Senior Manager, Data Centre Operations

AirSearch; England; On-site; GBP 85,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading data centre operator seeks an experienced Senior Manager, Data Centre Operations to oversee the operational performance and resilience of a major data centre campus in London. This role demands strong leadership capabilities in critical environments, with responsibilities extending to operational management, compliance with ISO standards, and stakeholder engagement. Candidates must have a robust technical background in electrical and mechanical systems and proven experience in incident management. The position offers a competitive salary and excellent benefits.

Benefits

Annual Travel Allowance

Annual Car Allowance

Private Medical & Dental Plan

Pension Plan

Wellbeing support

Qualifications

• Proven leadership of engineering and operations teams in a 24/7 environment.
• Strong technical understanding of mechanical and electrical systems.
• Experience with root cause analysis and operational risk management.

Responsibilities

• Oversee daily data centre operations adhering to uptime and safety standards.
• Lead Facilities Manager and M&E Manager in strategic direction.
• Manage operational risk registers and capacity planning.

Skills

Data centre operations management

Strong technical understanding of electrical systems

Excellent stakeholder engagement

Incident management

Customer-centric approach

Education

5+ years in critical environment operations

Tools

BMS/EPMS

CMMS platforms

Job description

Senior Manager, Data Centre Operations

Location : London

Reporting to : Director, EMEA Data Centre Operations

Direct Reports : Data Centre Facilities Manager, Data Centre M&E Manager

Salary : £85,000–£100,000 + allowances & benefits (detailed below)

About the Role

We are seeking an experienced Senior Manager, Data Centre Operations to lead the operational performance, service quality, and resilience of a major carrier-dense, globally connected data centre campus. The site supports mission-critical colocation services, high-density deployments, extensive interconnection ecosystems, and 24 / 7 operational demands.

This role oversees facilities operations, engineering / M&E teams, and incident management processes while ensuring excellence in service delivery and compliance with strict availability, safety, and security standards.

Key Responsibilities

Operational Leadership

• Oversee day-to-day data centre operations, ensuring consistent adherence to uptime, safety, and customer SLAs.
• Lead and develop the Facilities Manager and M&E Manager, providing strategic direction for engineering, maintenance, and site operations teams.
• Manage site operations across power, cooling, security, fire systems, critical infrastructure, and building services.

Infrastructure & Risk Management

• Ensure all critical systems are maintained to world-class standards, following rigorous preventive and corrective maintenance programmes.
• Lead root‑cause analysis, incident response, and post‑incident reviews for all operational events.
• Maintain operational risk registers, capacity planning, and resilience strategies.

Governance, Compliance & Standards

• Uphold compliance with required ISO standards, safety regulations, and internal operational frameworks.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives aligned with global data centre best practices.
• Work closely with compliance and security teams to maintain audit readiness.

Customer & Stakeholder Interaction

• Act as a senior operational point of contact for enterprise, cloud, and carrier customers.
• Collaborate with internal stakeholders including engineering design, commercial, security, and IT teams.
• Support customer tours, technical clarifications, and operational reporting.

People Leadership

• Foster a high‑performance culture within the operations team.
• Lead workforce planning, recruitment, succession planning, and skills development.
• Ensure teams adhere to safety, quality, and technical training requirements.

Standards & Compliance Requirements

Experience with the following standards is required or strongly preferred :

• ISO 27001 – Information Security Management
• ISO 20000‑1 – IT Service Management
• ISO 22301 – Business Continuity
• ISO 9001 – Quality Management
• ISO 14001 – Environmental Management
• ISO 45001 – Occupational Health & Safety
• ISO 50001 – Energy Management

Engineering Practices & Technical Experience

Candidates must demonstrate strong engineering competence across the following data centre disciplines :

Electrical Systems

• HV / LV distribution systems, transformers, switchgear, busbars and panel boards
• UPS systems (static & rotary), battery technologies (VRLA, Lithium‑ion)
• Generator systems, fuel delivery, and synchronisation controls
• Electrical Protection Systems (EPS), load testing and discrimination studies
• Grounding / earthing systems and power quality analysis
• Familiarity with N+1, 2N, and 2N+1 electrical architectures

Mechanical & Cooling Systems

• CRAC / CRAH units, chilled water systems, DX cooling and adiabatic cooling
• Chillers, pumps, cooling towers, heat exchangers and associated controls
• Hot / cold aisle containment and airflow management strategies
• Environmental monitoring and optimisation for PUE / energy efficiency
• Understanding of high‑density deployments (liquid cooling beneficial)

Controls, Monitoring & Automation

• BMS, EPMS and PLC‑driven controls
• Asset monitoring, alarm management, and remote telemetry
• Interpretation of trend data for predictive maintenance and incident analysis
• Familiarity with CMMS platforms for asset management and maintenance planning

Facilities, Safety & Critical Infrastructure

• Fire detection & suppression systems (VESDA, gas suppression, water mist)
• Access control, CCTV, mantrap systems, and physical security controls
• Compliance with electrical and mechanical safety legislation (UK‑specific)
• Authorised Person experience (AP / CP) for HV / LV or mechanical systems desirable

Operational Engineering Practices

• Creating and reviewing Method Statements, Risk Assessments, and SOPs / EOPs
• Hands‑on oversight of maintenance activities, change controls, and energised work restrictionsManaging engineering vendors, SLAs, performance reporting, and site audits
• Strong understanding of resilience, redundancy, failover paths and fault‑tolerant design

Skills & Experience Required

• 5+ years of data centre operations management experience within a critical‑environment setting.
• Proven leadership of engineering, facilities or operations teams in a 24 / 7 environment.
• Strong technical understanding of electrical / mechanical systems, BMS / EPMS, and critical facility infrastructure.
• Demonstrated experience in incident management, root cause analysis and operational risk management.
• Excellent stakeholder engagement skills, with a customer‑centric approach.
• Ability to operate effectively in high‑availability, multi‑site or campus‑scale environments.

Compensation & Benefits

• Base Salary : £85,000–£100,000
• Annual Travel Allowance : £5,000 (paid monthly)
• Annual Car Allowance : £5,650 (paid monthly)
• Annual Bonus : Equivalent to 2.5× monthly salary , paid every May
• Private Medical & Dental Plan
• Pension :
• Year 1 : 9% employer contribution
• Year 2 : 10% employer contribution
• Year 3+ : 11% employer contribution
• Additional benefits include life assurance, enhanced leave, wellbeing support, and professional development programmes.

Why Join Us?

This is a senior leadership opportunity within one of Europe’s most interconnected and engineering‑intensive data centre environments. You will shape operational strategy, drive engineering excellence, and ensure the resilience and performance of a globally significant critical infrastructure facility.

Apply Now!!!!