Design Manager

Design Manager - PHX

Does the thought of joining one of the fastest-growing, privately held data center companies sound exciting to you? Do you enjoy collaborating with team members to drive and operate some of the industry's leading and most innovative infrastructure solutions?

At Aligned Data Centers, not only do we celebrate success across our platform, we celebrate the very teams that drive and support that success! Our culture is founded in passion, engineered from innovation, and driven by the pursuit of operational excellence. We are a company dedicated to driving positive change in the industry through continuous data center innovation, diversity and inclusion, and corporate sustainability.

As part of our exciting growth, we are currently searching for a Design Manager.

This individual will support all aspects of major technical programs that are targeting both colocation and hyperscale builds, including oversight of employees and third-party organizations engaged in the preconstruction, design and construction phases. Working under supervision, this role requires strong communication skills, and demonstrates advanced organizational and time management competencies. A successful Design Manager with Aligned will possess a hunger to drive efficiencies and innovation, the humility to understand we are all working together during the construction process, and a heart to provide exceptional service to both internal and external customers and vendors.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Drive projects from inception through customer or business turnover, with heavy focus and leadership in the preconstruction and design phases of projects. The Design Manager assumes project lead role at design hand-off meeting from the land enablement team and shifts overall project leadership to the Construction Manager (CM) at GC mobilization.
• Direct accountabilities include:
• Coordination/communication with the land enablement group to ensure success with offsite improvements, early permitting, easements and environmental studies.
• Coordination/creation of project risk registers from land enablement phase through project completion/turnover to Aligned Operations
• Project design management:
• Lead/coordinate onboarding of third-party design team and creation of design schedule to support project needs.
• Oversee management of external third-party design team through project completion/turnover to Aligned Operations.
• Drive review and management of design deliverables; including stakeholder review and comment cycles.
• Hold design team accountable to design progression and design gating.
• Work with SMEs, Operations, and CMs to ensure design compliance with Aligned Design Efficiency Capture (DEC).
• Identifies design variances, tracks them and manages acquisition of necessary approvals, as required.
• Enforce design team's accountability to Aligned's Cost Control Log (CCL) and Complies, Deviates, Excludes (CDE) matrices.
• Operates in lockstep with the CM on each project to ensure proper communications/escalations and regular reporting to all internal and external parties and leadership/management.
• Creates, manages and updates project metrics in Smartsheets (project dashboards) for each project.
• Owns or directs all administrative duties related to design management process.
• Assists CM with building and maintaining budget/cost models/all phases' budgets for each project, specifically around design costs and timelines. Works with CM to prepare and present all funding requests.
• Coordinates with CM to prepare and present quarterly project updates for leadership.
• Conduct technical review of construction plans with understanding of architectural design within data center environment. Communicate conceptual designs to multiple internal Aligned teams with required project documentation prior to and during construction. Cross reference to customer requirements as needed.
• In conjunction with CM, supports day-to-day program activities and initiatives (engage with architects, consultants, equipment providers, GCs, etc. Coordinate all project activities with building Operations while promoting safety and compliance initiatives and requirements on site.
• Performs as the primary support role to the CM from GC mobilization to turnover to Operations.
• Integrates with the sales and solutions engineering teams during the revenue generation process to meet with customers and ensure technical deliverables are met.
• Interfaces with customers through fit out design, construction and integration; accountable to successful delivery of customer contracts.
• Manages the project with the business in mind and works to ensure the project is meeting directives of CRC/SLT/Board.
• Operates with a constant mindset of continuous improvement, creativity, efficiency and innovation.

STRONGLY DESIRED WORKING EXPERIENCE AND KNOWLEDGE OF:

• Design engineering experience
• Building design process and design deliverables management
• Management of design teams
• Exposure to IPD, Design-Build, and/or construction management
• Data center design/construction experience, specifically with MEP systems
• Project Management Software (MS Projects, Prolog, Procore, BIM 360, or similar)
• Knowledge and experience working with CAD is a plus

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor's degree in Construction Management, Engineering or equivalent
• 5+ years progressive experience in successfully managing commercial construction project design programs, with data center experience strongly preferred
• Mechanical/Electrical background preferred
• Advanced experience in Excel, Smartsheets and/or AutoCAD
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to multi-task, with strong time and change management / organizational skills
• Ability to always maintain discretion and confidentiality
• Ability to understand and follow clear directions and meet specific deadlines with reporting, communication, and project schedules
• Team player across the organization with strong communication skills
• Ability to interpret construction drawings and specifications
• Knowledge of construction cost estimating methods and development of scopes of work
• Ability to understand construction project scopes
• Able to monitor and interpret design and schedule changes and forecast their impact on overall project costs
• May travel, at times, up to 25%

PHYSICAL DEMANDS AND WORK ENVIRONMENT:

• Frequently required to stand/walk/sit
• Frequently required to bend/climb
• Frequently required to utilize hand and finger dexterity
• Occasionally work near moving mechanical parts

COMPENSATION:

• $110,000 - $190,000 + Bonus

BENEFITS & PERKS:

Aligned Data Centers is proud to offer a comprehensive benefits package to support the health, well-being, and financial security of our team members. Eligible employees have access to:

• Health Coverage: Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Health Savings and Flexible Spending Accounts: HSA with employer contribution for eligible participants. FSA's offered for health and dependent care to increase tax savings.
• Retirement Savings: 401(k) plan with company match
• Paid Time Off and Holiday Pay: Includes sick and safe leave as required by Maryland law
• Company-Sponsored Insurance: Short-Term Disability, Life Insurance, and Long-Term Disability (with medical election)
• Optional Benefits: Voluntary life, critical illness, legal, and additional disability coverage
• Wellness Programs: Employee assistance program (EAP), Wellhub gym membership, and other wellness initiatives