VP, Power Generation Development

About the role

The Vice President, Power Generation Development at Switch provides strategic leadership for the development and execution of utility-scale power generation projects that support Switch's long-term infrastructure strategy. This role is responsible for building and managing a portfolio of generation and energy storage assets that provide reliable, scalable, and commercially competitive power solutions for current and future data center growth.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute the long-term strategy for Switch's utility-scale power generation and battery energy storage portfolio.
• Lead the full development lifecycle for new generation projects from site evaluation through commercial operation.
• Identify, evaluate, and advance greenfield and brownfield development opportunities across competitive power markets.
• Direct multiple concurrent development projects, ensuring alignment with business objectives, schedules, budgets, and risk tolerance.
• Lead project planning for gas-fired generation, battery energy storage systems, and other emerging generation technologies.
• Evaluate technology options based on performance, reliability, emissions, operating characteristics, lifecycle costs, and commercial competitiveness.
• Develop project investment cases, capital cost estimates, financial models, schedules, and risk assessments to support executive decision-making.
• Lead interconnection strategy, transmission planning, and utility coordination activities.
• Oversee environmental permitting, land use approvals, air quality permitting, water resources, zoning, and other regulatory requirements.
• Negotiate commercial agreements including land control, fuel supply, transportation, EPC interfaces, equipment procurement, and development services.
• Build and maintain relationships with utilities, regulators, ISOs/RTOs, EPC firms, OEMs, consultants, landowners, community stakeholders, and strategic customers.
• Partner with Finance, Legal, Engineering, Construction, Commercial, and Operations teams to develop competitive infrastructure solutions.
• Monitor energy markets, regulatory developments, technology trends, and customer demand to identify future growth opportunities.
• Present project recommendations, portfolio updates, investment strategies, and business cases to executive leadership and Board-level stakeholders.
• Build, mentor, and develop a high-performing project development organization while establishing scalable processes, governance, and performance expectations.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Business, Energy Management, Finance, or a related field.
• 10+ years of progressive experience leading utility-scale power generation or energy infrastructure development.
• Demonstrated success developing gas-fired generation projects, including simple-cycle and combined-cycle facilities.
• Experience developing utility-scale battery energy storage projects.
• Experience leading projects from early-stage development through commercial operation, acquisition, or ready-to-build status.
• Strong understanding of competitive wholesale power markets, interconnection processes, transmission planning, permitting, and utility regulation.
• Experience negotiating complex commercial agreements and managing large development portfolios.
• Strong understanding of project economics, capital planning, project finance, and infrastructure risk management.
• Experience leading multidisciplinary teams and managing relationships with executive stakeholders, regulators, consultants, contractors, and utilities.
• Excellent executive communication, presentation, and negotiation skills.