Vice President of Data Center Operations

Vice President of Data Center Operations Fleet Data Centers designs, builds and operates mega-scale data center campuses. Fleet provides its customers flexibility and predictability to meet their upside demand forecasts, addressing a key need in the market as traditional leased models are struggling to keep pace with the demand for new Cloud and AI infrastructure. Fleet is led by a team of industry veterans that have already made a lasting imprint on the evolution of global digital infrastructure and are committed and uniquely capable of upleveling data center development scale and operations in the face of rising demand. Fleet is well positioned to bring in-house design, engineering and operational capabilities to collaborate with customers on tailored solutions for campuses of 500MW+. This unique model enables Fleet to provide the world’s largest and most sophisticated customers a seamless extension of their own data center fleets with constant access to design innovation. Fleet is headquartered in Denver, Colorado, with satellite offices in Seattle, WA and Arlington, VA. Position Overview: As our Vice President of Data Center Operations – North America , you will be responsible for building and leading all facets of data center operations—from physical infrastructure, critical systems uptime, and safety, to building and scaling high-performing teams. You will own the full operational lifecycle for Fleet’s North American Campuses, and play a key role in developing operational strategy, driving continuous improvement, and ensuring world‑class service delivery for our customers. You will partner closely with finance, construction, procurement, and customers to ensure successful campus launch and long term operational and financial excellence. This is a unique opportunity to architect and scale operations at a company that is redefining the data center model from the ground up. Key Responsibilities: Safety, security, and availability are the most important things we do. Deliver near-perfect operations on these three dimensions for Fleet, its employees, and its customers. Lead the end‑to‑end operational management of all data center sites, including facility management, maintenance, uptime monitoring, and physical security. Design and implement scalable operational processes and SOPs aligned with the best industry practices and compliance standards (e.g., Uptime Institute, ISO, NIST, SOC 2). Build and lead site operations teams including hiring, training, performance management, and leadership development. Develop and track KPIs for operational efficiency, capacity planning, energy usage, and uptime reliability. Operational efficiency to include year over year productivity and unit cost of labor improvements enabled by waste/rework reduction and automation business cases. Partner closely with Engineering, Real Estate, Construction, and Customer Success teams to ensure smooth handoffs and integrated planning. Design, build and scale Fleet’s data center operations teams responsible for the maintenance and repair of data center mechanical and electrical plant, network deployment and cabling, physical security operations and contract guard force, local health, safety and environmental operation and the associated spares, warehouse, and logistics across each of those operations. Develop annual operating and capital budgets in collaboration with finance, tracking variance, and ensuring cost discipline across all campuses. Own operational risk management, disaster recovery, and incident response planning. Create a culture of safety, accountability, and continuous improvement. Stay ahead of industry trends, technologies, and customer requirements, influencing product and infrastructure strategy. Represent Fleet Data Centers in the community, engaging with local agencies (permitting), community leaders, community colleges and schools, and political leaders as required. Own and represent data center outages to customers including event management, recovery, repair, and corrective actions. Clear‑eyed, calm, and steadfast when dealing with catastrophic events and delivering unwelcome news in the wee hours of the morning. Required Qualifications: 10+ years of experience in data center operations or mission‑critical infrastructure management, with 5+ years in a senior leadership role. Proven record of scaling operations in a high‑growth data center environment. Deep expertise in facility infrastructure systems (power, cooling, mechanical, electrical). Strong working knowledge of regulatory, environmental, and safety requirements for data center operations. Excellent leadership and team‑building skills, with a hands‑on, roll‑up‑your‑sleeves mindset. Experience with budget management, vendor negotiations, and facilities contracts. Strategic thinker with the ability to translate high‑level goals into detailed operational plans. Ability to travel to data center sites as needed. Experience with greenfield data center builds or early‑stage site launches. Background in energy efficiency, sustainability, or alternative power systems. Familiarity with colocation, hyperscale, and/or edge computing environments. Require operational paranoia, unapologetically high standards, humility, grit, curiosity, trust‑but‑verify, embrace failures, and never make the same mistake twice. Expected Salary Range: $275,000 - $325,000 plus Bonus Location: Seattle, WA (Mercer Island), but will also consider candidates from Denver, CO, Austin, TX, Reno, NV and Alexandria, VA as well as well qualified remote candidates. Travel and Schedule: May require up to 50% travel to sites and work with teams in person. Fleet Data Centers Employment Fleet Data Center employees enjoy competitive compensation and comprehensive benefits, including 100% employer‑covered medical, dental, and vision insurance, a 401K program, standard paid holidays, and unlimited PTO. NOTE: This job description is not intended to be all‑inclusive. Employees may perform other related duties as assigned to meet the organization’s ongoing needs. Fleet Data Centers is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. Qualified applicants are considered for employment regardless of age, race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or veteran status. If you need assistance applying for any of our open positions, please contact us at info@fleetdatacenters.com. #J-18808-Ljbffr