Senior Director, Data Center Delivery and Quality Assurance

About the Role

The Senior Director, Data Center Delivery and Quality Assurance is a senior strategic leadership role responsible for establishing and leading an enterprise-level organization focused on data center delivery certainty, quality assurance, cross-functional execution, and operational readiness. This leader will provide executive oversight across large-scale data center construction, colocation delivery, base building, MEP infrastructure, tenant fit-out, white space delivery, staging, installation, integration, commissioning, site acceptance, and project handoff.

The role is accountable for creating the governance, standards, operating models, quality frameworks, and delivery assurance mechanisms required to deliver scalable, reliable, and future-ready data center infrastructure. The Senior Director will lead a high-performing organization of Directors, managers, project managers, engineers, construction professionals, quality assurance leaders, and technical specialists. This organization will operate as a strategic delivery and quality assurance center of excellence, serving as the connective leadership function across Solution Architecture, Design Engineering, Site Engineering, Construction, Commissioning, Operations, Procurement, Finance, Legal, vendors, colocation providers, and executive stakeholders.

This role requires a leader who can influence across a complex, matrixed environment; translate business and technical requirements into executable delivery strategies; independently assess project risk; strengthen accountability across internal and external delivery partners; and ensure every data center project is delivered with the quality, completeness, and operational readiness required for long-term success.

Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership

• Define and lead the strategic direction for data center delivery and quality assurance across the portfolio, including establishing enterprise-wide delivery standards, governance processes, quality expectations, escalation models, and performance metrics that improve delivery certainty and reduce execution risk.
• Build and scale a high-performing organization that can support complex data center construction and colocation programs across multiple sites, providers, and geographies.
• Drive alignment between business capacity needs, technical standards, construction execution, quality management, and operational readiness.
• Work with Business Operations and the PMO to establish and lead the enterprise strategy for data center delivery and quality assurance, defining the operating model, governance structure, decision rights, and escalation paths for data center delivery programs.
• Identify systemic delivery gaps and lead organizational improvements that strengthen consistency, accountability, and execution maturity.
• Ensure lessons learned are captured and incorporated into future delivery standards and best practices.

Organizational Leadership

The Senior Director will lead and mature a functional organization that includes the following capability areas:

