Data Center Construction Lead

Black Box; DeKalb (IL); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive compensation and benefits

Opportunities for advancement

Be part of a landmark data centerbuild

Job summary

Black Box is seeking a Data Center Project Manager to lead the construction of a major data center project. You will manage the full lifecycle from initiation to commissioning, applying PMO standards, safety practices, cost controls, and schedule management.

You will coordinate across teams, manage stakeholders, and ensure on-time, within-budget delivery, while maintaining high quality and safety standards.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Construction Management, Engineering, Project Management, or related field required.
• Minimum 5 years of experience leading construction/project management in data centers or equivalent infrastructure.
• Proven ability to manage complex projects across multiple contract models (GMP, design-build, fixed price).

Responsibilities

• Owns day-to-day DC Field Ops management (capacity, network services, physical layer)
• Develop, maintain, and manage detailed project schedules
• Oversee all phases of project execution, ensuring alignment with scope, timeline, and budget
• Identify and manage change events, applying best practice change management processes
• Continuous measure & drive service quality against defined SLAs/KPIs
• Acts as the on-site escalation point for planning, scheduling, work prioritization, and ticket resolution with cross-functional partners
• Define priorities, build roadmaps, and lead cross-functional delivery by holding owners accountable
• Manage changes to scope, timelines, and resources with clear stakeholder alignment and communication
• Enforce safety protocols and site standards across all project activities
• Maintain adherence to building codes and industry standards
• Participate in QA/QC for physical layer work and post-acceptance ownership
• Own EHS compliance and drive safe execution through audits and correct routing of out-of-scope work
• Apply project accounting practices to support forecasting, budget reviews, and financial reporting
• Monitor vendor performance, approve invoices, and track project expenditures
• Prepare presentations and lead briefings for internal teams and leadership
• Build trusted stakeholder relationships and represent field needs for tooling and process improvements
• Provide status reporting and roadmap updates on a regular cadence
• Facilitate cross-functional forums to keep teams aligned under time pressure
• Identify delivery risks and blockers early and lead mitigation efforts

Skills

Project management

Data center operations

Budgeting

Scheduling

Change management

Risk management

Stakeholder management

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in Construction Management, Engineering, Project Management, or related field

Tools

Bluebeam

Procore

Textura

AutoCAD

Excel

Job description

Black Box is seeking a Data Center Project Manager to lead the construction of a major data center project. You will manage the full lifecycle from initiation to commissioning, applying PMO standards, safety practices, cost controls, and schedule management.

You will coordinate across teams, manage stakeholders, and ensure on-time, within-budget delivery, while maintaining high quality and safety standards.