators; identify trends and present material risks, incidents, regulatory findings, and improvement plans to executive leadership.
  • Partner with Development, Design, Construction, Commissioning, Operations, and Facilities teams to integrate HSE requirements throughout the data center lifecycle.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Environmental Science, Occupational Health and Safety, Engineering, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
• 10+ years of progressive HSE experience, including leadership responsibility for multi-site programs and teams.

Skills

• Regulatory & Technical Knowledge:
  • Extensive knowledge of applicable OSHA, EPA, and state-specific occupational safety and environmental requirements.
  • Demonstrated experience designing, implementing, auditing, and continuously improving enterprise-scale HSE management systems.
  • Experience supporting construction, commissioning, facilities, manufacturing, critical infrastructure, or other complex operational environments.
  • Demonstrated experience managing regulatory inspections, required reporting, incident investigations, root cause analysis, and corrective actions.
  • Experience developing contractor-safety and emergency-preparedness programs for multi-employer worksites.
• Core Skills:
  • Ability to influence leaders and frontline teams, manage competing priorities, and communicate complex risk and compliance matters clearly.
  • Strong analytical skills and experience using HSE metrics to identify trends, evaluate risk, and drive accountability.
  • Proficiency with Microsoft Office, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Teams.

Benefits

• Career Growth: Build a rewarding career in one of the world's fastest-growing industries.
• Industry Leadership: Help power the infrastructure behind AI and high-performance computing.
• Entrepreneurial Culture: Your ideas matter—we empower employees to help shape our future.
• Comprehensive Rewards: Competitive pay plus meaningful, lasting impact on the work you do.

Pay

$195,000 – $230,000

Schedule

• Hybrid work arrangement
• Travel requirements up to 50%