• Delivery Strategy and Portfolio Governance: Coordinate with Business Operations and PMO on portfolio-level delivery strategy, governance forums, operating models, executive reporting, business reviews, performance metrics, and cross-functional decision-making processes.
• Data Center Delivery Leadership: Oversee construction execution, colocation delivery, regional and site delivery teams, tenant fit-out, white space delivery, schedule performance, field execution, and construction coordination.
• Quality Assurance and Quality Control: Establish QA/QC standards, quality gates, inspection and validation processes, design quality requirements, installation standards, integration standards, site acceptance standards, defect management, rework reduction, and corrective action tracking.
• Engineering, Standards, and Technical Integration: Align solution architecture, design standards, site engineering, staging requirements, installation specifications, integration specifications, constructability reviews, and technical issue resolution.
• Risk, Controls, and Delivery Assurance: Conduct independent project risk assessment, schedule and cost risk visibility, risk register governance, mitigation tracking, delivery readiness assessments, escalation management, and corrective action governance.
• Site Acceptance and Operational Handoff: Coordinate commissioning readiness, site acceptance criteria, closeout documentation, operational readiness checklists, project handoff standards, lessons learned capture, and transition to operations.
• Provider, Vendor, and Stakeholder Management: Manage colocation provider performance, vendor oversight, provider scorecards, stakeholder engagement, executive escalation support, and coordination with procurement, legal, finance, contractors, consultants, and delivery partners.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the Data Center Delivery and Quality Assurance Organization, providing strategic direction, executive oversight, and organizational accountability across all functional areas.
• Establish and mature an enterprise delivery and quality assurance center of excellence with embedded execution authority across data center construction and colocation programs.
• Define delivery standards, QA/QC frameworks, quality gates, operating mechanisms, escalation paths, performance metrics, and governance models to improve consistency and predictability across the portfolio.
• Drive cross-functional alignment across Solution Architecture, Design Engineering, Site Engineering, Construction, Staging, Installation, Integration, Commissioning, Operations, Procurement, Finance, Legal, vendors, and colocation providers.
• Oversee large-scale data center construction and colocation infrastructure projects, ensuring alignment with business goals, delivery commitments, schedule requirements, budget expectations, quality standards, and operational readiness.
• Build, mentor, and lead a team of Directors, managers, project managers, engineers, construction professionals, quality assurance leaders, technical specialists, and delivery assurance personnel.
• Review and evaluate complex data center construction projects delivered by colocation lease providers, including base building, civil, structural, architectural, mechanical, electrical, controls, plumbing, MEP infrastructure, commissioning, tenant fit-out, and data hall white space scopes.
• Independently assess project risk profiles and identify gaps in schedule, cost, quality, technical readiness, provider performance, construction execution, commissioning readiness, and operational handoff.
• Provide clear executive visibility into project health, delivery risks, quality issues, milestone performance, budget exposure, provider performance, and business impacts.
• Develop and implement long-term construction oversight models, delivery standards, QA/QC programs, and strategic execution plans to improve delivery certainty across data center and colocation projects.
• Lead the development and enforcement of design, installation, integration, site acceptance, quality control, and project handoff standards and best practices.
• Ensure technical requirements and business objectives are translated into clear, executable delivery plans from early planning through final acceptance.
• Partner with Solution Architecture and Design Engineering to ensure design standards, solution requirements, constructability considerations, and long-term operational needs are incorporated into project execution.
• Coordinate across Site Engineering, Construction, Commissioning, Operations, integration teams, and external providers to ensure seamless execution from design intent to field installation and operational readiness.
• Oversee construction execution by colocation providers and delivery partners to ensure work is completed on time, within budget, and in accordance with approved design specifications, technical requirements, industry standards, and operational expectations.
• Ensure project schedules are realistic, integrated, and aligned across design, procurement, construction, staging, installation, integration, commissioning, site acceptance, and operations.
• Lead quality control management of key deliverables, including design packages, specifications, cost and budget models, staging plans, installation packages, integration documentation, commissioning inputs, site acceptance criteria, closeout packages, and handoff materials.
• Establish and manage governance forums, including executive delivery reviews, project health reviews, risk reviews, provider performance reviews, quality assurance reviews, site readiness reviews, and operational handoff reviews.
• Serve as a senior escalation and decision-making leader for critical delivery risks, quality issues, schedule impacts, provider performance concerns, cross-functional dependencies, and readiness gaps.
• Manage high-stakes relationships with colocation providers, general contractors, vendors, consultants, and strategic delivery partners through scorecards, business reviews, corrective action plans, and continuous improvement processes.
• Ensure construction, installation, integration, commissioning, and acceptance activities comply with applicable regulations, codes, standards, safety expectations, and customer or client-facing requirements.
• Conduct regular project site reviews to validate schedule progress, construction quality, field coordination, risk mitigation, QA/QC compliance, provider performance, and readiness for site acceptance and handoff.
• Drive continuous improvement by identifying systemic delivery issues, capturing lessons learned, improving standards, and strengthening execution playbooks across future projects.
• Support domestic and international project engagement, including participation in meetings across multiple time zones as required.

Quality Assurance and Delivery Assurance Mandate

The Senior Director will stand up and lead the Quality Assurance capability for data center development and construction. This function will operationalize and continuously improve quality expectations across the full delivery lifecycle, including:

• Design quality
• Installation quality
• Integration quality
• Site acceptance QA/QC inspection and validation
• Quality gates and readiness reviews
• Defect, rework, and corrective action management
• Collaboration on project closeout and handoff documentation standards
• Implementation of operational readiness checklists
• Lessons learned and continuous improvement

The role will ensure that projects are not considered complete until they are accepted, documented, integrated, operationally ready, and transitioned with the clarity and quality required for sustainable operations.

Requirements

• Significant experience leading large-scale data center construction, colocation, hyperscale, or mission-critical infrastructure delivery programs.
• Deep expertise in data center construction, including base building, civil, structural, architectural, mechanical, electrical, controls, and plumbing (MEP) infrastructure.
• Proven ability to establish and lead enterprise-level delivery and quality assurance organizations, including governance, standards, operating models, and performance metrics.
• Experience in cross-functional leadership across architecture, design, engineering, construction, commissioning, operations, procurement, finance, legal, vendors, and colocation providers.
• Strong background in risk assessment, mitigation, and delivery assurance for complex infrastructure projects.
• Ability to influence and drive alignment in a matrixed environment with multiple stakeholders.
• Experience in managing high-stakes relationships with colocation providers, vendors, contractors, and strategic partners.
• Track record of building and mentoring high-performing teams of directors, managers, engineers, and technical specialists.
• Familiarity with industry standards, regulations, and best practices for data center construction, commissioning, and operational readiness.