Senior Director, Data Center Design & Engineering – AI Data Centers

This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, which manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for a Senior Director, Data Center Design & Engineering – AI Data Centers based in the United States.

In this senior technical leadership role, you will define and oversee the engineering strategy for next-generation AI data center infrastructure. You will establish technical standards and design principles covering electrical systems, mechanical infrastructure, power distribution, cooling, and facility resilience. Working closely with project, construction, procurement, and operations teams, you will ensure facilities are designed for reliability, scalability, and efficient execution. You will provide technical direction to internal engineering leaders and external consultants, overseeing critical decisions from initial design through commissioning and operational handover. You will also play a key role in optimizing high-density computing environments, including advanced AI and HPC infrastructure. This is an opportunity to shape large-scale digital infrastructure projects while building internal engineering capabilities and driving innovation across a growing data center portfolio.

Accountabilities:

• Own and continuously develop engineering standards, Basis of Design (BoD) documentation, and technical design criteria across electrical, mechanical, civil, structural, controls, telecommunications, and site infrastructure disciplines.
• Define, evaluate, and approve engineering architectures for medium-voltage and low-voltage electrical distribution, power generation, backup systems, UPS infrastructure, and mechanical cooling solutions.
• Establish appropriate redundancy, availability, and resilience strategies, including N, N+1, and 2N configurations, while evaluating technical and commercial trade-offs for high-density AI and high-performance computing (HPC) environments.
• Lead engineering coordination with utility providers and substation owners, covering load studies, grid interconnection requirements, substation and switchyard design, protection and coordination, metering, and energization sequencing.
• Provide technical leadership and direction to the Director of Data Center Design and external engineering consultants, reviewing and approving technical studies, calculations, single-line diagrams, equipment selections, and design deliverables at every project stage.
• Lead constructability assessments, value engineering initiatives, and design-for-schedule reviews in collaboration with Construction and Pre-Construction teams.
• Resolve complex technical issues, requests for information (RFIs), and design conflicts that require owner-level engineering decisions beyond the authority of consultants or project teams.
• Establish and oversee the owner-side commissioning strategy, defining commissioning scopes and levels, approving commissioning agents and test procedures, witnessing integrated systems testing, and authorizing energization and operational turnover readiness.
• Direct engineering-related operational readiness activities, ensuring complete handover documentation, as-built drawings, operations and maintenance (O&M) requirements, spare parts strategies, and maintainability standards.
• Evaluate and recommend equipment manufacturers, long-lead procurement specifications, and standardized equipment platforms, supporting procurement teams through technical bid evaluations and scope development.
• Assess engineering risks across the data center portfolio, identifying potential power, cooling, design, and system integration challenges and implementing appropriate mitigation strategies.
• Support customer and tenant technical requirements by reviewing design specifications, evaluating requested changes, and representing engineering capabilities in customer and partner discussions.
• Drive standardization and repeatability across projects, developing scalable design solutions that improve cost predictability, delivery schedules, operational performance, and infrastructure reliability.
• Build, lead, and mentor the internal engineering organization, defining technical roles, competency requirements, and professional development pathways as the business expands.
• Provide clear technical recommendations, project updates, and strategic engineering insights to project leadership and executive stakeholders.
• Foster a collaborative, inclusive, and accountable engineering culture built on professionalism, effective communication, and technical excellence.

Requirements:

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a closely related engineering discipline.
• At least 15 years of progressive experience in the design and engineering of data centers, mission-critical facilities, or large-scale power and industrial infrastructure.
• A minimum of 5 years of experience in senior technical leadership positions, with responsibility for engineering strategy, technical decisions, and multidisciplinary teams.
• Extensive knowledge of data center electrical infrastructure, including medium-voltage and low-voltage distribution, power generation, UPS systems, electrical protection, and coordination.
• Strong expertise in mechanical infrastructure, including chilled water systems, air cooling, liquid cooling, heat rejection, and thermal management for high-density computing environments.
• Demonstrated experience defining redundancy and resilience architectures and translating availability and uptime requirements into practical engineering design criteria.
• Hands-on experience managing utility interconnections, substation engineering, and energization planning for large-scale power loads.
• Proven experience leading commissioning activities, including Levels 1–5 commissioning, integrated systems testing, and facility turnover for mission-critical infrastructure projects.
• Demonstrated ability to manage external engineering consultants, contractors, and internal technical teams while maintaining accountability for design quality and technical outcomes.
• Strong technical decision-making capabilities, with the confidence to evaluate, communicate, and defend engineering recommendations to executive leadership, customers, and business partners.
• Extensive constructability knowledge and experience working closely with construction teams throughout design development, procurement, and field execution.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder-management skills, including the ability to explain complex engineering concepts and technical trade-offs to non-technical audiences.
• Strong organizational, analytical, and problem-solving abilities, with the capacity to manage competing priorities and make sound decisions in a fast-growing infrastructure environment.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Professional Engineer (PE) license is strongly preferred.
• Experience designing AI, high-performance computing (HPC), or hyperscale data center infrastructure, particularly liquid-cooled systems and high-density rack deployments.
• Previous owner-side experience with a hyperscaler, colocation provider, or large-scale infrastructure developer.
• Experience developing, implementing, and governing engineering standards or Basis of Design programs across multiple data center locations.
• Familiarity with relevant industry standards and technical frameworks, including Uptime Institute Tier concepts, ASHRAE TC 9.9 guidelines, NEC/NFPA 70, NFPA 70E, IEEE power system standards, and applicable energy codes.
• Master's degree in Engineering or an MBA.
• Experience working within a rapidly growing infrastructure organization and developing in-house engineering capabilities and technical leadership structures.

Benefits:

• Annual base salary ranging from $200,000 to $250,000, depending on qualifications, experience, and other relevant factors.
• Full-time remote working opportunity within the United States.
• Executive-level technical leadership opportunity with significant influence over large-scale AI data center development.
• Opportunity to shape engineering standards, infrastructure architecture, and technical strategy across a growing data center portfolio.
• Exposure to advanced AI infrastructure, high-performance computing, high-density electrical systems, and innovative cooling technologies.
• Opportunity to build and develop an internal engineering organization and establish scalable technical capabilities.
• Collaboration with senior leaders and multidisciplinary teams across engineering, construction, procurement, and operations.
• Professional growth through involvement in complex infrastructure projects and strategic engineering initiatives.

How Jobgether works:

We use an AI-powered matching process to ensure your application is reviewed quickly, objectively, and fairly against the role's core requirements. Our system identifies the top-fitting candidates, and this shortlist is then shared directly with the hiring company. The final decision and next steps (interviews, assessments) are managed by their internal team.

We appreciate your interest and wish you the best!

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