Senior Associate, Cost Management

About the Company

Ares’ success is driven by our people and culture, guided by core values—Collaborative, Responsible, Entrepreneurial, Self-Aware, Trustworthy—and a purpose to be a catalyst for shared prosperity and a better future. Through recruitment, career development, and employee-focused programming, we foster a welcoming and inclusive work environment where high-performance talent of diverse backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives can build careers in this growing industry.

Ada Infrastructure, part of Ares Management Corporation (NYSE: ARES), is a global data center business committed to being a positive force for technology, people, and the planet. With nine in-flight campuses across the US, Japan, the UK, and Brazil, Ada has over 850 MW of power currently available and more than 1,500 MW in its global pipeline.

About the Role

This role is an excellent opportunity to join a deeply experienced and high-performing team, directly impacting Ada’s development program. The Global Design, Development, and Delivery team develops and curates Ada’s global data center development program through scalable, repeatable, and agile tools and processes. This role provides global leadership and direction, enabling regional teams to design and deliver scalable, future-ready solutions that meet evolving customer needs.

Responsibilities

• Support the development, publication, and maintenance of top-down cost targets and benchmarking assumptions by market and archetype.
• Provide estimating support to optimize global design standards and associated kit of parts; challenge assumptions and quantify variance drivers.
• Drive consistent cost management practices across assigned projects, including estimating, budgeting, forecasting, contingency tracking, and cost reporting.
• Maintain discipline around cost evolution from underwriting through delivery; produce clear budget bridges and variance narratives.
• Partner with Business Intelligence to ensure definitions, data quality expectations, and reporting cadence are met.
• Develop cost-focused KPI views and executive-ready summaries that surface early warning signals and recommended actions.
• Support North America Delivery and Development teams with project-level budget governance, including commitments, actuals, forecasts, and cash flow inputs across all WBS items (AOR/EOR, GCs, subs, and LLE vendors).
• Validate escalation/inflation and regional market assumptions impacting CAPEX; document impacts and communicate to stakeholders.
• Support Investment, PMG, and Delivery teams with underwriting cost inputs, sensitivities, and updates through development phases.
• Review and validate scope change costs, track contingency drawdown, and ensure auditability.
• Coordinate with regional teams to visualize variance analysis and budget bridge data presentations.
• Oversee and manage day-to-day outputs from third-party cost consultants in North America (e.g., Turner & Townsend, Soben, Linesight); ensure deliverables meet internal and external reporting standards.
• Contribute to continuous improvement by capturing lessons learned and helping develop standard templates, playbooks, and training materials for cost management.

Requirements

• 7–10+ years of progressive experience in cost management, quantity surveying, or commercial management (mission-critical/complex infrastructure preferred).
• Demonstrated experience executing estimating, budgeting, forecasting, and cost controls across multiple concurrent projects.
• Strong understanding of CAPEX cost planning, contingency management, and cost-focused change control (scope vs. estimate evolution).
• Expert-level proficiency in Procore cost modules and exposure to ERP systems such as Yardi and Yardi Construction Manager.
• Experience partnering with investment/underwriting and maintaining cost inputs, assumptions, and sensitivities in business case models.
• Proven ability to manage and challenge tier-one cost consultants and professional services firms; set expectations and drive quality.
• Advanced financial and cost modeling capability (Excel-based models; comfort with CAPEX, cash flow, and return sensitivities).
• Strong communication skills: ability to translate cost data into clear, executive-ready insights and actionable recommendations.

Reporting Relationships

Reports to the Managing Director, Head of North America & CTO, Ada.

Pay

The anticipated base salary range for this position is $180,000.00 - $210,000.00. Total compensation may also include a discretionary performance-based bonus.

Benefits

• Comprehensive Medical/Rx, Dental, and Vision plans.
• 401(k) program with company match.
• Flexible Savings Accounts (FSA) and Healthcare Savings Accounts (HSA) with company contribution.
• Basic and Voluntary Life Insurance; Long-Term Disability (LTD) and Short-Term Disability (STD) insurance.
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and Commuter Benefits plan for parking and transit.
• Access to a world-class medical advisory team and a mental health app (including coaching, therapy, and psychiatry).
• Mindfulness and wellbeing app, financial wellness benefit (including access to a financial advisor).
• New parent leave, reproductive and adoption assistance, emergency backup care.
• Matching gift program and education sponsorship program.