Construction Director

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Job Description

Purpose

As a Digital Realty Construction Manager, you will play a pivotal role in overseeing the planning, coordination, and execution of construction projects related to data centre facilities. You will be responsible for ensuring the successful completion of projects within budget and on schedule, while maintaining the highest standards of quality, safety, and client satisfaction.

The Digital Realty Construction Manager is responsible for the planning, coordination, and oversight of the construction of our facilities which range from full builds to fit-outs, upgrades, landing stations or infrastructure. This includes managing budgets, schedules, and resources, as well as ensuring that projects are completed on time, within budget, and to the highest quality standards.

The ideal candidate will have a strong understanding of data centre construction principles and practices, as well as excellent communication and interpersonal skills.

In addition, this role will assist with improving the conception, definition and execution of our construction projects and be based on site full time whilst maintaining best practices as well as clear roles & responsibilities for any consultant support.

Job Magnitude

Latitude: This person will have the latitude to define and maintain best practice within the governance framework. They will work cooperatively with country management and internal/external stakeholders whilst being an integral part of the DE&C leadership Team.

Level of Impact: DLR spends significant amount of money on investment activities and the aim is to make sure we spend it as wisely as possible avoiding inefficiencies due to lack of coordination and communication or due to suboptimal optimisation driven from a local rather than a companywide perspective.

Budget: There will be budget responsibilities.

The primary purpose of the role will ensure consistent, efficient, predictable, timely and high-quality execution of our construction projects.

Responsibilities and Duties

• Project Planning and Coordination:
• Plan and manage the construction of our facilities from start to finish
• Develop budgets and schedules, and track progress against them
• Collaborate with stakeholders and general contractors to develop project plans, schedules, and budgets for our construction projects.
• Coordinate with internal stakeholders to define project goals, objectives, and performance criteria.
• Ensure that projects are completed on time, within budget, and to our quality standards

Construction Oversight:

• Oversee all phases of the construction process, from design development and procurement to construction and closeout.
• Manage the selection and negotiation process with contractors, subcontractors, and vendors to ensure compliance with project requirements and specifications.
• Be based full time on site to monitor progress, address any issues, and ensure compliance with safety protocols and quality standards.
• Review and approve construction documents, change orders, and other project-related documentation.
• Manage and motivate project teams

Budget and Cost Control:

• Develop and monitor project budgets, tracking expenditures and ensuring adherence to approved budgets.
• Analyse project costs, identify cost-saving opportunities, and recommend value engineering options without compromising quality and functionality.
• Review and approve contractor payment applications and invoices.
• Manage financial project control using standardised tracking sheets

Stakeholder Communication:

• Serve as the primary point of contact for operations, customers, providing regular project updates, addressing concerns, and managing expectations.
• Foster effective communication and collaboration among project team members, ensuring timely resolution of issues and conflicts.
• Participate in project meetings, presentations, and progress reports.
• Sets up and manages a governance, communication and reporting structure involving senior HQ stakeholders as well as individual country stakeholders to maintain constant synchronisation in order to help efficient and effective project execution.

Contract Management:

• Negotiate contracts with contractors, consultants, and suppliers. project specifications.

Quality Assurance:

• Implement and enforce quality control procedures to ensure construction activities align with industry standards and project specifications.
• Conduct inspections and quality audits to verify compliance with design intent and regulatory requirements.
• Identify and resolve any construction-related issues or deficiencies.

Additional Duties and Responsibilities

General:

• Accountable for project and campus success in: Safety, Quality, Schedule Milestones, Forecast Accuracy, Budget Accuracy
• Resolve problems and issues that arise during construction.
• Work to our guidelines, recommendations, and requirements with regards to project structure, required roles & responsibilities, risk management and the responsibility matrices.
• Manage and secure optimal adherence to the use of standardised approved template documents, be it briefing documents, design documentation, tender documentation, legal agreements or otherwise.
• Provide and maintains adherence to governance requirements including but not limited to progress reporting, financial tracking and reporting, Change Requests, H&S reporting, and escalation.
• On a case-by-case basis, assists the local project team if and when risks arise.
• Take best practice and implement a set of criteria for Change Request approval and oversee adherence and reporting.
• Assist Design Team with applying standardised designs as much as possible to enable reduced design costs, leverage buying volume and reduce operational cost.
• Manage the cost change process and negotiate best pricing in partnership with cross functional/matrixed team members in cost and schedule.
• Manage the schedule and associated risks to ensure reliable and predictable turnover dates. Reporting upward on opportunities, risks, and mitigations to ensure predictable delivery of capacity.
• Accountable for the development of cost savings solutions and early identification of project savings/underruns to ensure target values are maintained which providing predictable delivery of capacity to the business.
• Promote and model an attitude of continuous improvement, partnership, and teamwork in behaviours and communications

Essential Knowledge

• 10+ years' experience working construction project management, preferably in data centres
• Strong background in Project Management methodologies
• Experience in managing a construction project.
• Experience in Continuous Process Improvement and defining and managing associated metrics and KPIs.
• Experience in data centres or a similar mission critical environment is considered a significant advantage though not essential this will be a key consideration should multiple candidates be assessed for suitability.
• Experience of working in a European multi-cultural environment

Competencies

The role will require the individual to have or be:

• Problem-solving skills
• Project management skills
• People Management and influencing skills
• Analytical
• Stress-resilient
• Communication skills, sensitive to cultural differences
• Pro-active
• Customer focus
• Flexible
• Attention to detail
• Good digital competence

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in construction management, engineering, or a related field (relevant work experience may be considered in lieu of a degree).
• Proven experience as a construction manager, preferably with a focus on data center projects.
• Strong knowledge of construction processes, methodologies, and best practices.
• Familiarity with data center design, infrastructure, and MEP (mechanical, electrical, plumbing) systems.
• Proficiency in project management software and tools.
• Excellent communication, negotiation, and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously and prioritize tasks effectively.
• Strong attention to detail and commitment to delivering high-quality results.
• Understanding of relevant building codes, regulations, and industry standards.

Additional Requirements

Languages:

English needs to be excellent, both oral and written

Another European language much preferred